The structure of modern cultural theory - Softcover

Osborne, Thomas

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0719086469 ISBN 13: 9780719086465

Verlag: Manchester University Press, 2011

Inhaltsangabe

An interesting companion for students of cultural theory, concentrating on the four most influential thinkers - Adorno, Bourdieu, Foucault and Jameson

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Thomas Osborne is Professor of Sociology at the University of Bristol

Von der hinteren Coverseite

What is the point of cultural theory? Do we even know what it is? This book is at once an introduction to, and, broadly, a defence of modern cultural theory understood as a particular constellation of inquiry, one that may be all the more important in our postmodern times the more seemingly irrelevant it is to current fashions.

Focusing on the work of Theodor Adorno, Pierre Bourdieu and Michel Foucault the book argues that in spite of their differences these authors shared particularly 'modern' understandings of culture, creativity and human agency; understandings centred on the ideas of critical autonomy and creativity of thought. Even though all three were committed to scholarly empirical research, for them the function of cultural theory was not just to describe the world positivistically 'as it is' (or was) but to cultivate the conditions for ethical autonomy in their readerships by opening up ways for thinking differently and exposing the fetishisms and blockages that hinder that task.

This book is intended to be both accessible for students and challenging for specialists, making a plea for a renewal of the modern in postmodern times

Aus dem Klappentext

What is the point of cultural theory? Do we even know what it is? This book is at once an introduction to, and, broadly, a defence of modern cultural theory understood as a particular constellation of inquiry, one that may be all the more important in our postmodern times the more seemingly irrelevant it is to current fashions.Focusing on the work of Theodor Adorno, Pierre Bourdieu and Michel Foucault the book argues that in spite of their differences these authors shared particularly 'modern' understandings of culture, creativity and human agency; understandings centred on the ideas of critical autonomy and creativity of thought. Even though all three were committed to scholarly empirical research, for them the function of cultural theory was not just to describe the world positivistically 'as it is' (or was) but to cultivate the conditions for ethical autonomy in their readerships by opening up ways for thinking differently and exposing the fetishisms and blockages that hinder that task.This book is intended to be both accessible for students and challenging for specialists, making a plea for a renewal of the modern in postmodern times

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Manchester University Press
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2011
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0719086469
• ISBN 13: 9780719086465
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 180
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: Nicht verfügbar