Product Description

It has become an intellectual commonplace to claim that we have entered the era of `post–modernity′. Three themes are embraced in this claim – the poststructuralist critique by Foucault, Derrida and others of the philosophical heritage of the Enlightenment, the supposed impasse of the High Modern art and its replacement by new artistic forms, and the alleged emergence of ′post–industrial′ societies whose structures are beyond the ken of Marx and other theorists of industrial capitalism.

′Against Postmodernism′ takes issue with all these themes. It challenges the idealist irrationalism of poststructuralism. It questions the existence of any radical break separating Post–modern from Modern art. And it denies that recent socio–economic developments represent any fundamental shift from classical patterns of capital accumulation.

Drawing on philosophy and cultural history, ′Against Postmodernism′ takes issue with some of the most forthright critics of post–modernism – Jurgen Habermas and Frederic Jameson, for example. But it is most distinctive in that it offers a historical reading of these theories. Post–modernism, Alex Callinicos argues, reflects the disappointed revolutionary generation of ′68, and the incorporation of many of its members into the professional and managerial `new middle class′. It is best read as a symptom of political frustration and social mobility rather than as a significant intellectual or cultural phenomenon in its own right.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #367432 in Books
• Published on: 1990-02-22
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 207 pages

Review
′This book is indeed a pleasure to read.′ Radical Philosophy

′Erudite and intelligent study.′ Theory, Culture & Society

From the Back Cover
It has become an intellectual commonplace to claim that we have entered the era of `post–modernity′. Three themes are embraced in this claim – the poststructuralist critique by Foucault, Derrida and others of the philosophical heritage of the Enlightenment, the supposed impasse of the High Modern art and its replacement by new artistic forms, and the alleged emergence of ′post–industrial′ societies whose structures are beyond the ken of Marx and other theorists of industrial capitalism.

′Against Postmodernism′ takes issue with all these themes. It challenges the idealist irrationalism of poststructuralism. It questions the existence of any radical break separating Post–modern from Modern art. And it denies that recent socio–economic developments represent any fundamental shift from classical patterns of capital accumulation.

Drawing on philosophy and cultural history, ′Against Postmodernism′ takes issue with some of the most forthright critics of post–modernism – Jurgen Habermas and Frederic Jameson, for example. But it is most distinctive in that it offers a historical reading of these theories. Post–modernism, Alex Callinicos argues, reflects the disappointed revolutionary generation of ′68, and the incorporation of many of its members into the professional and managerial `new middle class′. It is best read as a symptom of political frustration and social mobility rather than as a significant intellectual or cultural phenomenon in its own right.

About the Author
Alex Callinicos is Professor of Politics at the University of York. He has authored many books including Making History (1987).

Customer Reviews

Enjoyable but limited review of Postmodernism
Callinicos discusses the various aspects of Postmodernism - the artistic, cultural, philosophical and political ideas - but doesn't believe they constitute a real break from modernism.

As a Marxist he argues that there are always two basic criticisms of Capitalism. The pre-capitalist critique essentially wants to return to a time before the rise of Capital, and is therefore pre-Enlightenment and essentially unprogressive. The other response is the Marxist response which accepts the developments of Capital - the Enlightenment, Democracy, division of labour etc - and wants to progress these changes forward to the next stage, in which the "promise" the Enlightenment is fulfilled: The massive increases in production are made available to the many, and the division between rich and poor is removed.

For Callinicos, Postmodernism is an example of a pre-capitalist response to Capitalism and modernity. It is anti-enlightenment and attempts to go back to a time before the rise of the enlightened political subject with rights and freedoms and instead to create a sort of dream reality where pleasure, boredom, indifference and consumption rule.

Callinicos is a clear writer who is able to summarise the ideas of others neatly - although sometimes missing their subtleties. He provides an interesting analysis of Postmodernism (aka deconstruction, poststructuralism etc) which the reader probably won't agree with, but this is one of those books that is worth reading because in disagreeing with Callinicos it will help the reader generate their own ideas on the subject.