DOCSLIB.ORG

{TEXTBOOK} the Spectacle of Disintegration: Situationist

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
{TEXTBOOK} the Spectacle of Disintegration: Situationist THE SPECTACLE OF DISINTEGRATION: SITUATIONIST PASSAGES OUT OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY PDF, EPUB, EBOOK McKenzie Wark | 224 pages | 28 May 2013 | Verso Books | 9781844679577 | English | London, United Kingdom The Spectacle of Disintegration: Situationist Passages Out of the Twentieth Century PDF Book Wark builds on their work to map the historical sta Following his acclaimed history of the Situationist International up until the late sixties, The Beach Beneath the Street , McKenzie Wark returns with a companion volume which puts the late work of the Situationists in a broader and deeper context, charting their contemporary relevance and their deep critique of modernity. Browse Menu:. Sort order. The Radical Fool of Capitalism. Kenneth Weisbrode. Stefanie Gaspar rated it liked it Aug 31, Rita Zajacz. We use cookies to improve this site Cookies are used to provide, analyse and improve our services; provide chat tools; and show you relevant content on advertising. Moments Politiques. LitFlash The eBooks you want at the lowest prices. Wark builds on their work to map the historical stages of the society of the spectacle, from the diffuse to the integrated to what he calls the disintegrating spectacle. More filters. Dispatched from the UK in 3 business days When will my order arrive? Debord is the man who famously boasted that while he wrote less than other writers wrote, he drank much more than other drinkers drink! These cookies are necessary to provide our site and services and therefore cannot be disabled. Cancel Save settings. The Divine Left. Add to Basket. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. Wark builds on their work to map the historical stages of the society of the spectacle, from the diffuse to the integrated to what he calls the disintegrating spectacle. Therefore the most important takeaway from this book is the point that Debord was not a philosopher but a strategist: he tried to work "situations" in such a way that they might do some good, that they might dispel or alleviate at least a little bit, the spectacle that surrounds us. Reading List. New New. See all books by McKenzie Wark. Delivery is free for the UK. After all, Wark was not a conspirator running alongside these actors: he talks in hindsight and in hindsight, only print and video seems to last. McKenzie Wark is a literate and compelling theorist. Wark builds on their work to map the historical stages of the society of the spectacle, from the diffuse to the integrated to what he calls the disintegrating spectacle. On Ambivalence. Verso Books 16 May Like the Situationists! The Fabric of Interface. They could be treated as histories of the Situationist milieu and its aftermaths, but to do so would miss entirely what makes them such compelling and, at times, hilarious reading. At once an extraordinary counter history of radical praxis and a call to action in the age of financial crisis and the resurgence of the streets, The Spectacle of Disintegration recalls the hidden journeys taken in the attempt to leave the twentieth century and plots an exit from the twenty-first. Other Editions 6. Performance and Analytics. Become a Member Start earning points for buying books! Click and Collect is available for all our shops; collection times will vary depending on availability of items. Most relevant reviews. Jacques Ranciere. The Spectacle of Disintegration: Situationist Passages Out of the Twentieth Century Writer Delivery is free for the UK. Refine Your Search. Moments Politiques. New New. The Principle of Hope, Volume 3. Peter Sloterdijk. Series of the book contains:. Average rating 3. Debord, who also boasted that his best work was only two words long: never work. At once an extraordinary counter history of radical praxis and a call to arms in the age of financial crisis and the resurgence of the streets, The Spectacle of Disintegration recalls the hidden journeys taken in the attempt to leave the twentieth century, and plots an exit from the twenty first. Your Shopping Basket. In my opinion that's really not the case because I think the artwork, the writing, and political philosophy will stay fresh in our rather horror world. Richard Freeman. Error rating book. Vivek Chibber. After all, Wark was not a conspirator running alongside these actors: he talks in hindsight and in hindsight, only print and video seem There seems to be an irony to this book, to the fact that it mostly follows the trail of the commodified debris that the Situationists left behind after the group disbanded. The Spectacle of Disintegration takes the reader through the critique of political aesthetics of former Situationist T. We use cookies to enhance your experience. Reluctant Power. Escape the Present with These 24 Historical Romances. Leslie Savan. Michael Bobick rated it really liked it Sep 30, Quetzaqoatl rated it it was amazing Jul 26, The Reputation Society. Thanks for telling us about the problem. The Spectacle of Disintegration takes the reader through the critique of political aesthetics of former Situationist T. The Worlding Project. Home Learning. Except for damaged items or delivery issues the cost of return postage is borne by the buyer. Corona, Climate, Chronic Emergency. Critique and Disclosure. Other Editions 6. The dustjacket unfolds to reveal a fold-out poster of the collaborative graphic essay combining text selected by McKenzie Wark with composition and drawings by Kevin C. Individual despatch times for each item will be given at checkout. Delivery Delivery Options All delivery times quoted are the average, and cannot be guaranteed. Stay in Touch Sign up. Wark builds on their work to map the historical stages of the society of the spectacle, from the diffuse to the integrated to what he calls the disintegrating spectacle. There seems to be an irony to this book, to the fact that it mostly follows the trail of the commodified debris that the Situationists left behind after the group disbanded. The Monumental Challenge of Preservation. Save on Non-Fiction Books Trending price is based on prices over last 90 days. Acclaimed author follows the work of the Situationist International after May Sign up here for discounts and quicker purchasing. Wark builds on their work to map the historical sta Following his acclaimed history of the Situationist International up until the late sixties, The Beach Beneath the Street , McKenzie Wark returns with a companion volume which puts the late work of the Situationists in a broader and deeper context, charting their contemporary relevance and their deep critique of modernity. Return to Book Page. Accept all Manage Cookies Cookie Preferences We use cookies and similar tools, including those used by approved third parties collectively, "cookies" for the purposes described below. McKenzie Wark wrote a fantastic book on the beginning and the middle part of the Situationist International in his first book "The Beach Beneath the Street. The Spectacle of Disintegration: Situationist Passages Out of the Twentieth Century Reviews Learn about new offers and get more deals by joining our newsletter. McKenzie Wark. At once an extraordinary counter history of radical praxis and a call to arms in the age of financial crisis and the resurgence of the streets, The Spectacle of Disintegration recalls the hidden journeys taken in the attempt to leave the twentieth century, and plots an exit to the twenty first. You can learn more about how we plus approved third parties use cookies and how to change your settings by visiting the Cookies notice. Jun 16, Inna rated it it was amazing. We use cookies to improve this site Cookies are used to provide, analyse and improve our services; provide chat tools; and show you relevant content on advertising. Version: 1. Other Editions 6. About this product Product Information Following his acclaimed history of the Situationist International up until the late sixties, The Beach Beneath the Street, McKenzie Wark returns with a companion volume which puts the late work of the Situationists in a broader and deeper context, charting their contemporary relevance and their deep critique of modernity. Verso Books 16 May Following his acclaimed history of the Situationist International up until the late sixties, The Beach Beneath the Street , McKenzie Wark returns with a companion volume which puts the late work of the Situationists in a broader and deeper context, charting their contemporary relevance and their deep critique of modernity. The Spectacle of Disintegration takes the reader through the critique of political aesthetics of former Situationist T. Patrick Burkart. At once an extraordinary counter history of radical praxis and a call to arms in the age of financial crisis and the resurgence of the streets, The Spectacle of Disintegration recalls the hidden journeys taken in the attempt to leave the twentieth century, and plots an exit from the twenty first. Clark, the Fourierist utopia of Raoul Vaneigem, Rene Vienet's earthy situationist cinema, Gianfranco Sangunetti's pranking of the Italian ruling class, Alice- Becker Ho's account of the anonymous language of the Romany, Guy Debord's late films and his surprising work as a game designer. Harry Potter. Any words. At once an extraordinary counter history of radical praxis and a call to arms in the age of financial crisis and the resurgence of the streets, The Spectacle of Disintegration recalls the hidden journeys taken in the attempt to leave the twentieth century, and plots an exit to the twenty first. Clark, the Fourierist utopia of Raoul Vaneigem, Rene Vienet's earthy situationist cinema, Gianfranco Sangunetti's pranking of the Italian ruling class, Alice-Becker Ho's account of the anymous language of the Romany, Guy Debord's late films and his surprising work as a game designer.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • A Questionnaire on Materialisms 45
    A Questionnaire on Materialisms 45 ALEXANDER R. GALLOWAY Not too long ago, being a materialist meant something rather specific, despite the capacious complexity of the term; it meant one was a Marxist. These days materi- alism generally means non-Marxism, or some variant thereof. What happened? As it was formulated in France in the eighteenth century and then more broadly across Europe in the nineteenth century, materialism was concerned chiefly with what Marx called the “sensuous activity” of society and politics, an undertaking guided by strict adherence to the modern if not nihilist mantras of secularity and critique. Today’s new materialism means something different. Methodologically speaking, the new materialism is dog-whistle politics for three things: empiricism, pragmatism, and realism. Some components of the new recipe don’t immediately jibe. For instance, philosophical realism, the view that an objective reality exists independently of thought and culture, clashes with empiricism, at least superficially, given empiri- cism’s dependence on sense experience. Nevertheless a shared interest in material reality has combined these otherwise distinct traditions into a new amalgam. The catalyzing agent can be traced to Gilles Deleuze, or more precisely to the form that Deleuzianism took in the English-speaking world during the late 1990s. Deleuze’s affection for empiricism is well known, excited as he was by the strict correspondence that David Hume forged between ideas and sense impres- sions, or, in another context, the attention that William James gave to what he called “pure experience.” Likewise James helped reorient Deleuze toward North American pragmatism, particularly its focus on process and material action unen- cumbered by abstract concept or cause.
    [Show full text]
  • Communication, Culture & Class by Mckenzie Wark
    Molloy College DigitalCommons@Molloy Faculty Works: Digital Humanities & New Media 2013 Low Theory, Review of Telesthesia: Communication, Culture & Class by McKenzie Wark Matt Applegate Ph.D. Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.molloy.edu/dhnm_fac Part of the Communication Technology and New Media Commons, Digital Humanities Commons, and the Social Media Commons DigitalCommons@Molloy Feedback Low Theory MATT APPLEGATE McKenzie Wark. Telesthesia: Communication, Culture, and Class. Polity Press, 2012. 241 pp. ccupy Wall Street (OWS) is the new and enduring object of political and intel- Olectual inquiry for the Left in the United States. Indeed, like the 1999 Seattle WTO protests before it, OWS is perhaps more momentous, more impactful, or even more ‘revolutionary’ in its after-eff ects and in its memorialization than it was in the time and space of its production. For some of us in academia that participated in local demonstrations or travelled to Zuccotti Park, OWS has become a thought ex- periment and a provocation as its physical manifestations have all but disappeared. Written in its wake, McKenzie Wark’s Telesthesia: Communication, Culture, and Class (2012) is an artifact of the occupation. It is simultaneously an attempt to rewrite the method through which radical thought is articulated in academic contexts and an attempt to surpass academic constraints on intellectual production given the event of OWS—in Wark’s words, Telesthesia is “a book about method […] but one that explains the method by performing it” (9). As a kind of action-oriented text, then, Telesthesia situates Occupy as both its launch pad and its medium, its provocation and its means of articulation.
    [Show full text]
  • Critical Pedagogy in and for the Anthropocene
    CHAPTER 6 NEW KNOWLEDGE FOR A NEW PLANET: CRITICAL PEDAGOGY IN AND FOR THE ANTHROPOCENE Conversation with McKenzie Wark McKenzie Wark is a writer and scholar. His works on hacker culture, gamer theory, the Situationist International, and theory for the Anthropocene continually attract significant public interest, and his experimental writings and multimedia works challenge and transcend traditional disciplinary borders between arts, research and social critique. Born and raised in Australia, he emigrated to the United States in 2000. Between 1988 and 2011 Ken held various positions at University of Technology, Sydney, Macquarie University, SUNY Albany and Binghamton and Eugene Lang College. In 2007, he was resident of a non-profit art and technology center Eyebeam in New York. Since 2011, he works as professor of Culture and Media Studies at Eugene Lang College at The New School for Social Research. Ken authored numerous scholarly articles and books and experimental writings. His books include I’m Very into You: Correspondence 1995–1996 (Acker & Wark, 2015), Molecular Red (2015a), Excommunication: Three Inquiries in Media and Mediation (2013) (co-authored with Alexander Galloway and Eugene Thacker), The Spectacle of Disintegration (2013), Telesthesia: Culture, Communication and Class (2012), The Beach Beneath the Street: The Everyday Life and Glorious Times of the Situationist International (2011a), 50 Years of Recuperation of the Situationist International, (2008), Gamer Theory (2007), A Hacker Manifesto (2004), Dispositions (2002), Speed Factory (2002) (co-authored with B Cohen, J Kinsella and T White), Celebrities, Culture and Cyberspace (1999), The Virtual Republic: Australia’s Culture Wars of the 1990s (1998), and Virtual Geography: Living with Global Media Events (1994).
    [Show full text]
  • NYC TOHP Transcript 166 Mckenzie Wark
    NEW YORK CITY TRANS ORAL HISTORY PROJECT https://www.nyctransoralhistory.org/ http://oralhistory.nypl.org/neighborhoods/trans-history INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT MCKENZIE WARK Interviewer: Michelle Esther O'Brien Date of Interview: June 20, 2019 Location of Interview: NYPL Midtown Administrative Offices, New York City Interview Recording URL: http://oralhistory.nypl.org/interviews/mckenzie-wark-vlu4rw Transcript URL: https://s3.amazonaws.com/oral- history/transcripts/NYC+TOHP+Transcript+166+McKenzie+Wark.pdf Transcribed by Caitlin Vasquez (volunteer) NYC TOHP Interview Transcript #166 RIGHTS STATEMENT The New York Public Library has dedicated this work to the public domain under the terms of a Creative Commons CC0 Dedication by waiving all of its rights to the work worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law. Though not required, if you want to credit us as the source, please use the following statement, "From The New York Public Library and the New York City Trans Oral History Project." Doing so helps us track how the work is used and helps justify freely releasing even more content in the future. NYC TOHP Transcript #166: McKenzie Wark - Page 2 (of 21) Michelle O'Brien: Hello. My name is Mich— I am Michelle O’Brien. And I will be having a conversation with McKenzie Wark for the New York City Trans Oral History Project, in collaboration with the New York Public Libraries’ community oral history project. This is an oral history project centered on the experiences of trans-identifying people. It is June 20th, 2019, and this has been recorded at the New York Public Libraries’ Midtown Manhattan Offices.
    [Show full text]
  • FORART LECTURE 2018 Mckenzie Wark
    FORART LECTURE 2018 FORART SEMINAR 2018 McKenzie Wark - Molecular Red These are Situationist Times Friday, August 31, 6-8 pm Saturday, September 1, 1 pm Litteraturhuset, Amalie Skram Torpedo, Rostockgata 28 FORART LECTURE For the 2018 FORART lecture, McKenzie Wark (New School of Social Research, New York), revisits economist and philosopher Alexander Bogdanov’s early 20th century theories on climate change in order to rethink labor with nature in the age of the anthropocene. The Friday lecture is followed by a Saturday seminar on the art and politics of The Situationist Times. Molecular Red: Theory for the Anthropocene: Reorienting thinking for the Anthropocene may be a more profound problem than we like to admit. There is no historical memory of having to revise worldviews to meet a change in geological time. And since the problems the Anthropocene presents such as climate change and ocean acidification are pressing, there is not time to embark on a long research program. However it may be of some use to take a step back into the archive, to find useful intellectual resources, in order to take two steps forward. In Molecular Red, I start with Alexander Bogdanov. He was Lenin’s rival for the leadership of the Bol- sheviks, before Lenin had him expelled from the faction. He was an organiser, theorist, scientist and the author of science fiction. He got the principles of climate change more or less right, twice. From Bogdanov, Molecular Red takes us on a journey through the archive, finding unlikely sources who took seriously the problem of organizing our labors in and against nature for long term survival.
    [Show full text]
  • Beach Beneath the Street
    THE BEACH BENEATH THE STREET THE BEACH BENEATH THE STREET THE EVERDAY LIFE AND GLORIOUS TIMES OF THE SITUATIONIST INTERNATIONAL MCKENZIE WARK London • New York This edition fi rst published by Verso 2011 © McKenzie Wark 2011 All rights reserved The moral rights of the author have been asserted 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2 Verso UK: 6 Meard Street, London W1F 0EG US: 20 Jay Street, Suite 1010, Brooklyn, NY 11201 www.versobooks.com Verso is the imprint of New Left Books ISBN-13: 978-1-84467-720-7 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress Typeset in Cochin by MJ Gavan, Truro, Cornwall Printed in the US by Maple Vail Contents Acknowledgments vii Introduction: Leaving the Twenty-First Century 1 1 Street Ethnography 7 2 No More Temples of the Sun 19 3 The Torrent of History 33 4 Extreme Aesthetics 45 5 A Provisional Micro-Society 61 6 Permanent Play 75 7 Tin Can Philosophy 83 8 The Thing of Things 93 9 Divided We Stand 109 10 An Athlete of Duration 125 11 New Babylon 135 12 The Beach Beneath the Street 147 Notes 161 Index 191 “Monsters of all lands unite!” Michèle Bernstein In memory of: Helen Mu Sung Andrew Charker Stephen Cummins John Deeble Colin Hood Shelly Cox in girum imus nocte et consumimur igni Acknowledgements My only qualifi cation for writing this book is some time spent in a certain militant organization, then in a bohemian periphery, and sub- sequently in avant-garde formations that met at the nexus of media, theory and action.
    [Show full text]
  • A Hacker Manifesto
    AHA CKER MANIFESTO A HACKER MANIFESTO McKenzie Wark harv ard university pres s Cambridge, Massachusetts, and London, England 2004 Thanks to: AG, AR, BH, BL, CD, CF, the late CH, CL, CS, DB, DG, DS, FB, FS, GG, GL, HJ, IV, JB, JD, JF, JR, KH, KS, LW, MD, ME, MH, MI, MT, MV, NR, OS, PM, RD, RG, RN, RS, SB, SD, SH, SK, SL, SS, TB, TC, TW. Earlier versions of A Hacker Manifesto appeared in Critical Secret, Feelergauge, Fibreculture Reader, Sarai Reader and Subsol. Copyright © 2004 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College all rights reserved Printed in the United States of America Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Wark, McKenzie, 1961– A hacker manifesto / McKenzie Wark. p. cm. ISBN 0-674-01543-6 (hc : alk. paper) 1. Digital divide. 2. Computer hackers. 3. Social conflict. 4. Intellectual property. 5. Information technology—Social aspects. 6. Computers and civilization. I. Title. HC79.I55W37 2004 303.48′33—dc22 2004047488 In memoriam: Kathy King of the Pirates Acker A B STRACTION CLASS EDUC ATION HACK ING H ISTORY INFORMAT ION NATU RE PROD UCTION PROP ERTY REPR ESENTATION REVOL T S T ATE SUBJ ECT SURPLUS V E CTOR WORL D WRITING S This land is your land, this land is my land —woody guthrie This land is your land, this land is my land —gang of four This land is your land, this land is my land —luther blissett ...itsortof springs organically from the earth. And it has the characteristics of communism, that people love so very much about it.
    [Show full text]
  • Excommunication: Three Inquiries in Media and Mediation (TRIOS)
    EXCOMMUNICATION ALSO PUBLISHED IN THE SERIES Occupy: ree Inquiries in Disobedience Each TRIOS book w. j. t. mitchell, bernard e. addresses an important harcourt, and michael taussig theme in critical theory, e Neighbor: ree Inquiries in Political eology philosophy, or cultural slavoj žižek, eric l. santner, and studies through three kenneth reinhard extended essays wri en in close collaboration by leading scholars. Excommunication THREE INQUIRIES IN MEDIA AND MEDIATION ALEXANDER R. Galloway EUGENE Thacker MCKENZIE Wark e University of Chicago Press Chicago and London ALEXANDER R. GALLOWAY is associate professor of media studies at New York University. He is the author of four books on digital media and critical theory, most recently, e Interface Eff ect. EUGENE THACKER is associate professor in the School of Media Studies at the New School. He is the author of many books, including A er Life, also published by the Univer- sity of Chicago Press. MCKENZIE WARK is professor of liberal studies at the New School for Social Research. His books include A Hacker Manifesto and Gamer eory. e University of Chicago Press, Chicago 60637 e University of Chicago Press, Ltd., London © 2014 by e University of Chicago All rights reserved. Published 2014. Printed in the United States of America 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 1 2 3 4 5 isbn- 13: 978-0-226-92521-9 (cloth) isbn- 13: 978-0-226-92522-6 (paper) isbn- 13: 978-0-226-92523-3 (e- book) doi: 10.7208/ chicago/ 9780226925233.001.0001 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Excommunication : three inquiries in media and mediation / Alexander R.
    [Show full text]
  • Leaving the Twenty-First Century: a Conversation with Mckenzie Wark
    CONTINENTAL THOUGHT & THEORY: A JOURNAL OF INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM (What Does it Mean to) Think the Novel? Volume 2 | Issue 3: The Novel 297-329 | ISSN: 2463-333X Thought, Talk & Theory Leaving the Twenty-First Century: A Conversation with McKenzie Wark Victor L. Shammas & Tomas B. Holen In this conversation, the acclaimed writer and media scholar McKenzie Wark discusses critical theory, global climate change, the future of the university, the capitalist labor process, and more. Drawing on books such as General Intellects (Verso, 2017), Molecular Red (Verso, 2015), The Beach Beneath the Street (Verso, 2011), and A Hacker Manifesto (Harvard, 2004), Wark argues that the university is a troubled, multi- layered institution, containing elements both neoliberal and feudal. The future prospects of critical theory will hinge on the twin mobilization of a transformed university and various para-academic and virtual spaces. Intellectual labor, which Wark has previously described as constituting a distinctive “hacker class,” is increasingly commodified, but intellectual laborers often control the immediate means of production, meaning that their labor process bears the hallmark of both capitalist and pre-capitalist relations of production. Returning to 296 CONTINENTAL THOUGHT & THEORY: A JOURNAL OF INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM (What Does it Mean to) Think the Novel? the question of writerly style, Wark enjoins us to read classics of critical theorizing, such as Marx’s Capital, not first and foremost as works of philosophy but works of literary art, capable of provoking a visceral response to the calamities of contemporary capitalism. If capitalism is not an “eternal essence,” as Wark convincingly argues, then much work remains to be done in dissecting and analyzing its present-day features and mutations.
    [Show full text]
  • Telegram from Nowhere
    ...... Hello? Hello? Is anyone there? I"m calling of the colonies. For centuries Europe dumped its here from there. I"m calling night from day. I"m surplus goods on its colonies. Metropolitan indus­ calling summer from winter. rm calling from tries grew at the expense ·of the periphery. The Telegram the other side of the world. Here is how things aristocracy of labor cut a deal (or its share of look from here (therel, looking at there IhereJ. the profits-at the expense Gf workers in the And of course, H1ere is something that connects periphery. For centuries, the peripheral countries from us, connects an us, in between. of the world supplied the means by which-old , To whom does globalization appear to be a new Europe could consider itself the still center, the\ ' phenomena? To those used to living close to historic center, of everything. ~ the center of the old imperial powers. To the A postcolonial Brecht might imagine a worker . Nowhere rest of them lwe others, your others), out in from the periphery, who is looking at the the periphery, globalization is nothing new. monumental splendor of the old imperial capi- History, seen from the periphery, from the for­ tals, who wonders' "Where did the materials come Mckenzie Wark mer colonies. is nothing but globalization. from to make all this? Where did the food and History, seen from the periphery, is nothing but the fibers come from that fed and clothed these the struggle by one metropolitan center after people? Where did the troops come from to the other to distort the growth of contact and defend it? From where were the contents of trade between peoples in such a way as to ben­ these museums stolen?- efit themselves.
    [Show full text]
  • The Spectacle of Disintegration
    THE SPECTACLE OF DISINTEGRATION THE SPECTACLE OF DISINTEGRATION MCKENZIE WARK London s New York First published by Verso 2013 © McKenzie Wark 2013 All rights reserved The moral rights of the author have been asserted 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2 Verso UK: 6 Meard Street, London W1F 0EG US: 20 Jay Street, Suite 1010, Brooklyn, NY 11201 www.versobooks.com Verso is the imprint of New Left Books ISBN-13: 978-1-84467-957-7 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress Typeset in Cochin by MJ & N Gavan, Truro, Cornwall Printed in the US by Maple Vail Contents 1 Widening Gyres 1 2 The Critique of Everyday Life 13 3 Liberty Guiding the People 21 4 The Spectacle of Modern Life 33 5 Anarchies of Perception 41 6 The Revolution of Everyday Life 49 7 Détournement as Utopia 61 8 Charles Fourier’s Queer Theory 71 9 The Ass Dreams of China Pop 85 10 Mao by Mao 95 11 The Occulted State 105 12 The Last Chance to Save Capitalism 115 13 Anti-Cinema 123 14 The Devil’s Party 137 15 Guy Debord, His Art and Times 147 16 A Romany Detour 157 17 The Language of Discretion 165 18 Game of War 175 19 The Strategist 181 20 The Inhuman Comedy 189 Acknowledgments 205 Notes 207 Index 231 In memory of: Mark Poster The mode of information Bernard Smith Place, taste and tradition Adam Cullen The otherness when it comes “It may not be what it looks to lack totality.” Anna Mendelssohn “I sense the River Neckinger beneath the paving slabs, the queasy toxicity shifting to St.
    [Show full text]
  • Excommunication: Three Inquiries in Media and Mediation (TRIOS)
    Excommunication T H R E E I N Q U I R I E S I N MEDIA AND MEDIATION ALEXANDER R. Galloway EUGENE Thacker MCKENZIE Wark ! e University of Chicago Press Chicago and London LOVE OF THE MIDDLE Alexander R. Galloway On July 7, 1688, Irish scientist William Molyneux sent a le! er to his friend the philosopher John Locke in which he proposed the following hypothetical scenario. Consider a man, blind from birth, who knows the shapes of spheres, cubes, and other objects, but being blind only knows them via his sense of touch. If the blind man were suddenly given sight, would he be able to identify and distinguish between these same spheres and cubes by vision alone? Known today as Molyneux’s Problem, the thought experi- ment was one of the central philosophical problems of its time. Any number of thinkers proff ered solutions to the problem, from G. W. Leibniz, Voltaire, and Denis Diderot, to Hermann von Helmholtz and William James. Molyneux’s problem was so compelling at the time, and indeed still resonates today, because it addresses key questions in mediation, aesthetics, and the sci- ences of perception, and in what would become psychophysics and cognitive science. While ostensibly a thought experiment about the cognitive relation between diff erent modes of perception, in this case tac- tile and visual perception, Molyneux’s Problem also speaks to # is chapter greatly benefi ted from research assistance by Carolyn Kane, Ka- vita Kulkarni, Sonaar Luthra, and Alice Marwick, and from conversations with Liv Hausken, Ben Ka$ a, Eivind Røssaak, Martin Scherzinger, as well as Eugene # acker and McKenzie Wark.
    [Show full text]