DOCSLIB.ORG

I Social Organisms: Biology and British Fiction in the Nineteenth

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
I Social Organisms: Biology and British Fiction in the Nineteenth Social Organisms: Biology and British Fiction in the Nineteenth Century by Phillip Stillman Department of English Duke University Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ Nancy Armstrong, Supervisor ___________________________ Kathy Psomiades ___________________________ Robert Mitchell ___________________________ Mark Hansen Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of English in the Graduate School of Duke University 2018 i v ABSTRACT Social Organisms: Biology and British Fiction in the Nineteenth Century by Phillip Stillman Department of English Duke University Date:_______________________ Approved: ___________________________ Nancy Armstrong, Supervisor ___________________________ Kathy Psomiades ___________________________ Robert Mitchell ___________________________ Mark Hansen An abstract of a dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of English in the Graduate School of Duke University 2018 i v Copyright by Phillip Stillman 2018 Abstract My argument is that the rise of biology at the start of the nineteenth challenged the individualism of the Enlightenment, and that it fell to the novel to enable readers to reimagine themselves in light of the resulting contradictions. Chapter one considers how the eighteenth-century individual was dismantled, chapter two looks at the human organism erected in its place, and chapter three accounts for how human organisms form communities. By factoring fiction into the break between natural history and biology that Foucault identifies in The Order of Things (1966), I consider the effect of that epistemological shift on the history of subjectivity. In my first chapter I use Gillray’s satirical cartoon, The Cow-pock (1802), to show how the concept of a human being who is at once individual and organism was an unlivable contradiction, and how that contradiction played out in the cultural conflicts of the time. In the next chapter I use Shelley’s Frankenstein (1818) to argue that the novel reimagined life within that contradiction by reconfiguring individuation into an uncertain process whose goal is both unattainable and dangerous. Finally, I use Dickens’s Dombey and Son (1848) to show how the novel developed a new conception of community suited to the self-contradiction of the individual as organism. iv Dedication This dissertation is dedicated to Seth Denizen, a teacher from the beginning. v Contents Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... iv List of Figures ............................................................................................................................ viii Acknowledgements ..................................................................................................................... ix 1. Introduction: The End of Taxonomy ...................................................................................... 1 1.2 The Human Organism and the Study of Nineteenth-Century Fiction ................... 20 1.2.1 A Historical Teratology, Part 1: Mary Toft ............................................................ 34 1.2.2 A Historical Teratology, Part 2: William Ince ........................................................ 39 1.2.3 A Historical Teratology, Part 3: Frankenstein’s Creature .................................... 43 1.2.4 A Historical Teratology, Part 4: Heathcliff ............................................................ 50 1.3 Competition and Mutualism ......................................................................................... 59 2. The Human Organism ............................................................................................................ 64 2.1 Gillray’s “The Cow-Pock” and the Emergence of the Human Organism .............. 67 2.2 Chamber’s Vestiges and the Order of the Organism ................................................ 81 2.2.1 Autogenesis ................................................................................................................ 85 2.2.2 Milieu ........................................................................................................................... 93 2.2.3 Excess ........................................................................................................................... 97 2.3 The Order of the Organism ......................................................................................... 102 2.4 The Organism, The Individual, and the Novel ........................................................ 110 3. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein: The Subject in the Age of the Organism .......................... 114 3.1 The Human Exception: A Contradiction in Terms .................................................. 121 vi 3.2 The Creature .................................................................................................................. 140 3.2.1 How to Become a Monster ..................................................................................... 149 3.2.2 One Bad Turn Deserves Another .......................................................................... 174 3.3 The Average Man ......................................................................................................... 186 3.3.1 The New Normal ..................................................................................................... 190 3.4 Victorian Fiction ............................................................................................................ 197 4. Dombey and Son and The Problematic of Darwinism ....................................................... 200 4.1 Mutualism and Competition in The Voyage of the Beagle .................................... 205 4.2 The Milieu of Dombey and Son .................................................................................. 222 4.3 Mutualism and the Vitality of Flat Characters ......................................................... 227 4.4 The law of Toodles and the law of Dombey ............................................................. 234 4.5 The Sentimental Novel in the Age of the Organism ................................................ 239 4.6 From Sentiment to Affect ............................................................................................. 251 5. Conclusion: A Novel Ecology .............................................................................................. 260 Works Cited ............................................................................................................................... 265 Biography ................................................................................................................................... 282 vii List of Figures Figure 1: "The Cow-Pock, or, the Wonderful Effects of the New Innoculation!" by James Gillray, 1802. ................................................................................................................................ 68 Figure 2: "Polly Rescues the Charitable Grinder" by Phiz, 1848. ........................................ 242 viii Acknowledgements There are far too many people I should thank, and there is far too little time to thank them all here. I couldn’t have done this with out the indefatigable support of my friends, A-J Aronstein, Galadriel Rosen, Hilary Strang, Elaine Hadley, Ryan Vu, Laura Jaramillo, Any Gwinn, Patricia Bass, Stephan Waldschmidt, and Hillary Porter. I must also thank Robert Mitchell, Mark Hansen and Leonard Tennenhouse for their invaluable feedback, and Kathy Psomiades for her profound and ongoing dedication to countless students, among whom I consider myself honored to be one. Finally, and most importantly, Nancy Armstrong went and continues to go so far above and beyond the requirements of her role as my director that I can only, with all humility, express my profoundest gratitude. ix 1. Introduction: The End of Taxonomy The space of Western knowledge is now about to topple: the taxinomia, whose great, universal expanse extended in correlation with the possibility of a mathesis, and which constituted the down-beat of knowledge—at once its primary possibility and the end of its perfection—is now about to order itself in accordance with an obscure verticality: a verticality that is to define the law of resemblances, prescribe all adjacencies and discontinuities, provide the foundation for perceptible arrangements, and displace all the great horizontal deployments of the taxinomia towards the somewhat accessory region of consequences. Thus, European culture is inventing for itself a depth in which what matters is no longer identities, distinctive characters, permanent tables with all their possible paths and routes, but great hidden forces developed on the basis of their primitive and inaccessible nucleus, origin, causality, and history (Order, 251). In The Order of Things: An Archeology of the Human Sciences (1966), Michel Foucault identified an “epistemic” shift in the way that Western culture produced knowledge, and thus in the forms of knowledge produced (351). During what he called the final century of the “classical episteme,” the production of knowledge required men to observe the universal laws of grammar, the unchanging natural taxonomy of living beings, and the production and circulation of wealth. The abrupt shift to what can now be understood as the
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Inspiration of Lamarck's Belief in Evolution Author(S): Richard W
    The Inspiration of Lamarck's Belief in Evolution Author(s): Richard W. Burkhardt, Jr. Source: Journal of the History of Biology, Vol. 5, No. 2 (Autumn, 1972), pp. 413-438 Published by: Springer Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4330583 . Accessed: 22/08/2013 00:04 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Springer is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Journal of the History of Biology. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 150.135.115.127 on Thu, 22 Aug 2013 00:04:03 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions The Inspiration of Lamarck'sBelief in Evolution* RICHARD W. BURKHARDT, JR. Department of History University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Jean-Baptiste Lamarck had already reached his midfifties when he first came to believe in evolution. Though the change in his thought was an important one, it is not clear that this change should be regarded as an example of extraordinary intellectual flexibility for a scientist of that age. Prominent in Lamarck's coming to believe in evolution was his refusal to relinquish certain major concepts which he had cherished for a long time and which were coming under increasing attack at the end of the eighteenth century.
    [Show full text]
  • Electrification and the Ideological Origins of Energy
    A Dissertation entitled “Keep Your Dirty Lights On:” Electrification and the Ideological Origins of Energy Exceptionalism in American Society by Daniel A. French Submitted to the Graduate Faculty as partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree in History _________________________________________ Dr. Diane F. Britton, Committee Chairperson _________________________________________ Dr. Peter Linebaugh, Committee Member _________________________________________ Dr. Daryl Moorhead, Committee Member _________________________________________ Dr. Kim E. Nielsen, Committee Member _________________________________________ Dr. Patricia Komuniecki Dean College of Graduate Studies The University of Toledo December 2014 Copyright 2014, Daniel A. French This document is copyrighted material. Under copyright law, no parts of this document may be reproduced without the express permission of the author. An Abstract of “Keep Your Dirty Lights On:” Electrification and the Ideological Origins of Energy Exceptionalism in American Society by Daniel A. French Submitted to the Graduate Faculty as partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree in History The University of Toledo December 2014 Electricity has been defined by American society as a modern and clean form of energy since it came into practical use at the end of the nineteenth century, yet no comprehensive study exists which examines the roots of these definitions. This dissertation considers the social meanings of electricity as an energy technology that became adopted between the mid- nineteenth and early decades of the twentieth centuries. Arguing that both technical and cultural factors played a role, this study shows how electricity became an abstracted form of energy in the minds of Americans. As technological advancements allowed for an increasing physical distance between power generation and power consumption, the commodity of electricity became consciously detached from the steam and coal that produced it.
    [Show full text]
  • Société Linnéenne De Lyon Éenne N
    Tome 85 Fascicule 3 - 4 Mars - Avril 2016 Bulletin mensuelTome 85 Fascicule 3 - 4 Mars - Avril 2016 de la SOCIÉTÉ LINNÉENNBulletinE mensuel DE LYON de la SOCIÉTÉ LINNÉENNE DE LYON SOCIÉTÉ LINNÉENNE DE LYON Société linnéenne de Lyon, reconnue d’utilité publique, fondée en 1822 - 2 - 33, rue Bossuet • F-69006 LYON YON L F-69006 ue Bossuet Bossuet ue r 33, Siège social : 33, rue Bossuet, F-69006 LYON Tome 85 Fascicule 3 - 4 Mars - Avril 2016 • yon, reconnue d’utilité publique, fondée en 1822 en fondée publique, d’utilité reconnue yon, L Tél. et fax : +33 (0)4 78 52 14 33 Tome 85 Fascicule 3 - 4 Mars - Avril 2016 de linnéenne Société http://www.linneenne-lyon.org — email : [email protected] Société linnéenne de Lyon, reconnue d’utilité publique, fondée en 1822 Groupe de Roanne : Maison des anciens combattants, 18, rue de Cadore, F-42300 ROANNE 33, rue Bossuet • F-69006 LYON Rédaction : Marie-Claire PIGNAL - Directeur de publication : Bernard GUÉRIN Conception graphique de couverture : Nicolas VAN VOOREN Bulletin mensuel Bulletinde lamensuel de laTome 85 Fascicule 3 - 4 Mars - Avril 2016 Tome 85 Fascicule 3-4 Mars - Avril 2016 SOCIÉTÉ LINNÉENNE SOCIÉTÉ LINNÉENNBulletinE mensuel DE LYON de la SOCIÉTÉ LINNÉENNE DE LYON N O Y L E D E E LINNÉENN CIÉTÉ O Prix 10 euros S ISSN 0366-1326 Imprimé par Imprimerie Brailly, 69564 Saint-Genis-Laval Cedex N° d’imprimeur : V0001XX/00 Imprimé en France Dépôt légal : mars 2016 Copyright © 2016 SLL. Tous droits réservés pour tous pays sauf accord préalable. la de ulletin mensuel ulletin B Société linnéenne de Lyon, reconnue d’utilité publique, fondée en 1822 2016 Avril - Mars 4 - 3 cule i c as F 85 e om Société linnéenne de33, Lyon, rue reconnueBossuet • d’utilitéF-69006 publique, LYON fondée en 1822 T SOCIÉTÉ LINNÉENNE- 2 - DE LYON 33, rue Bossuet • F-69006 LYON Siège social : 33, rue Bossuet, F-69006 LYON Tél.
    [Show full text]
  • Black Freedom Beyond Borders: Memories of Abolition Day
    184 185 Black Freedom Beyond Borders: Memories of Abolition Day ii Black Freedom Beyond Borders: Memories of Abolition Day TABLE OF CONTENTS TITLE PAGE ..................................................................................... ii COPYRIGHT PAGE .......................................................................... iv DEDICATED TO .............................................................................. vi YOU CANNOT BUILD WHAT YOU CANNOT IMAGINE ............... ix FOREWORD .................................................................................... xi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................ xiii READER’S GUIDE ........................................................................... xv The Dream Tank: Explorations in Quantum Abolition .............. 5 Breathing On The Moon: Choose Abolition & Liberation by Naudika Williams ..................................................................... 25 Dream Tank: The Actual Counterfactual ................................... 27 Albina Zone by Lisa Bates ............................................................ 35 Tending The Acre by Shawn Taylor ............................................ 59 The Dream Tank: Simulated Re-Awakening.............................. 77 mirage by donté clark .................................................................. 83 The Way The Fire Flies by Calvin Williams ................................. 89 The Dream Tank: Memories As Supercode ............................. 113 Rememory by Waildah
    [Show full text]
  • Policing the Borders of Identity At
    POLICING THE BORDERS OF IDENTITY AT THE MORMON MIRACLE PAGEANT Kent R. Bean A dissertation Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy December 2005 Jack Santino, Advisor Richard C. Gebhardt, Graduate Faculty Representative John Warren Nathan Richardson William A. Wilson ii ABSTRACT Jack Santino, Advisor While Mormons were once the “black sheep” of Christianity, engaging in communal economic arrangements, polygamy, and other practices, they have, since the turn of the twentieth century, modernized, Americanized, and “Christianized.” While many of their doctrines still cause mainstream Christians to deny them entrance into the Christian fold, Mormons’ performance of Christianity marks them as not only Christian, but as perhaps the best Christians. At the annual Mormon Miracle Pageant in Manti, Utah, held to celebrate the origins of the Mormon founding, Evangelical counter- Mormons gather to distribute literature and attempt to dissuade pageant-goers from their Mormonism. The hugeness of the pageant and the smallness of the town displace Christianity as de facto center and make Mormonism the central religion. Cast to the periphery, counter-Mormons must attempt to reassert the centrality of Christianity. Counter-Mormons and Mormons also wrangle over control of terms. These “turf wars” over issues of doctrine are much more about power than doctrinal “purity”: who gets to authoritatively speak for Mormonism. Meanwhile, as Mormonism moves Christianward, this creates room for Mormon fundamentalism, as small groups of dissidents lay claim to Joseph Smith’s “original” Mormonism. Manti is home of the True and Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Last Days, a group that broke away from the Mormon Church in 1994 and considers the mainstream church apostate, offering a challenge to its dominance in this time and place.
    [Show full text]
  • Maggie-Mahar-Bull-A-History-Of-The
    BULL! Ba history of the boom and bust, 1982–2004 maggie mahar To Raymond, who believes that everything is possible — Contents — Acknowledgments vii Prologue Henry Blodget xiii Introduction Chapter 1—The Market’s Cycles 3 Chapter 2—The People’s Market 17 Beginnings (1961–89) Chapter 3—The Stage Is Set 35 (1961–81) Chapter 4—The Curtain Rises 48 (1982–87) Chapter 5—Black Monday (1987–89) 61 iv Contents The Cast Assembles (1990–95) Chapter 6—The Gurus 81 Chapter 7—The Individual Investor 102 Chapter 8—Behind the Scenes, 123 in Washington The Media, Momentum, and Mutual Funds (1995–96) Chapter 9—The Media: CNBC Lays 153 Down the Rhythm Chapter 10—The Information Bomb 175 Chapter 11—AOL: A Case Study 193 Chapter 12—Mutual Funds: 203 Momentum versus Value Chapter 13—The Mutual Fund 217 Manager: Career Risk versus Investment Risk The New Economy (1996–98) Chapter 14—Abby Cohen Goes to 239 Washington; Alan Greenspan Gives a Speech Chapter 15—The Miracle of 254 Productivity The Final Run-Up (1998–2000) Chapter 16—“Fully Deluded 269 Earnings” Contents v Chapter 17—Following the Herd: 288 Dow 10,000 Chapter 18—The Last Bear Is Gored 304 Chapter 19—Insiders Sell; 317 the Water Rises A Final Accounting Chapter 20—Winners, Losers, and Scapegoats 333 (2000–03) Chapter 21—Looking Ahead: What 353 Financial Cycles Mean for the 21st-Century Investor Epilogue (2004–05) 387 Notes 397 Appendix 473 Index 481 about the author credits cover copyright about the publisher — Acknowledgments — More than a hundred people contributed to this book, sharing their expe- riences, their insights, and their knowledge.
    [Show full text]
  • The Last Serious Thing: Modernist Responses to the Bullfight. Foley, Lawrence
    The Last Serious Thing: Modernist Responses to the Bullfight. Foley, Lawrence The copyright of this thesis rests with the author and no quotation from it or information derived from it may be published without the prior written consent of the author For additional information about this publication click this link. http://qmro.qmul.ac.uk/jspui/handle/123456789/8903 Information about this research object was correct at the time of download; we occasionally make corrections to records, please therefore check the published record when citing. For more information contact [email protected] The Last Serious Thing: Modernist Responses to the Bullfight Lawrence Foley Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy 1 I, Lawrence Foley, confirm that the research included within this thesis is my own work or that where it has been carried out in collaboration with, or supported by others, that this is duly acknowledged below and my contribution indicated. Previously published material is also acknowledged below. I attest that I have exercised reasonable care to ensure that the work is original, and does not to the best of my knowledge break any UK law, infringe any third party’s copyright or other Intellectual Property Right, or contain any confidential material. I accept that the College has the right to use plagiarism detection software to check the electronic version of the thesis. I confirm that this thesis has not been previously submitted for the award of a degree by this or any other university. The copyright of this thesis rests with the author and no quotation from it or information derived from it may be published without the prior written consent of the author.
    [Show full text]
  • Zoologische Annalen
    download: http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/; www.biologiezentrum.at 144 Girault, Bibliography of the Bedbug, Cimex lectularius Linnaeus. The bibliography is complete up to the year 1906. It com- prises nearly six hundred titles, nearly all of^which have been verified, entailing much painstaking effort. Those titles which have been inaccessible are marked with an asterisk. Those which are considered important, authoritative or contributive, have the date preceding them in italics. The titles are grouped into more or less arbitrary divisions and subdivisions, according to their subject-matter. These are as follows: I. Entomology: a) systematic ; b) biologic and economic; c) ana- tomical; d) prophylactic and remedial. II. Medicine: a) derma- tological; b) pathogenic; c) therapeutic. III. Zoological: or general, containing miscellaneous compilations. Under these groups, the titles are arranged chronologically or historically, and then alphabetically. As a rule, each reads as fol- lows: Date of publication; author; title of article; citation of journal, periodical, or tome place of publication ; citation of edition, volume, ; page and figure; reprints, reviews, other editions and so on. The author's name is always given in full if known. If the author of an anonymous paper is known, his name is given, followed by Anon, or his initials in parenthesis, according to circumstances; if not known with certainty, the Anon, is given first followed by the name in parenthesis. The title of articles are usually given in full, if not too long, and always exactly as they were published, excepting capi- talization. When too long, enough of the title is given to insure identity, followed by the letters etc.
    [Show full text]
  • Imaginations and Configurations of Polish Society. from the Middle
    Imaginations and Configurations of Polish Society Polen: Kultur – Geschichte – Gesellschaft Poland: Culture – History – Society Herausgegeben von / Edited by Yvonne Kleinmann Band 3 / Volume 3 Imaginations and Configurations of Polish Society From the Middle Ages through the Twentieth Century Edited by Yvonne Kleinmann, Jürgen Heyde, Dietlind Hüchtker, Dobrochna Kałwa, Joanna Nalewajko-Kulikov, Katrin Steffen and Tomasz Wiślicz WALLSTEIN VERLAG Gedruckt mit Unterstützung der Deutsch-Polnischen Wissenschafts- stiftung (DPWS) und der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft (Emmy Noether- Programm, Geschäftszeichen KL 2201/1-1). Bibliografische Information der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek verzeichnet diese Publikation in der Deutschen Nationalbibliografie; detaillierte bibliografische Daten sind im Internet über http://dnb.d-nb.de abrufbar. © Wallstein Verlag, Göttingen 2017 www.wallstein-verlag.de Vom Verlag gesetzt aus der Garamond und der Frutiger Umschlaggestaltung: Susanne Gerhards, Düsseldorf © SG-Image unter Verwendung einer Fotografie (Y. Kleinmann) von »Staffel«, Nationalstadion Warschau Lithografie: SchwabScantechnik, Göttingen ISBN (Print) 978-3-8353-1904-2 ISBN (E-Book, pdf) 978-3-8353-2999-7 Contents Acknowledgements . IX Note on Transliteration und Geographical Names . X Yvonne Kleinmann Introductory Remarks . XI An Essay on Polish History Moshe Rosman How Polish Is Polish History? . 19 1. Political Rule and Medieval Society in the Polish Lands: An Anthropologically Inspired Revision Jürgen Heyde Introduction to the Medieval Section . 37 Stanisław Rosik The »Baptism of Poland«: Power, Institution and Theology in the Shaping of Monarchy and Society from the Tenth through Twelfth Centuries . 46 Urszula Sowina Spaces of Communication: Patterns in Polish Towns at the Turn of the Middle Ages and the Early Modern Times . 54 Iurii Zazuliak Ius Ruthenicale in Late Medieval Galicia: Critical Reconsiderations .
    [Show full text]
  • 26 Kris Myers
    The all new SONOR AQ2 Series drums feature 7ply all Maple shells, the new SmartMount isolation system, five exciting finishes, and bring some uniquely SONOR configurations to a new level of quality. us.sonor.com GUARANTEED DURABILITY. The Vater Extended Play™ Series is an extremely durable American hickory drumstick that has two distinct features; The first feature is a pearl-colored, specially formulated durable finish that protects the tip and shoulder area of the stick from early chipping and cracking. The second feature is our exclusive 3 inch “Stick Shield™“ located in the rimshot area that is highly impact resistant and 8X stronger than Steel with maximum tensile strength. The grip area of the stick has the same great-feeling finish as found on all Vater Sticks. Extended Play™ sticks offer the optimal balance and feel of a Vater hickory stick, with advanced durability and resistance to rimshot fatigue and breakage. Patent Pending. Visit vater. com for warranty info. Both sticks pictured used by the same drummer, under the same conditions, for the same amount of time, with the same band and on the same drum kit. • Durable Finish on tip and shoulder • Stick Shield™ prevents wear and breakage in the “rimshot” area • Same great balance and feel as standard models, but with unmatched durability • GUARANTEED against breakage due to wear in the area protected by the Stick Shield™ • Available in 5A, 5B, Power 5A, Power 5B and 3A, wood or nylon tip as well as in the MV7 and MV8 Marching Snare Stick models #SWITCHTOVATER 270 Centre Street | Holbrook, MA 02343 | 1.781.767.1877 | [email protected] VATER.COM BASS HEADS ARE ONE-SIZE-FITS-ALL.* * IF WE BELIEVED THIS, WHY WOULD WE MAKE THREE BRAND NEW CUTTING-EDGE BASS HEADS? This series brings you the same UV-coating that made drummers switch to UV1 tom and snare heads, featuring the UV1 for a wide open sound, the UV EQ4 for balance and sustain, and the UV EMAD for a more focused attack.
    [Show full text]
  • In Defence of Serendipity Praise for in Defence of Serendipity
    In Defence of Serendipity Praise for In Defence of Serendipity "I was deeply moved by this melancholy work, which sums up a generation of hectic labor by so many of my innovative friends and colleagues. Yes, the Digital Revolution has eaten its young, as indeed most revolutions do. It went from movement, to business, to racket, and if you read Seb Olma, you'll have an inkling of how and why that happened, and what must come next." Bruce Sterling, sci-fi writer and futurist “In this practice-driven and original essay, Sebastian Olma success­­fully catapults dialectics into the heart of the brutal ‘creative industry’ rhetoric. Good luck picking up the bits and pieces after the blast!” Geert Lovink, net critic “Sebastian Olma’s timely meditation on the uses and abuses of serendipity sets out to free chance invention and accidental discovery from its corporate and state captivity in the ‘creative industries’. His defence of serendipity as a sagacity of resistance dedicated to an open future is made with a wit and lightness of spirit conspicuously absent in the lugubrious managerialist appropriations of the term. His erudite polemic convinces the reader that – as Pasteur might now say – chance favours the mind prepared to change.” Howard Caygill, philosopher SebaStian Olma In Defence of Serendipity For A Radical Politics of Innovation Published by Repeater Books An imprint of Watkins Media Ltd 19-21 Cecil Court London WC2N 4EZ UK www.repeaterbooks.com A Repeater Books paperback original 2016 1 Distributed in the United States by Random House, Inc., New York. Copyright © Sebastian Olma 2016 Sebastian Olma asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
    [Show full text]
  • Art School: (Propositions for the 21St Century)
    A SCHOOL (P T TU NTURY) EN C C T T S 21 HE TH RY Madoff O ( T O O O SCHOOL SCH ARAL RT T T T T T R AR AR SCHOOLSCCN HOOLHOOOL AR S T (PROROP FOR OSITIONIONS FORFO THEHEY) 21 2 ST CENTURY)NTURY edited and with an introduction by Steven Henry Steven by and with an introduction edited THE 21ST CENTURY) THE 21ST (PROPOSITIONS FOR (PROPOSITIONS FOR SCHOOL AR ART SCHOOL The MIT Press Cambridge, Massachusetts London, England ART SCHOOL (PROPOSITIONS FOR THE 21ST CENTURY) edited and with an introduction by Steven Henry Madoff © 2009 Massachusetts Institute of Technology All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means (including photocopying, recording, or information storage and retrieval) without permission in writing from the publisher. Publication of this book has been supported by the Anaphiel Foundation and by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. MIT Press books may be purchased at special quantity discounts for business or sales promo- tional use. For information, please e-mail [email protected] or write to Special Sales Department, The MIT Press, 55 Hayward Street, Cambridge, MA 02142. This book was set in Scala and Gotham by the MIT Press. Printed and bound in Canada. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Art school : (propositions for the 21st century) / edited by Steven Henry Madoff. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn 978-0-262-13493-4 (pbk : alk. paper) 1. Art—Study and teaching—History—21st century.
    [Show full text]