POST-THEORY: New Directions in Criticism

Martin McQuillan, Graeme Macdonald, Robin Purves and Stephen Thomson (eds)

About the Book

Post-Theory brings together some of the most prominent figures and rising stars in the field of Critical Theory. Essays consider such issues as: the current state of Critical Theory; the type of work Theory has made possible; and the future of theory. Opening with a Preface by Ernesto Laclau, the book closes with a ‘Post-Word’ from Helene Cixous. This volume of new work features examples of new theoretical possibilities. Contributors include: Catherine Belsey, Geoffrey Bennington, Hélène Cixous, Patricia Duncker, Antony Easthope, Charles Forsdick, Alex Houen, Lorna Hutson, Ernesto Laclau, Jeremy Lane, Julian Murphet, Christopher Norris, Nicholas Royle, Robert Smith and Eric Woehrling. Key Features • Ground-breaking collection of opinion-changing work • Timely and topical intervention into Critical Theory • Wide range of approaches and examples of theoretical possibilities • Contributors include huge names in the field, such as Catherine Besley, Geoffrey Bennington, Hélène Cixous, Patricia Duncker, Lorna Hutson, Ernesto Laclau, Julian Murphet, Christopher Norris, Nicholas Royle, Robert Smith and Eric Woehrling

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Contents

The Joy of Theory / Martin McQuillan, Graeme Macdonald, Robin Purves and Stephen Thomson

Part I:  Dejd Vu

1. Dejd Vu / Nicholas Royle

2. Deconstruction and the'Unfinished Project of Modernity' / Christopher Norris

3. Post-Gender: Jurassic Feminism Meets Queer Politics / Patricia Duncker

4. The Pleasures of Labour: Marxist Aesthetics in a Post-Marxist World / Antony Easthope

5. Is the Novel Original? Derrida and (Post-)Modernity / Eric Woehrling

6. Pierre Bourdieu and the Chronotopes of 'Post-Theory' / Jeremy Lane

Part II: Inter

7. Inter / Geoffrey Bennington

Part III: The Post-Theory Condition

8. English Studies in the Postmodern Condition: Towards a Place for the Signifier / Catherine Betsey

9. Ethopoeia, Source-Study and Legal History: A Post-Theoretical Approach to the Question of 'Character' in Shakespearean Drama / Loma Hutson

10. The Death Drive Does Not Think / Robert Smith

11. 'Various Infinitudes': Narration, Embodiment and Ontology in Beckett's How It Is and Spinoza's Ethics / Alex Houen

12. Edward Said after Theory: The Limits of Counterpoint / Charles Forsdick

13. Grounding Theory: Literary Theory and the New Geography / Julian Murphet

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About the Author / Editor

Martin McQuillan is Professor of Literary Theory and Cultural Analysis at the London Graduate School and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Kingston University, London. His recent publications include Deconstruction After 9/11and Roland Barthes, or, The Profession of Cultural Studies. Graeme Macdonald is a Lecturer in the Department of English and Comparative Literary Studies at the University of Warwick. Robin Purves is Senior Lecturer in English Literature & Creative Writing, University of Central Lancashire, UK. Stephen Thomson is Lecturer in English Literature, University of Reading, UK.

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