Overview

The book focuses on the concept of non- redemptive failure, a type of failure that is not part of a larger narrative of success or narrative redemption, with attention to how the concept functions between literature, critical theory, and other fields. Examining literature and film from mid- twentieth- century Poland, Italy, and the United States, it traces productive effects of failure which cannot survive into the future, yet have an important, transformative impact in the moment in which they occur. The book engages with the work of John Williams, Pier Paolo Pasolini, and Bruno Jasieński, proposing a theory of failure at the intersection of literary study, performance theory, and political thought. In discussing these examples, the book examines the place of failure in the broader context of modern and contemporary US American, Italian, and Polish literary and cultural traditions. Because of its interdisciplinary potential, this study might appeal to readers in art history, philosophy, political theory, and Other fields within the humanities and social sciences. The book offers a framework that could not only spotlight the contribution of literary studies to the topic, in the form of narrative analysis but also become part of the theoretical apparatus for further research in these fields.

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9781041215257

Table of Contents

Reviews

""An important rejoinder to late capitalism's tendency to frame failure as means to success, Rowiński's incisive theoretical readings unveil the potential dwelling in the endless aftermath of cultural production that fails again and again."" - Daniel Sack, Professor, Department of English and Commonwealth Honors College, University of Massachusetts Amherst ""Rowiński’s account of non-redemption carefully works against the idea that failure can be productively overcome on the way to resolution. His detailed engagements with literature, film and performance neatly expose how non-redemptive failure shows up in the cultural realm, but his insights apply far beyond this domain. This book is necessary reading for anyone challenging the toxic positivity of our time."" - Debbie Lisle, Professor of International Relations, Queen’s University Belfast ""Beyond Redemption brings overdue and appropriately rigorous theoretical attention to how ‘failure’ operates non-redemptively, bridging numerous cultures, disciplines, languages, and media. Condemned to succeed in this monumental task, the book is assured to be a landmark in the rich and growing terrain of failure studies."" —Nicholas Johnson, Associate Professor of Drama, Trinity College Dublin

Author Information

Krzysztof Rowiński is a literary comparatist working at Trinity College Dublin. He is the initiator and co-founder of the Fail Worse research network, devoted to rethinking academic approaches to failure across the humanities and social sciences.

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