Overview

Ours is an age of offense, a time of reactionary shock--always received, never given. Ours is an age that has forgone cultural narratives, a time of individualism--wherein personal identities trump the collective spirit. Ours is an age of failing earth, a time of ecological collapse--yet the consumption of global capitalism continues to run amok. But don't fear. You have the correct worldview, the best solutions. It's not your fault these things are happening. It's the president's, the immigrant's, and the Islamicist's. Or perhaps It's the socialist's, the tree hugger's, and the baby killer's. But it's not your fault. Never yours. For the world exists as you see it--in an echo chamber lined with golden pixels. Do I still have your attention? Then join me. Within the covers of Narrativizing Theories, I dive into ambiguity and aesthetics to depict how clashing worldviews exist side by side yet remain mutually incompatible. I examine how cultures distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable beliefs, embodiments, and identities. And I outline an aesthetic theory of ambiguity that highlights--through the twists and turns of literature--the provisionality of knowledge and the narrativization of reality.

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9781532694905

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Reviews

Following in the footsteps of Pierce and Eco, Peters takes an unflinching look at the problem of human conflict. His unconventional book weaves together the technical precision of philosophy and the creative insights of narrative to articulate a theory of ambiguity that points us toward a world where we no longer feel the need to demonize, denigrate, and defame each other simply because we tell different stories. In an age of ideology and outrage, Peters suggests there is still the chance for civil discourse. Now wouldn't that be nice? --D. Andrew Yost, University of Colorado, Denver Narrativizing Theories inventively offers an aesthetic theory that slips, enfolds, weaves, and doubts. As the etymology of ambiguity intimates, Peters 'drives us both ways' as he presents a composition, arranged in multiple movements, in and out of epistemologies and ethics, things and theories, stories that undo theories and theories that undo stories. Ultimately, it's an elegantly written gambol through the ways the arts keep us human by giving us embodied narratives that unsettle our realities. --S. Brent Rodriguez Plate, Hamilton College

Author Information

Benjamin John Peters is the author of Through All the Plain (Wipf & Stock, 2014) and Sigurd's Lament (Cascade, 2017). He works as a writer, teaches at a local university, and lives with his wife and three children. You can find him at benjaminjohnpeters.com.

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