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Author:   Jeffrey C. Alexander (Yale University)
Publisher:   John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Imprint:   Polity Press
Dimensions:   Width: 14.70cm , Height: 2.00cm , Length: 22.40cm
Weight:   0.454kg
ISBN:  

9780745648187

ISBN 10:   0745648185
Pages:   232
Publication Date:   07 October 2011
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  College/higher education ,  Professional & Vocational ,  Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Out of stock  
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Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgements. Introduction. A Cultural Theory of Social Performance. Chapter 1 The Cultural Pragmatics of Symbolic Action (with Jason Mast). Chapter 2 Social Performance between Ritual and Strategy Political Power and Performance. Chapter 3 Performance and the Challenge of Power. Chapter 4 Social, Political, Cultural, and Performative. Chapter 5 Democratic Power and Political Performance: Obama v. McCain. Chapter 6 A Presidential Performance, Panned, or Obama as the Last Enlightenment Man. Chapter 7 Performing Counter-Power: The Civil Rights Movement. Chapter 8 Performing Terror on September 11th. Chapter 9 War and Performance: Afghanistan and Iraq. Cultural Power and Performance. Chapter 10 Intellectuals and Public Performance. Chapter 11 Iconic Power and Performativity: The Role of the Critic. Notes. Bibliography.

Reviews

This books shatters the ossified categories of all prior comparative studies of culture and power. Alexander reinvents the centerpiece of contemporary critical theories: performativity as the locus of power. Neither the modern state nor secularism but transformation in dramaturgy itself froms the axis of his new global history of civilizations. Accessible artistry. Richard Biernacki, University of California, San Diego<p> That so much of politics is symbolic - terrorism as much as presidential campaigning - is the first surprise of this wide-ranging and wonderfully provocative book. The second surprise, though, is what makes the book so compelling: success in symbolic politics, Alexander argues, depends on performances that fuse speaker, audience, props, and script - a fusion that is increasingly rare in modern societies, and is simultaneously longed for and distrusted. With his customary brio and command of literatures ranging from ancient dramaturgy to contemporary terrorism, Alexan

This books shatters the ossified categories of all prior comparative studies of culture and power. Alexander reinvents the centerpiece of contemporary critical theories: performativity as the locus of power. Neither the modern state nor secularism but transformation in dramaturgy itself froms the axis of his new global history of civilizations. Accessible artistry. Richard Biernacki, University of California, San Diego That so much of politics is symbolic - terrorism as much as presidential campaigning - is the first surprise of this wide-ranging and wonderfully provocative book. The second surprise, though, is what makes the book so compelling: success in symbolic politics, Alexander argues, depends on performances that fuse speaker, audience, props, and script - a fusion that is increasingly rare in modern societies, and is simultaneously longed for and distrusted. With his customary brio and command of literatures ranging from ancient dramaturgy to contemporary terrorism, Alexander offers a provocative theory of modern politics. Francesca Polletta, University of California, Irvine In this boundary-shifting and provocative book, Alexander brings performance studies into conversation with sociology in ways that challenge both. This is essential reading for anyone interested in these fields as well as for those who wonder how performance endows social actors with such persuasive power. Diana Taylor, New York University

Author Information

Jeffrey C. Alexander is Professor of Sociology at Yale University.

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