Baudrillard: A Critical Reader

Author: (USA) Kellner
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: Jean Baudrillard, who describes himself as a "terrorist of knowledge," is one of the most important and provocative writers of our time, widely hailed as a prophet of postmodernity. He asserts that in the current social structure, the subject, political economy, meaning, truth, social objects, and reality have all disappeared, a claim that is highly renowned in the intellectual world. Baudrillard replaces the stubborn modern orthodoxy with his narrative-style expressions and arguments, and his writings have sparked immense controversy, forcing readers to vote on whether his ideas represent progress or regression based on their ideological stance. Most critics of Baudrillard either enthusiastically praise him or fiercely condemn him. This critical work is a book that attempts to offer a fair assessment of Baudrillard's contributions to contemporary thought. The multiple authors approach Baudrillard's works with earnestness, deep reflection, and sincerity, exploring his positions on various specific themes, fields, and debates, from his early writings on "object systems" to his recent metaphysical meditations on the fate of the subject. By distinguishing between the beneficial and the useless, the valuable and the foolish, the serious and the playful, and the important and the trivial, this new collection of essays on Baudrillard serves as an essential read for all students of contemporary cultural theory.