Contingency, Hegemony, and Universality (A Contemporary Dialogue on the Left)

Author: Butler, Laclau, Zizek (Auth.), Hu Daiping (Trans.)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-05-01
Features: What is the contemporary legacy of Gramsci's concept of hegemony? Since the false version of universality has been thoroughly critiqued, how should it be re-articulated? In this radically subversive project, the three internationally renowned scholars—Butler, Laclau, and Zizek—who are celebrated for their radical style engage in a dialogue on central issues of contemporary philosophy and political science. Their essays are organized into three sets of corresponding articles, covering topics such as the legacy of Hegel in contemporary critical theory, the theoretical dilemmas of cultural pluralism, the debate between universality and particularity, the strategic challenges of the left in the globalized economic system, and the value of post-structuralism and Lacanian psychoanalysis for critical social theory, among others. In this book, the three giants fiercely critique the ideas of the other two while vigorously defending their own perspectives. The intense debates, rigorous arguments, brilliant defenses, and bold revelations make this book full of explosive energy.