Alan D. Schrift has hereby done a great service to anyone interested in French thinkers and their thought. Twentieth-Century French Philosophy (Blackwell) chronicles the lineage, the history, and the context of all of the major thinkers and thought of France in the last hundred years. This includes a succinct chronology, brief biographies, and a lengthy historical narrative — the latter of which might seem anathema to most French thinkers, but helps glue everything together here. And when we’re talking about Derrida, Deleuze, Foucault, Barthes, Blanchot, Sartre, Bataille, Bourdieu, Althusser, de Beauviour, Levinas, and Kristeva, among many others, we need as much cohesion as we can find. Continue reading “Twentieth-Century French Philosophy: Key Themes and Thinkers”
LINT by Steve Aylett
Steve Alyett‘s LINT is a biography of one of the most enigmatic and misunderstood figures in modern science fiction. Easily on par with Philip K. Dick in brilliance and influence, Jeff Lint scrambled through SF and indeed his existence in a tornado of alternating “blasts of merit” and “blasts of truth.” He toiled away at otherworldly satire throughout most of the late twentieth century dodging mean and bitter critics and rivals, and maniacal, adoring fans in equal measure. Continue reading “LINT by Steve Aylett”
Led Zeppelin IV by Erik Davis
I’ve never been a big Led Zeppelin fan. I completely missed their lengthy reign on arenas and male libidos. You see, my parents aren’t into music, and I have no older siblings. This left me to my own devices as a young lad in search of music, and for some reason, Zeppelin was always at the periphery of my sonic gaze. Continue reading “Led Zeppelin IV by Erik Davis”
Why Societies Need Dissent by Cass R. Sunstein
In Why Societies Need Dissent, Cass R. Sunstein illustrates the powers and dangers of dissent through a clear and concise exposition of three basic phenomena: conformity, social cascades, and group polarization. His epistemological view of conformity shows how we tend to learn less first-hand than from what others think and believe. Social cascades occur when a meme, carried by early-adopters, reaches its tipping point. Group polarization shows how extreme views become more extreme in group deliberations.
According to Sunstein, dissent is essential, but not always good. Your average contrarian can contribute a great deal to an argument by offering a differing point of view, but this can also be counterproductive for the community. Still, communities need constructive dissent and need to find ways to reward it. “In the real word,” writes Sunstein, “people will silence themselves for many reasons. Sometimes they do not want to risk the irritation or opprobrium of their friends and allies. Sometimes they fear that they will, through their dissent, weaken the effectiveness and reputation of the group to which they belong. Sometimes they trust fellow group members to be right.” Conformity carries its own rewards. Dissent does not.
Why Societies Need Dissent is an excellent overview of a concept that doesn’t get enough serious consideration or positive attention. Plus, you’ll look bad-ass reading it on the bus.
Dig! Directed by Ondi Timoner
Ondi Timoner’s Dig! is the story of a musical revolution, which may or may not have happened, depending on your perspective. The Brian Jonestown Massacre and The Dandy Worhols were friends before either had any modicum of fame, and they were determined to change the world — or at least the world of music. They took separate paths toward this change, and the onset of two types of fame turned them into rivals of the oddest sort. Continue reading “Dig! Directed by Ondi Timoner”
Underground Sounds
“Big wheel, big spin, big money, no whammies
Don’t save me a seat when you get to the Grammys” — nomadboy
So, against my better judgment, I watched the Grammys the other night. This viewing experiment reminded me both of how much I love music and how far away my tastes are from “Grammy material.” I made a quick trip to Lou’s Records in Encinitas, California prior to the show, and my purchases there should prove more than my point. Continue reading “Underground Sounds”
Literary Conversations and Interviews with Filmmakers
The University Press of Mississippi has been quietly putting out an amazing catalog of books for years now. One such set is their Literary Conversations Series (edited by Peggy Whitman Prenshaw) that consists of interviews and essays with modern literature’s most fascinating authors. I got Don DeLillo, Carl Sagan, Isaac Asimov, and Jack Kerouac, but the series also includes Tom Wolfe, August Wilson, Robert Penn Warren, Gore Vidal, Ray Bradbury, Gloria Naylor, R. Crumb, Audre Lorde, and F. Scott Fitzgerald, among many others.
They also put out a similar set called the Conversations with Filmmakers Series (edited by Peter Brunette). These include Ridley Scott, Roman Polanski, Woody Allen, Jean Renoir, Tim Burton, Charlie Chaplin, Francis Ford Coppola, Terry Gilliam, and many more. Since each of these books focuses on a specific person, but spans the length of his or her career, one really gets a sense of their attitudes, ambitions, processes, career development, career pitfalls, and, of course, personal tribulations. If you’re interested in any of these creators’ work, then the appropriate book here is indispensable. Hell, even if you’re not necessarily interested in the subject, they’re good. I mean, have you ever seen a bad episode of Behind the Music?
Here’s an excerpt from an interview with Roman Polanski from 1984:
Franz-Olivier Giesbert: After all that you have gone through, you still look only thirty years old. What’s your secret?
Roman Polanski: My curiosity, without doubt. I’m always trying to learn something new. A language or a musical instrument. Old age is an illness that sets in when you don’t want to learn anything new.
Amen.
So keep an eye out for these volumes. They’re all certainly worth checking out.
After Theory by Terry Eagleton
Over two decades ago, Terry Eagleton helped define the field of cultural theory with his book Literary Theory. In his latest work, After Theory, he takes a look back, a look around, and a look ahead in the field he helped found. Continue reading “After Theory by Terry Eagleton”
Love All the People: Letters, Lyrics, Routines by Bill Hicks
This is it, folks: the definitive collection of Bill Hicks stuff all in one book. Interviews, letters, lyrics, live routines, etc. are all compiled inside. For the uninitiated, Bill Hicks was the best comedian to ever jump on stage and bless the mic with his wisdom. Constantly railing against governmental idiocy, corporate control, censorship, and the indolence of America, among other things, Hicks took on all the evils of the world and the enemies of the open mind. You’ve heard him — even if it came from someone else’s mouth, you’ve heard his brand of intelligent, caustic wit. Nothing and no one is safe in the range of Bill Hicks’ comedy. Continue reading “Love All the People: Letters, Lyrics, Routines by Bill Hicks”
Elliott Smith and the Big Nothing by Benjamin Nugent
Better than even Kurt Cobain, Elliott Smith provides a case study of the effects of fame. Though his rise was just as mercurial, the changes wrought were more profound and more eerie. Benjamin Nugent treats this flight to fame with a delicate touch, showing as many sides of Elliott as he was able to access. The result is a book about the pitfalls of the rise to public attention, its effects on friendships, and a man who fought against everything to maintain the one thing he truly lost: control. Nugent’s book follows Elliott from his growing up in suburban Texas, where his tumultuous home life pushed him inward and toward music, to his beginnings as a performer in Portland, Oregon, then through his chaotic brush with mass consciousness, to his unfortunate suicide in Los Angeles. Continue reading “Elliott Smith and the Big Nothing by Benjamin Nugent”