Slavoj Žižek and radical politics / Sean Homer.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Homer, Sean, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Žižek, Slavoj.

Philosophy--Slovenia.

Philosophy.

Nationalism--Former Yugoslav republics.

Nationalism.

Slovenia.

Yugoslavia.

Former Yugoslav republics.

Physical Description:

xvi, 114 pages ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : Routledge, 2016.

Summary:

In this book, Sean Homer addresses Slavoj Zizek's work in a specific political conjuncture, his political interventions in the Balkans. The charge of inconsistency and contradiction is frequently leveled at Zizek's politics, a charge he openly embraces in the name of "pragmatism." Homer argues that his interventions in the Balkans expose the dangers of this pragmatism for the renewal of Leftist politics that he calls for. The book assesses Zizek's political interventions insofar as they advance his self-proclaimed "ruthlessly radical" aims about changing the world. Homer argues the Balkans can be seen as Zizek's symptom, that element which does not fit into the system, but speaks its truth and reveals what the system cannot acknowledge about itself. In Part II Homer explores Zizek's radicalism through his critique of Alain Badiou, arguing that Badiou's "affirmationism" provides a firmer grounding for the renewal of the left than Zizek's negative gesture analyzed in Part I. What distinguishes Zizek from the majority of the contemporary Left today is his valorization of violence; Homer tackles this issue head-on in relation to political violence in Greece. Finally, Homer defends the Utopian impulse on the radical Left against its Lacanian critics. Book jacket.

Contents:

Žižek in the Balkans

Introduction : the case of Kosovo

It's the political economy, stupid! on Žižek's Marxism

Nationalism, ideology and Balkan cinema

To begin at the beginning again : Žižek in the former Yugoslavia

Radicalising Žižek

Introduction : thinking through Žižek and beyond

The politics of comradeship : philosophical construction and commitment in Alain Badiou and Slavoj Žižek

On 'the critique of violence' and revolutionary suicide

Conclusion : Resources of hope : a critique of Lacanian anti-utopianism.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781138643574

1138643572

9781138643581

1138643580

OCLC:

931802793