The philosophy of Foucault / Todd May.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

May, Todd, 1955- author.

Series:

Continental European philosophy.

Continental European philosophy

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Foucault, Michel, 1926-1984.

Foucault, Michel.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xi, 170 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Place of Publication:

Durham : Acumen Publishing, 2006.

Summary:

Michel Foucault's historical and philosophical investigations have gone through many phases: the archaeological, the genealogical, and the ethical among them. What remains constant, however, is the question that motivates them: "who are we?" Todd May follows Foucault's itinerary from his early history of madness to his posthumously published Collège de France lectures and shows how the question of who we are shifts and changes but remains constantly at or just below the surface of his writings. By approaching Foucault's work in this way, May is able to offer readers an engaging and illuminating way to understand Foucault. Each of Foucault's key works – Madness and Civilization, The Archaeology of Knowledge, The Order of Things, Discipline and Punish and the multi-volume History of Sexuality – are examined in detail and situated in an historical context that makes effective use of comparisons with other thinkers such as Freud, Nietzsche and Sartre. Throughout the book May strikes a balance between sympathetic presentation and criticism of Foucault's ideas and in so doing exposes Foucault's contributions of lasting value. The Philosophy of Foucault is an accessible and stimulating introduction to one of the most popular and influential thinkers of recent years and will be welcomed by students studying Foucault as part of politics, sociology, history and philosophy courses.

Contents:

1. Introduction : who are we?

2. Archaeological histories of who we are

3. Genealogical histories of who we are

4. Who we are and who we might be

5. Coda : Foucault's own straying afield

6. Are we still who Foucault says we are?

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 02 Oct 2015).

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on metadata supplied by the publisher and other sources.

ISBN:

1-317-49384-2

1-317-49385-0

1-315-71207-5

1-282-94325-1

9786612943256

1-84465-374-9

9781315712079

OCLC:

898103921