David Bowie and philosophy : rebel, rebel / edited by Theodore G. Ammon.

Format:

• Book

Contributor:

• Ammon, Theodore G., editor.

Series:

• Popular culture and philosophy ; Volume 103.
• Popular Culture and Philosophy ; Volume 103

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

• Bowie, David.
• Rock musicians.
• Rock musicians--England--Biography.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (152 pages).

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Chicago, [Illinois] : Open Court, 2016.

Summary:

Among the topics explored in David Bowie and Philosophy are the nature of Bowie as an institution; Bowie's work in many platforms, including movies and TV; Bowie's spanning of low and high art, and his relation to Warhol; the influence of Buddhism and Kabuki theater; the recurring theme of Bowie as a space alien, including “Space Oddity" and The Man Who Fell to Earth; the dystopian element in Bowie's thinking, displayed in “1984" and the album Outside; the role of fashion in Bowie's creativity; personal identity as preserved over various divergent personae; the aesthetics of theatrical rock and glam rock; Bowie's public identification with bisexuality and his influence within the LGBTQ community. Pervasive themes in Bowie's output include change, time, apocalypse, dancing, mind-body dualism, and spirituality. In the dualistic universe that undergirds his lyrics, body consistently wins over mind, but body is nevertheless on the hook of moral responsibility. There is thus an inherent tension: the overwhelming desires of bodily drives versus the repressive institutions such as church and the omnipresent “They" who would have us do otherwise than our body want. The emergent paradox in Bowie is that for all his alleged sexual indulgences, in the end mind trumps body.

Contents:

• A farewell to David Bowie
• What David Bowie was up to. The actor tells the truth / George A. Reisch
• You don't have to be stupid to be cool / Thorsten Botz-Bornstein
• The flux of it all / Theodore G. Ammon
• Warm impermanence / Randall E. Auxier
• Soundings of Bowie. Squawking like a pink monkey bird
• What? / Greg Littmann
• Bowie the Buddhist / Martin Muchall
• David Bowie, political philosopher? / R. Kevin Hill
• The babe with the power / Nicolas Michaud
• The Bowie identity. When Jumpin' Jack Flash met Ziggy Stardust / Randall E. Auxier
• David Bowie and death / Michael Potter and Cam Cobb
• Meeting the monstrous self / Jerry Piven
• David Bowie's sincerity / Anneliese Cooper
• Out of Bowie's mind. The madness of the musician / Mathew Lampert
• David Bowie's sadness / Chris Ketcham
• Aladdin sane or cracked actor? / Simon Riches and Andrew Watson.

Notes:

• Includes bibliographical references and index.
• Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

0-8126-9925-4