Peter Marks – författare

At the end of the century, much criticism has become devoted to `last things': the end of history, the end of the subject, the end of the novel, the end, even, of the end. Literature and the Contemporary, in contrast, aims to provide through twelve essays evidence of the way in which the literature of the 1990s is constantly engaging in questions of memory and history and the representation of time in the present day.The essays in the book survey theories of temporality from various cultural and philosophical standpoints, and represent critics writing from feminist, postcolonial and `queer' perspectives discussing literature in `our time'. The collection addresses such central issues as the politics of memory, colonial legacies, women's time, racial and sexual identities in the 1990s, and covers a wide range of contemporary authors, works and issues, some of which are treated for the first time. Among the contemporary works discussed are the prize-winning books Graham Swift's Last Orders, Anne Michaels' Fugitive Pieces, and Jane Smiley's A Thousand Acres.While discussing some of the most significant novels of the 1990s, this collection also offers a diverse yet cohesive critique of the millennial leanings of much `postmodernist' criticism, which it argues should be replaced by more variously nuanced engagements with literature and the contemporary.

At the end of the century, much criticism has become devoted to `last things': the end of history, the end of the subject, the end of the novel, the end, even, of the end. Literature and the Contemporary, in contrast, aims to provide through twelve essays evidence of the way in which the literature of the 1990s is constantly engaging in questions of memory and history and the representation of time in the present day.The essays in the book survey theories of temporality from various cultural and philosophical standpoints, and represent critics writing from feminist, postcolonial and `queer' perspectives discussing literature in `our time'. The collection addresses such central issues as the politics of memory, colonial legacies, women's time, racial and sexual identities in the 1990s, and covers a wide range of contemporary authors, works and issues, some of which are treated for the first time. Among the contemporary works discussed are the prize-winning books Graham Swift's Last Orders, Anne Michaels' Fugitive Pieces, and Jane Smiley's A Thousand Acres.While discussing some of the most significant novels of the 1990s, this collection also offers a diverse yet cohesive critique of the millennial leanings of much `postmodernist' criticism, which it argues should be replaced by more variously nuanced engagements with literature and the contemporary.

This title provides an insight into the original context, qualities and influence of George Orwell's essays and provides the first extended examination of his genius as an essayist. George Orwell ranked his essays among his greatest literary achievements. In modern English literature they are praised as the finest accomplishments of the form. More than half a century after his death, Peter Marks gives them the scholarly attention they merit. We gain a better understanding of Orwell by properly understanding his essays. Mark's sophisticated account of the essay form explains why its flexible properties are the ideal tool for Orwell's critical and political thinking. Situating the essays in their original periodical contexts we see how Orwell manipulates his approach across a range of journals so as to entertain, convince or provoke his expected readers. We are privy to the rhetorical tactics a master uses to convince his audience. Exploring the popularity of the essay's beyond his death, we realize how the essays have influenced Orwell's posthumous reputation.A major contribution to our interpretation of Orwell, this critical study unravels the variety, complexity and, occasional inconsistency, of essays by one of the greatest writers of the form.

This title provides an insight into the original context, qualities and influence of George Orwell's essays and provides the first extended examination of his genius as an essayist. George Orwell ranked his essays among his greatest literary achievements. In modern English literature they are praised as the finest accomplishments of the form. More than half a century after his death, Peter Marks gives them the scholarly attention they merit. We gain a better understanding of Orwell by properly understanding his essays. Mark's sophisticated account of the essay form explains why its flexible properties are the ideal tool for Orwell's critical and political thinking. Situating the essays in their original periodical contexts we see how Orwell manipulates his approach across a range of journals so as to entertain, convince or provoke his expected readers. We are privy to the rhetorical tactics a master uses to convince his audience. Exploring the popularity of the essay's beyond his death, we realize how the essays have influenced Orwell's posthumous reputation.A major contribution to our interpretation of Orwell, this critical study unravels the variety, complexity and, occasional inconsistency, of essays by one of the greatest writers of the form.

Provides a synoptic view of the exuberant and challenging fiction, poetry and drama created in 1990s BritainPlacing literary creativity within a changing cultural and political context that saw the end of Margaret Thatcher and rise of New Labour, this book offers fresh interpretations of mainstream and marginal works from all parts of Britain. Based on a framework of thematically-structured accounts, the individual chapters cover national identity, ethnicity, sexuality, class, celebrity culture, history and fantasy in literature from Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and England. It offers its readers a comprehensive view of the changing and challenging literary landscape in this period, critically examining the fiction, poetry and drama as well as representative films, art and music. Placed within the broader context of a transformative political and cultural environment that included Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair, Damian Hirst and Princess Diana, the book captures the energetic and sometimes provocative experimentation that typified the final decade of the twentieth century. Key FeaturesConsiders a wide-ranging assortment of fiction, poetry, drama and film of the 1990s within the broader political and cultural context of Great BritainSupplies a thematically oriented account of major aspects of contemporary literature, including ethnicity, class, celebrity and speculative workDeals with literature from Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England, both in relation to each other and within the larger cultural environment of Great BritainPresents a theoretically informed argument integrated with close critical analyses of mainstream and marginal texts

Critically assesses how literary and cinematic eutopias and dystopias have imagined and evaluated surveillance.Imagining Surveillance presents the first full-length study of the depiction and assessment of surveillance in literature and film. Focusing on the utopian genre (which includes positive and negative worlds), this book offers an in-depth account of the ways in which the most creative writers, filmmakers and thinkers have envisioned alternative worlds in which surveillance in various forms plays a key concern. Ranging from Thomas More’s genre-defining Utopia to Spike Jones’ provocative film Her, Imagining Surveillance explores the long history of surveillance in creative texts well before and after George Orwell’s iconic Nineteen Eighty-Four. It fits that key novel into a five hundred year narrative that includes some of the most provocative and inventive accounts of surveillance as it is and as it might be in the future. The book explains the sustained use of these works by surveillance scholars, but goes much further and deeper in explicating their brilliant and challenging diversity. With chapters on surveillance studies, surveillance in utopias before Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four itself, and utopian texts post-Orwell that deal with visibility, spaces, identity, technology and the shape of things to come, Imagining Surveillance sits firmly in the emerging cultural studies of surveillance.Key Features:The first sustained account of the representation of surveillance in eutopian and dystopian literature and filmCharts surveillance’s historical development and creative responses to that developmentProvides a detailed critical account of the ways that surveillance studies has utilised utopias to formulate its ideasOffers new readings of literary texts and films from More’s Utopia through George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four to Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake and films from Fritz Lang’s Metropolis to Neil Blomkamp’s Elysium and beyond

Provides a synoptic view of the exuberant and challenging fiction, poetry and drama created in 1990s BritainPlacing literary creativity within a changing cultural and political context that saw the end of Margaret Thatcher and rise of New Labour, this book offers fresh interpretations of mainstream and marginal works from all parts of Britain. Based on a framework of thematically-structured accounts, the individual chapters cover national identity, ethnicity, sexuality, class, celebrity culture, history and fantasy in literature from Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and England. It offers its readers a comprehensive view of the changing and challenging literary landscape in this period, critically examining the fiction, poetry and drama as well as representative films, art and music. Placed within the broader context of a transformative political and cultural environment that included Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair, Damian Hirst and Princess Diana, the book captures the energetic and sometimes provocative experimentation that typified the final decade of the twentieth century.　Key Features Considers a wide-ranging assortment of fiction, poetry, drama and film of the 1990s within the broader political and cultural context of Great BritainSupplies a thematically oriented account of major aspects of contemporary literature, including ethnicity, class, celebrity and speculative workDeals with literature from Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England, both in relation to each other and within the larger cultural environment of Great BritainPresents a theoretically informed argument integrated with close critical analyses of mainstream and marginal texts

Collective decision making seems a straightforward matter: people come together and decide. But why is it that today's winners can turn into tomorrow's losers? Why can't you always get what you want? How does the interaction between the decision makers influence the outcome? And are opportunists better off than stubborn decision makers? This book takes a refreshing look at collective decision making by using models of evolutionary biology and naturalistic decision making to analyse real-world cases. These cases include the rise and fall of the Dutch high-speed railway project and the unexpected effects of introducing public-private partnerships to connect the new Thai national airport to Bangkok. Gerrits and Marks successfully guide the reader towards an in-depth understanding through rich empirical research and uncover the beautiful complexity of collective decision making.Understanding Collective Decision Making will be of great interest to academics working in public administration, political science and evolutionary theory. Public managers will also find this book helpful to understand why and how collective decisions are formed.

The Palgrave Handbook of Utopian and Dystopian Literatures celebrates a literary genre already over 500 years old. Covering politics, environment, geography, body and mind, and social organization, the volume surveys current research and maps new areas of study.

The Palgrave Handbook of Utopian and Dystopian Literatures celebrates a literary genre already over 500 years old. Covering politics, environment, geography, body and mind, and social organization, the volume surveys current research and maps new areas of study.