Rex Butler – författare

Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garçons is undoubtedly one of the world’s major fashion designers. In 2017 she was the second living designer ever to be given a retrospective at the renowned Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Her work has exerted an extraordinary influence over succeeding generations of designers and is a major point of reference for all those wishing to explore the place of fashion in contemporary culture.The 14 essays in this collection, written by eminent fashion theorists from around the world, explore the relationship of Kawakubo’s work to art, philosophy and architecture, and reveal how Kawakubo's creative output allows us to understand the very notion of fashion itself.

This book goes beyond Baudrillard's writings on consumer objects, the Gulf War and America, to identify the fundamental logic that underpins his writings. It does this through a series of close readings of his main texts, paying particular attention to the form and internal coherence of his arguments. The book is written for all those who want a general introduction to Baudrillard's work, and will also appeal to those readers who are interested in social theory, but who have not yet taken Baudrillard seriously.

The Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges is undoubtedly one of the defining voices of our age. Since the Second World War, his work has had an enormous impact on generations of writers, philosophers and literary theorists. This clear and accessibly written guide offers a close reading of ten of Borges' greatest short stories, seeking to bring out the logic that has made his work so influential. The main section of the guide offers an analysis of such key terms in Borges' work as "labyrinth" and the "infinite" and analyses Borges' particular narrative strategies. This guide also sets Borges' work within its wider literary, cultural and intellectual contexts and provides an annotated guide to both scholarly and popular responses to his work to assist further reading.

This is a Readers Guide to ten of Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges' best-known and most widely studied short stories. The Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges is undoubtedly one of the defining voices of our age. Since the Second World War, his work has had an enormous impact on generations of writers, philosophers and literary theorists. This clear and accessibly written guide offers a close reading of ten of Borges' greatest short stories, seeking to bring out the logic that has made his work so influential. The main section of the guide offers an analysis of such key terms in Borges' work as 'labyrinth' and the 'infinite' and analyses Borges' particular narrative strategies. This guide also sets Borges' work within its wider literary, cultural and intellectual contexts and provides an annotated guide to both scholarly and popular responses to his work to assist further reading. "Continuum Reader's Guides" are clear, concise and accessible introductions to key texts in literature and philosophy.Each book explores the themes, context, criticism and influence of key works, providing a practical introduction to close reading, guiding students towards a thorough understanding of the text. They provide an essential, up-to-date resource, ideal for undergraduate students.

Slavoj Zizek is undoubtedly one of the worlds leading cultural critics. His witty, psychoanalytically-inspired analyses of contemporary society have almost single-handedly revived the notion of ideology. His brilliant commentaries on the French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan and the 19th century German Idealists have brought alive their often difficult ideas for a new generation of readers. But does Zizek have anything to say in his own right? Is there a system of thought that we can properly call Zizekian? This book argues that there is, through a reading of two terms in his work-the master-signifier and the act. Featuring an interview with Zizek himself, Slavoj Zizek: Live Theory presents a snapshot of the Zizek system ideal for undergraduates in social and cultural theory and philosophy.

The second volume of the key writings of leading contemporary cultural commentator, Slavoj Zizek. Collecting together a broad selection of Zizek's major writings on politics, The Universal Exception showcases his formidable range of interests and his style. The book includes his writings on such right-wing icons as Ayn Rand and Leni Riefenstahl; his take on the logic of capitalism and the condition of contemporary radical politics; and his views on major current global issues and events, including the Iraq war. Together with Interrogating the Real, the first volume of Zizek's selected writings, this collection offers a superb introduction to the work of this prolific, controversial and vastly entertaining cultural commentator.

The Universal Exception is the second volume of the selected writings of Slavoj ek-one of the most provocative and inspiring writers on culture at work today. Bringing together a broad selection of ek's major writings on politics, The Universal Exception showcases Zizek's formidable range of interests and his style. The book includes his interventions on such world political events as the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 and the American-led invasion of Iraq, his celebration of the revolutionary potential of Stalinism, and his critique of Third Way politics. Together with Interrogating the Real, the first volume of ek's selected writings, this collection offers a superb introduction to the work of this prolific, controversial and vastly entertaining cultural commentator.

Distributed by the University of Nebraska Press for Whale and Star Press Modeled after the famed TV sci-fi series The X-Files, The &-Files gathers together a covert body of documents following the long and often controversial career of Art & Text, one of the landmark contemporary art magazines of the 1980s and 1990s. Founded in Melbourne, Australia, in 1981 by Paul Taylor (1957–92), who soon moved to New York City to make his mark as an art critic, the magazine went on to become one of a handful of international art magazines that succeeded in capturing the turmoil and passing brilliance of that period of postmodernism. Perceived through the eyes and ears of its longtime publisher and editor Paul Foss, The &-Files is comprised of an open letter, a lengthy interview, two questionnaires, and other commentaries and bibliographies, offering a unique insider account of the extraordinary advantages and pitfalls of publishing an art magazine.

In the late 1990s, Rosalind Krauss, one of the principal theorists of post-modernism in the arts, began using the term “post-medium” in her work. It was a nod to the American “ordinary language” philosopher Stanley Cavell, who had been thinking through a concept of medium in art for 30 years. Today with the decline of post-modernism, Stanley Cavell has emerged as one of the most important figures for thinking again about the visual arts, film and theatre. Stanley Cavell and the Arts looks at Cavell’s extensive writings on a wide variety of artforms and at a number of writers (Michael Fried, William Rothman) influenced by his work. Over a 50-year career, Cavell wrote about visual art, photography, classical music, Shakespeare, the plays of Samuel Beckett and perhaps most notably Hollywood cinema. Stanley Cavell and the Arts offers an overview of Cavell’s writings on the arts, situating them within his wider philosophical practice, analysing in detail his treatment of particular art forms and looking at the work of those he has deeply shaped.

In the late 1990s, Rosalind Krauss, one of the principal theorists of post-modernism in the arts, began using the term “post-medium” in her work. It was a nod to the American “ordinary language” philosopher Stanley Cavell, who had been thinking through a concept of medium in art for 30 years. Today with the decline of post-modernism, Stanley Cavell has emerged as one of the most important figures for thinking again about the visual arts, film and theatre. Stanley Cavell and the Arts looks at Cavell’s extensive writings on a wide variety of artforms and at a number of writers (Michael Fried, William Rothman) influenced by his work. Over a 50-year career, Cavell wrote about visual art, photography, classical music, Shakespeare, the plays of Samuel Beckett and perhaps most notably Hollywood cinema. Stanley Cavell and the Arts offers an overview of Cavell’s writings on the arts, situating them within his wider philosophical practice, analysing in detail his treatment of particular art forms and looking at the work of those he has deeply shaped.

The Japanese fashion designer Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garçons is undoubtedly one of the world’s major fashion designers. In 2017 she was the second living designer to ever be given a retrospective at the renowned Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Her work exerts an extraordinary influence over succeeding generations of designers and is a major point of reference for all those wishing to explore the place of fashion in contemporary culture.The 14 essays in this collection, written by eminent fashion theorists from around the world, ask what is the relationship of Kawakubo’s work to art, philosophy and architecture, and ultimately illustrate how Kawakubo's creative output allows us to understand the very notion of fashion itself.

Slavoj Žižek is one of the world’s foremost cultural commentators: a prolific writer and thinker, whose vividly adventurous, unorthodox and wide-ranging writings have won him a unique place as one of the most high profile thinkers of our time. Covering psychoanalysis, philosophy and popular culture and drawing on a heady mix of Marxist politics, Hegelian dialectics and Lacanian psychoanalysis, the writings collected in Interrogating the Real reflect not only the remarkable extent of Žižek’s varied interests, but also reveal his controversial and dynamic style.

Slavoj Žižek is one of the world’s foremost cultural commentators: a prolific writer and thinker, whose adventurous, unorthodox and wide-ranging writings have won him a unique place as one of the most high profile thinkers of our time. The Universal Exception brings together some of Žižek’s most vivid writings on politics. Bringing together high theory, popular culture and passionate engagement with politics, Žižek here brings us startlingly new perspectives on such topics as multiculturalism, capitalism and Bill Gates, the revolutionary potential of Stalinism, the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and the war in Iraq.Including a glossary of key terms, the Bloomsbury Revelations edition also includes a new preface by the author.

The Danish director Lars von Trier is undoubtedly one of the world's most important and controversial filmmakers, and arguably so because of the depiction of women in his films. He has been criticized for subjecting his female characters to unacceptable levels of violence or reducing them to masochistic self-abnegation, as with Bess in Breaking the Waves, ‘She’ in Antichrist and Joe in Nymphomaniac. At other times, it is the women in his films who are dominant or break out in violence, as in his adaptation of Euripides' Medea, the conclusion of Dogville and perhaps throughout Nymphomaniac. Lars von Trier's Women confronts these dichotomies head on. Editors Rex Butler and David Denny do not take a position either for or against von Trier, but rather consider how both attitudes fall short of the real difficulty of his films, which may simply not conform to any kind of feminist or indeed anti-feminist politics as they are currently configured. Using Lacanian psychoanalysis and acknowledging the work of prior scholars on the films, Lars von Trier's Women reveals hidden resources for a renewed ‘feminist’ politics and social practice.

The Danish director Lars von Trier is undoubtedly one of the world's most important and controversial filmmakers, and arguably so because of the depiction of women in his films. He has been criticized for subjecting his female characters to unacceptable levels of violence or reducing them to masochistic self-abnegation, as with Bess in Breaking the Waves, ‘She’ in Antichrist and Joe in Nymphomaniac. At other times, it is the women in his films who are dominant or break out in violence, as in his adaptation of Euripides' Medea, the conclusion of Dogville and perhaps throughout Nymphomaniac. Lars von Trier's Women confronts these dichotomies head on. Editors Rex Butler and David Denny do not take a position either for or against von Trier, but rather consider how both attitudes fall short of the real difficulty of his films, which may simply not conform to any kind of feminist or indeed anti-feminist politics as they are currently configured. Using Lacanian psychoanalysis and acknowledging the work of prior scholars on the films, Lars von Trier's Women reveals hidden resources for a renewed ‘feminist’ politics and social practice.

This collection analyzes Joshua Oppenheimer’s diptych The Act of Killing and The Look of Silence as a cinematic event that invites interrelated questions on historical memory, truth and reconciliation, and the limits of documentary filmmaking. On the Act of Looking affirms Oppenheimer’s use of fiction and manipulation as a technique to expose, contrary to the classic documentary form, not so much a reality behind the appearance of things, but how appearance as such can become a site of intervention or truth-telling. Contributors to this collection, including film scholars, art historians, historians, political scientists, philosophers, and Indonesian human rights activists, answer why Oppenheimer's documentary films not only have received near universal praise and admiration, but also why this praise is often qualified by surprise and fascination.

Slavoj Žižek is the most popular and discussed philosopher in the world today. His prolific writings – across philosophy, psychoanalysis, political and social theory, film, music and religion – always engage and provoke. The power of his ideas, the breadth of his references, his capacity for playfulness and confrontation, his willingness to change his mind and his refusal fundamentally to alter his argument – all have worked to build an extraordinary international readership as well as to elicit much critical reaction. The Žižek Dictionary brings together leading Žižek commentators from across the world to present a companion and guide to Žižekian thought. Each of the 60 short essays examines a key term and, crucially, explores its development across Žižek’s work and how it fits in with other concepts and concerns. The dictionary will prove invaluable both to readers coming to Žižek for the first time and to those already embarked on the Žižekian journey.

Slavoj Žižek is the most popular and discussed philosopher in the world today. His prolific writings – across philosophy, psychoanalysis, political and social theory, film, music and religion – always engage and provoke. The power of his ideas, the breadth of his references, his capacity for playfulness and confrontation, his willingness to change his mind and his refusal fundamentally to alter his argument – all have worked to build an extraordinary international readership as well as to elicit much critical reaction. The Žižek Dictionary brings together leading Žižek commentators from across the world to present a companion and guide to Žižekian thought. Each of the 60 short essays examines a key term and, crucially, explores its development across Žižek’s work and how it fits in with other concepts and concerns. The dictionary will prove invaluable both to readers coming to Žižek for the first time and to those already embarked on the Žižekian journey.

What is Philosophy? is the last instalment of a remarkable twenty-year collaboration between the philosopher Gilles Deleuze and the psychoanalyst Félix Guattari. This hugely important text attempts to explain the terms of their collaboration and to define the activity of philosophy in which they have been engaged. A major contribution to contemporary Continental philosophy, it nevertheless remains distinctly challenging for readers faced for the first time with Deleuze and Guattari's unusual and somewhat allusive style.Deleuze and Guattari's 'What is Philosophy?': A Reader's Guide offers a concise and accessible introduction to this hugely important and yet challenging work. Written specifically to meet the needs of students coming to Deleuze and Guattari for the first time, the book offers guidance on: - Philosophical and historical context - Key themes - Reading the text - Reception and influence - Further reading

What is Philosophy? is the last instalment of a remarkable twenty-year collaboration between the philosopher Gilles Deleuze and the psychoanalyst Félix Guattari. This hugely important text attempts to explain the terms of their collaboration and to define the activity of philosophy in which they have been engaged. A major contribution to contemporary Continental philosophy, it nevertheless remains distinctly challenging for readers faced for the first time with Deleuze and Guattari's unusual and somewhat allusive style.This Reader's Guide offers a concise and accessible introduction to this hugely important and yet challenging work. Written specifically to meet the needs of students coming to Deleuze and Guattari for the first time, the book offers guidance on the philosophical and historical context of the text, its reception and influence, its key themes, notes on reading the text and further reading suggestions.

This book goes beyond Baudrillard's writings on consumer objects, the Gulf War and America, to identify the fundamental logic that underpins his writings. It does this through a series of close readings of his main texts, paying particular attention to the form and internal coherence of his arguments. The book is written for all those who want a general introduction to Baudrillard's work, and will also appeal to those readers who are interested in social theory, but who have not yet taken Baudrillard seriously.