Ross Abbinnett – författare

This book presents a polemical account of the historical development of the neoliberal imagination. Inspired by the thought of Frederic Jameson, Bernard Stiegler, and Timothy Morton, it argues that the evolution of virtual and information technologies has transformed the ideological imaginary of capitalism. Owing to the inseparability of the process of commodification from developments in the sphere of media technology – particularly the rise of the digital networks through which information is processed and disseminated – the aesthetic forms of the neoliberal imaginary are not external to the accelerated productivity and adaptability of human beings. Rather, they are essential both to the vision of progress that informs the technoscientific organization of capitalist society and to the practical formation of ‘the self’ that takes place within its networks. A snapshot of the evolving ‘world picture’ that is formed in the neoliberal imagination as articulated in its particular regime of capitalization, The Neoliberal Imagination will appeal to scholars of social theory and social philosophy with interests in neoliberalism.

This book provides a comprehensive account of the work of Bernard Stiegler, one of the most influential living social and political philosophers of the twenty-first century. Focusing on Stiegler’s thought on hyperindustrial society and the development of technological systems through which the social, economic and political life of human beings has been transformed, the author examines Stiegler’s claim that the human species is ‘originally technological’ and that to understand the evolution of human society, we must first understand the interface between human beings and technology.A study of the reciprocal development of technical instruments and human faculties, that offers a chapter-by-chapter account of how this relationship is played out in the digital, informatic and biotechnological programmes of hyperindustrial society, The Thought of Bernard Stiegler develops Stiegler’s idea of technology as a pharmakon: a network of systems that provoke both existential despair and unprecedented modes of aesthetic, literary and philosophical creativity that can potentially revitalize the political culture of human beings.As such, it will appeal to social and political theorists and philosophers concerned with our postmodern inheritance.

This book presents a polemical account of the historical development of the neoliberal imagination. Inspired by the thought of Frederic Jameson, Bernard Stiegler, and Timothy Morton, it argues that the evolution of virtual and information technologies has transformed the ideological imaginary of capitalism. Owing to the inseparability of the process of commodification from developments in the sphere of media technology – particularly the rise of the digital networks through which information is processed and disseminated – the aesthetic forms of the neoliberal imaginary are not external to the accelerated productivity and adaptability of human beings. Rather, they are essential both to the vision of progress that informs the technoscientific organization of capitalist society and to the practical formation of ‘the self’ that takes place within its networks. A snapshot of the evolving ‘world picture’ that is formed in the neoliberal imagination as articulated in its particular regime of capitalization, The Neoliberal Imagination will appeal to scholars of social theory and social philosophy with interests in neoliberalism.

This book provides a comprehensive account of the work of Bernard Stiegler, one of the most influential living social and political philosophers of the twenty-first century. Focusing on Stiegler’s thought on hyperindustrial society and the development of technological systems through which the social, economic and political life of human beings has been transformed, the author examines Stiegler’s claim that the human species is ‘originally technological’ and that to understand the evolution of human society, we must first understand the interface between human beings and technology.A study of the reciprocal development of technical instruments and human faculties, that offers a chapter-by-chapter account of how this relationship is played out in the digital, informatic and biotechnological programmes of hyperindustrial society, The Thought of Bernard Stiegler develops Stiegler’s idea of technology as a pharmakon: a network of systems that provoke both existential despair and unprecedented modes of aesthetic, literary and philosophical creativity that can potentially revitalize the political culture of human beings.As such, it will appeal to social and political theorists and philosophers concerned with our postmodern inheritance.

`Ross Abbinnett brings a keen and subtle philosophical mind to bear on themes and debates that have become commonplace in sociology. This is a sinuously written book which casts new light on pressing contemporary issues. It is required reading for everyone who wants to think seriously and with an open mind about the terrain of the present' - Keith Tester, Professor of Sociology, University of Portsmouth

This incisive and timely book provides a concise and reliable guide to the debate on modernity and postmodernity. In particular the work of Lyotard, Beck, Bauman, Baudrillard, Giddens, Jameson and Derrida is critically reviewed.

Culture and Identity provides: a thorough and accessible discussion of the main themes in the modernity-postmodernity debate; a shrewd and penetrating account of how these themes address everyday life; a novel account of how technology is altering our perceptions of the `human'; and a balanced account of the hope for radical politics and radical critique to correct the excesses of capitalism.

What emerges most forcefully from the book is the error of dismissing postmodernism as a self-indulgent and ultimately, dangerous piece of ideology. Abbinnett provides a pertinent reminder of the continuing importance of the themes and challenges raised in the `postmodern moment'.

This exciting and accessible guide to the discussions of truth in the social sciences can also be read as an account of the collapse of modernity, and the rise of new forms of thought which treat difference and ambivalence as positive values.

Ross Abbinnett traces the debate on truth from the `objectifying powers' of Kant through more than 200 years of critique and reformulation to the unravelling of truth by Lyotard, Foucault and Derrida.

This exciting and accessible guide to the discussions of truth in the social sciences can also be read as an account of the collapse of modernity, and the rise of new forms of thought which treat difference and ambivalence as positive values.

Ross Abbinnett traces the debate on truth from the `objectifying powers' of Kant through more than 200 years of critique and reformulation to the unravelling of truth by Lyotard, Foucault and Derrida.

This unique and engaging study argues that the Western concern with achieving happiness should be understood in terms of its relationship to the political ideologies that have emerged since the Enlightenment. To do so, each chapter examines the place that happiness occupies in the construction of ideologies that have formed the political terrain of the West, including liberalism, postmodernism, socialism, fascism, and religion. Throughout, Hegel's phenomenology, Nietzsche's genealogy, and Derrida's account of deconstruction as reactions to modernization are used to show that the politics of happiness are always a clash of fundamental ideas of belonging, overcoming, and ethical responsibility. Stressing that the concept of happiness lies at the foundation of political movements, the book also looks at its place in the current global order, analyzing the emergence of such ideas as affective democracy that challenge the conventional notions of privatized, acquisitive happiness.Written in a clear manner, the work will appeal to political theory students and researchers looking for a critical and historical account of contemporary debates about the nature of happiness and ideology.

`Ross Abbinnett brings a keen and subtle philosophical mind to bear on themes and debates that have become commonplace in sociology. This is a sinuously written book which casts new light on pressing contemporary issues. It is required reading for everyone who wants to think seriously and with an open mind about the terrain of the present' - Keith Tester, Professor of Sociology, University of Portsmouth

This incisive and timely book provides a concise and reliable guide to the debate on modernity and postmodernity. In particular the work of Lyotard, Beck, Bauman, Baudrillard, Giddens, Jameson and Derrida is critically reviewed.

Culture and Identity provides: a thorough and accessible discussion of the main themes in the modernity-postmodernity debate; a shrewd and penetrating account of how these themes address everyday life; a novel account of how technology is altering our perceptions of the `human'; and a balanced account of the hope for radical politics and radical critique to correct the excesses of capitalism.

What emerges most forcefully from the book is the error of dismissing postmodernism as a self-indulgent and ultimately, dangerous piece of ideology. Abbinnett provides a pertinent reminder of the continuing importance of the themes and challenges raised in the `postmodern moment'.

Higher education exposes a key paradox of neoliberalism. The project of neoliberalism was said to be that of rolling back the state to liberate individuals, by replacing government bureaucracy with the free market. Rather than have the market serve individuals however, individuals were to serve the market. The marketisation ‘reforms’ in higher education, which sought to reshape knowledge production, with students investing in human capital and academics producing ‘transferable’ research, to make higher education of use to the economy, has resulted in extensive government bureaucracy and oppressive managerialist bureaucracy which is inefficient and expensive. Neoliberalism has always had authoritarian aspects and these are now coming to bear on universities. The state does not want critical and informed graduate citizens, but a hollowed out public sphere defined by consumption, willing servitude to the market and deference to state power. Attempts to reshape universities with bureaucracy are now accompanied by a culture war, attacking the production of critical knowledge. The authors in this book explore these issues and the possibilities for resistance and progressive change.