Hauntology

The Presence of the Past in Twenty-First Century English Literature

Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism, Theory, Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy
Cover of the book Hauntology by Katy Shaw, Springer International Publishing
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Katy Shaw ISBN: 9783319749686
Publisher: Springer International Publishing Publication: April 16, 2018
Imprint: Palgrave Macmillan Language: English
Author: Katy Shaw
ISBN: 9783319749686
Publisher: Springer International Publishing
Publication: April 16, 2018
Imprint: Palgrave Macmillan
Language: English

Post-millennial writings function as a useful prism through which we can understand contemporary English culture and its compulsion to revisit the immediate past. The critical practice of hauntology turns to the past in order to make sense of the present, to understand how we got to this place and how to build a better future. Since the Year 2000, popular culture has been inundated with representations of those who occupy a space between being and non-being and defy ontological criteria. 

This Pivot explores a range of contemporary English literatures - from the poetry of Simon Armitage and the drama of Jez Butterworth, to the fiction of Zadie Smith and the stories of David Peace - that collectively unite to represent a twenty-first century world  full of specters, reminiscence and representations of spectral encounters. These specters become visible and significant as they interact with a range of social, political and economic discourses that continue to speak to the contemporary period. 

The enduring fascination with the spectral offers valuable insights into a contemporary English culture in which spectral manifestations signal towards larger social anxieties as well as to specific historical events and recurrent cultural preoccupations. The specter confronts the contemporary with the necessity of participation, encouraging the realisation that we must engage with it in order to create meaning. Narrative agency is the primary motivating force of its return, and the repetition of the specter functions to highlight new meanings and perspectives. 

Harnessing hauntology as a lens through which to consider the specters haunting twenty-first century English writings, this Pivot examines the emergence of a vein of hauntological literature that profiles the pervasive presence of the past in our new millennium. 

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Post-millennial writings function as a useful prism through which we can understand contemporary English culture and its compulsion to revisit the immediate past. The critical practice of hauntology turns to the past in order to make sense of the present, to understand how we got to this place and how to build a better future. Since the Year 2000, popular culture has been inundated with representations of those who occupy a space between being and non-being and defy ontological criteria. 

This Pivot explores a range of contemporary English literatures - from the poetry of Simon Armitage and the drama of Jez Butterworth, to the fiction of Zadie Smith and the stories of David Peace - that collectively unite to represent a twenty-first century world  full of specters, reminiscence and representations of spectral encounters. These specters become visible and significant as they interact with a range of social, political and economic discourses that continue to speak to the contemporary period. 

The enduring fascination with the spectral offers valuable insights into a contemporary English culture in which spectral manifestations signal towards larger social anxieties as well as to specific historical events and recurrent cultural preoccupations. The specter confronts the contemporary with the necessity of participation, encouraging the realisation that we must engage with it in order to create meaning. Narrative agency is the primary motivating force of its return, and the repetition of the specter functions to highlight new meanings and perspectives. 

Harnessing hauntology as a lens through which to consider the specters haunting twenty-first century English writings, this Pivot examines the emergence of a vein of hauntological literature that profiles the pervasive presence of the past in our new millennium. 

More books from Springer International Publishing

Cover of the book Gender, Family, and Adaptation of Migrants in Europe by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book Macroergonomics for Manufacturing Systems by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book E-Business and Telecommunications by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book The Nile Delta by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book Resilient Computer System Design by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book Learning Technology for Education in Cloud – The Changing Face of Education by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Disordered Materials by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book The Aesthetics of Democracy by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book The Death Café Movement by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book Globalization of Financial Institutions by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book Transnational Homosexuals in Communist Poland by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book Pedometrics by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book Security and Privacy in Smart Grid by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies by Katy Shaw
Cover of the book The Care of the Self in Early Christian Texts by Katy Shaw
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy