The rise of nationalist, racist and anti-feminist ideologies is one of the most frightening repercussions of the collapse of socialism. Using psychoanalytic theories of fantasy to investigate why such extremist ideologies have taken hold, Renata Salecl argues that the major social and political changes in post-communist Eastern Europe require a radical re-evaluation of notions of liberal theories of democracy. In doing so she offers a new approach to human rights and feminism grounded in her own active partipation in the struggles, first against communism and now against nationalism and anti-feminism.

The Spoils of Freedom: Psychoanalysis and Feminism After the Fall of Socialism (Opening Out: Feminism for Today)

Salecl, Renata

Reference

Routledge

The Spoils of Freedom examines the rise of nationalist, racist and anti-feminist ideologies in post-socialist Eastern Europe. This provocative study asks what has become of the notions of democracy and human rights.

The Spoils of Freedom: Psychoanalysis and Feminism After the Fall of Socialism

On Anxiety (Thinking in Action)

We frequently hear that we live in an age of anxiety, from 'therapy culture', the Atkins diet and child anti-depressants to gun culture and weapons of mass destruction. While Hollywood regularly cashes in on teenage anxiety through its Scream franchise, pharmaceutical companies churn out new drugs such as Paxil to combat newly diagnosed anxieties.On Anxiety takes a fascinating, psychological plunge behind the scenes of our panic stricken culture and into anxious minds, asking who and what is responsible. Putting anxiety on the couch, Renata Salecl asks some much-needed questions: Is anxiety about the absence of authority or too much of it? Do the media report anxiety or create it? Are drugs a cure for anxiety or its cause? Is anxiety about being yourself or someone else, and is anxiety really the ultimate obstacle to happiness? Drawing on vivid examples from films such as the X Files and Cyrano de Bergerac, drugs used on soldiers to combat anxiety, the anxieties of love and motherhood, and fake Holocaust memoirs, Renata Salecl argues that what really produces anxiety is the attempt to get rid of it. Erudite and compelling, On Anxiety is essential reading for anyone interested in philosophy, psychology and the cultural phenomenon of anxiety today.

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Mental Health

We frequently hear that we live in an age of anxiety, from 'therapy culture', the Atkins diet and child anti-depressants to gun culture and weapons of mass destruction. While Hollywood regularly cashes in on teenage anxiety through its Scream franchise, pharmaceutical companies churn out new drugs such as Paxil to combat newly diagnosed anxieties. On Anxiety takes a fascinating, psychological plunge behind the scenes of our panic stricken culture and into anxious minds, asking who and what is responsible. Putting anxiety on the couch, Renata Salecl asks some much-needed questions: Is anxiety about the absence of authority or too much of it? Do the media report anxiety or create it? Are drugs a cure for anxiety or its cause? Is anxiety about being yourself or someone else, and is anxiety really the ultimate obstacle to happiness? Drawing on vivid examples from films such as the X Files and Cyrano de Bergerac, drugs used on soldiers to combat anxiety, the anxieties of love and motherhood, and fake Holocaust memoirs, Renata Salecl argues that what really produces anxiety is the attempt to get rid of it. Erudite and compelling, On Anxiety is essential reading for anyone interested in philosophy, psychology and the cultural phenomenon of anxiety today.

An original and provocative exploration of our capacity to ignore what is inconvenient or traumatic Ignorance, whether passive or active, conscious or unconscious, has always been a part of the human condition, Renata Salecl argues. What has changed in our post-truth, postindustrial world is that we often feel overwhelmed by the constant flood of information and misinformation. It sometimes seems impossible to differentiate between truth and falsehood and, as a result, there has been a backlash against the idea of expertise, and a rise in the number of people actively choosing not to know. The dangers of this are obvious, but Salecl challenges our assumptions, arguing that there may also be a positive side to ignorance, and that by addressing the role of ignorance in society, we may also be able to reclaim the role of knowledge. Drawing on philosophy, social and psychoanalytic theory, popular culture, and her own experience, Salecl explores how the passion for ignorance plays out in many different aspects of life today, from love, illness, trauma, and the fear of failure to genetics, forensic science, big data, and the incel movement--and she concludes that ignorance is a complex phenomenon that can, on occasion, benefit individuals and society as a whole. The result is a fascinating investigation of how the knowledge economy became an ignorance economy, what it means for us, and what it tells us about the world today.

A Passion for Ignorance: What We Choose Not to Know and Why

Politics & Social Sciences

Philosophy

Princeton University Press

This revised and greatly expanded edition of the book originally published on the occasion of Holzer's celebrated exhibition at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in 1989 is a comprehensive document of the artist's career. A complete collection of the artist's writings, up to and including her 1996 text for a monument in Erlauf, Austria, is accompanied by color photography of the entire range of Holzer's installations and projects.

Jenny Holzer (Phaidon Contemporary Artists Series)

Arts & Photography

Joselit, David

Simon, Joan

History & Criticism

Phaidon Press

On Anxiety

The Spoils of Freedom: Psychoanalysis, Feminism and Ideology After the Fall of Socialism

Today we are encouraged to view our lives as being full of choice. Like products on a supermarket shelf, our identities seem to be there for the choosing. But paradoxically this freedom can create anxiety, and feelings of guilt and inadequacy. In The Tyranny of Choice, acclaimed philosopher and sociologist Renata Salecl explores how late capitalism's shrill exhortations to 'be yourself' are leading to ever-greater disquiet - and how its insistence on choice being a purely individual matter can prevent social change. Drawing on diverse examples from popular culture - spanning dating sites and self-help books, to our obsession with celebrities' lifestyles - and fusing sociology, psychoanalysis and philosophy, Salecl shows that choice is rarely based on a simple rational decision with a predictable outcome.

The Tyranny of Choice (Big Ideas)

Self-Help

Motivational

IPS - Profile Books

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Salecl, Renata. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Salecl, Renata

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Salecl, Renata. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The Spoils of Freedom: Psychoanalysis and Feminism After the Fall of Socialism (Opening Out: Feminism for Today)

The Spoils of Freedom: Psychoanalysis and Feminism After the Fall of Socialism

On Anxiety (Thinking in Action)

On Anxiety (Thinking in Action)

A Passion for Ignorance: What We Choose Not to Know and Why

A Passion for Ignorance: What We Choose Not to Know and Why

Jenny Holzer (Phaidon Contemporary Artists Series)

On Anxiety

The Spoils of Freedom: Psychoanalysis, Feminism and Ideology After the Fall of Socialism

The Tyranny of Choice (Big Ideas)