Worlds of Desire, Realms of Power: A Cultural Geography

This is a cultural geography set in a contemporary world of mediatised experience, flexible boundaries and negotiated truths. The authors believe that where structures exist they do so in response to the desires (rather than needs or wants) of those in positions of power and those who seek to find meaning in their relative powerlessness. Intended as an introduction to the 'new' cultural geography, this book draws upon a range of contemporary critical theory, although it does so with the lightest possible touch. It resolutely avoids the posturing that so frequently accompanies postmodernist accounts and introduces theory where it will enlighten, not render argument more dense. The authors explore familiar examples to show how places, spaces and environments are endowed with a range of sometimes interlocking, sometimes conflicting meanings.