'The greatest book of philosophy I have ever read, on a par with Nietzsche himself.' Michel Foucault Pierre Klossowski (1905-) is the author of numerous philosophical works, as well as several novels. He published many translations of German poets and philosophers, including Nietzsche himself. Recognised as a masterpiece of Nietzsche scholarship, Nietzsche and the Vicious Circle emphasises and explores the notion of Eternal Return - central to an understanding of Nietzsche's self-denial, self-refutation and self-consumption. Translated by Daniel W. Smith>

'Reading T. S. Eliot and reading about T. S. Eliot were equally formative experiences for my generation. One of the books about him which greatly appealed to me when I first read it ... was The New Poetic by the New Zealand poet and critic, C. K. Stead...' Seamus Heaney, The Government of the Tongue (1986)

Jacques Maritain (1882-1973) was a Neo-Thomist philosopher who taught in France and the United States and was French Ambassador to the Vatican from 1945-48. A Protestant who became a Roman Catholic through association with Leon Bloy, he devoted himself to the study of Thomism and its application to all aspects of modern life and urged Christian involvement in secular affairs. An Introduction to Philosophy is perhaps the most well-known and enduring of all Maritain's many books. It offers a clear and highly readable introduction to the philosophies of both Aristotle and St Thomas Aquinas.

Five essential and challenging essays by leading post-modern theorists on the art and nature of interpretation: Jacques Derrida, Harold Bloom, Geoffrey Hartman, Paul de Man, and J. Hillis Miller.

Recognized as a masterpiece of Nietzsche scholarship, NIETZSCHE AND THE VICIOUS CIRCLE is available here for the first time in English. Author Pierre Klossowski suggests that Nietzsche's ideas and beliefs did not stem from his personal pathology, but rather were applied in a pathological manner. Thereby Nietzsche's beliefs resonated dynamically and intellectually with his alternating lucidity and delirium.

A critical and provocative exploration of the political, conceptual and cultural points of resonance between Deleuze's minor politics and Marx's critique of capitalist dynamics, engaging with Deleuze's missing work, The Grandeur of Marx. This book explores the core categories of communism and capital in conjunction with a wealth of contemporary and historical political concepts and movements - from the lumpenproletariat and anarchism, to Italian autonomia and Antonio Negri, immaterial labour and the refusal of work. This book will serve as an introduction to Deleuze's politics and the contemporary vitality of Marx for students and will challenge scholars in the fields of social and political theory, sociology and cultural studies.

During the past twenty years, the worldÕs most renowned critical theoristÑthe scholar who defined the field of postcolonial studiesÑhas experienced a radical reorientation in her thinking. Finding the neat polarities of tradition and modernity, colonial and postcolonial, no longer sufficient for interpreting the globalized present, she turns elsewhere to make her central argument: that aesthetic education is the last available instrument for implementing global justice and democracy. SpivakÕs unwillingness to sacrifice the ethical in the name of the aesthetic, or to sacrifice the aesthetic in grappling with the political, makes her task formidable. As she wrestles with these fraught relationships, she rewrites Friedrich SchillerÕs concept of play as double bind, reading Gregory Bateson with Gramsci as she negotiates Immanuel Kant, while in dialogue with her teacher Paul de Man. Among the concerns Spivak addresses is this: Are we ready to forfeit the wealth of the worldÕs languages in the name of global communication? ÒEven a good globalization (the failed dream of socialism) requires the uniformity which the diversity of mother-tongues must challenge,Ó Spivak writes. ÒThe tower of Babel is our refuge.Ó In essays on theory, translation, Marxism, gender, and world literature, and on writers such as Assia Djebar, J. M. Coetzee, and Rabindranath Tagore, Spivak argues for the social urgency of the humanities and renews the case for literary studies, imprisoned in the corporate university. ÒPerhaps,Ó she writes, Òthe literary can still do something.Ó

Nancy Fraser’s major new book traces the feminist movement’s evolution since the 1970s and anticipates a new—radical and egalitarian—phase of feminist thought and action. During the ferment of the New Left, “Second Wave” feminism emerged as a struggle for women’s liberation and took its place alongside other radical movements that were questioning core features of capitalist society. But feminism’s subsequent immersion in identity politics coincided with a decline in its utopian energies and the rise of neoliberalism. Now, foreseeing a revival in the movement, Fraser argues for a reinvigorated feminist radicalism able to address the global economic crisis. Feminism can be a force working in concert with other egalitarian movements in the struggle to bring the economy under democratic control, while building on the visionary potential of the earlier waves of women’s liberation. This powerful new account is set to become a landmark of feminist thought.

Find a pool of cheap, pliable workers and give them jobs—and soon they cease to be as cheap or as pliable. What is an employer to do then? Why, find another poor community desperate for work. This route—one taken time and again by major American manufacturers—is vividly chronicled in this fascinating account of RCA's half century-long search for desirable sources of labor. Capital Moves introduces us to the people most affected by the migration of industry and, most importantly, recounts how they came to fight against the idea that they were simply "cheap labor." Jefferson Cowie tells the dramatic story of four communities, each irrevocably transformed by the opening of an industrial plant. From the manufacturer's first factory in Camden, New Jersey, where it employed large numbers of southern and eastern European immigrants, RCA moved to rural Indiana in 1940, hiring Americans of Scotch-Irish descent for its plant in Bloomington. Then, in the volatile 1960s, the company relocated to Memphis where African Americans made up the core of the labor pool. Finally, the company landed in northern Mexico in the 1970s—a region rapidly becoming one of the most industrialized on the continent.

Why do political leaders often perform fatal miscalculations, take ill-considered actions, and indulge in ludicrous wishful thinking? This book seeks to shed light on these questions by conducting two related case studies from the vantage point of the science of human behavior--psychology. The first one analyzes the decision-making behavior and leadership style of Mao Zedong, a man who, in the words of historian Maurice Meisner, "conceived and led the most popular revolution in world history" only to squander its fruits by embarking on a series of catastrophic political projects that cost tens of millions of Chinese their lives. The second case study follows the path of Mao''s successor, Deng Xiaoping, who renounced his faith in Maoism and embraced a pragmatic decision-making approach that paved the way for China''s remarkable rise.This book is the result of five years of research. Despite being based on the author''s PhD dissertation, this work should be accessible to non-experts. The investigation begins in Chapter 1 with a historical overview of China''s accelerating decline throughout the nineteenth century. This introductory chapter depicts China''s so-called century of humiliation (1839-1949). It offers some context as to the repeated failures to achieve national rejuvenation over the decades. The psychological analysis starts in Chapter 2 with a detailed discussion of Mao''s restlessness. The author will argue that Mao was locked in a never-ending battle against recurring self-doubts, which left him with a constant need for reassurance--a need that he attempted to satisfy by seeking to overcome ever more formidable political challenges. This, in turn, condemned China to a state of uninterrupted mass political campaigns, which greatly interfered with the nation''s attempts at economic and social modernization. Chapter 3 analyzes why Mao''s colleagues went along with his utopian visions. The discussion here will demonstrate that the decision-making behavior of the Chinese leadership exhibited all the hallmarks of groupthink--a modus operandi whereby the yearning to retain the approval of one''s leader as well as one''s colleagues outweighs the desire to draft effective policies. Chapter 4 explores how and why Mao''s principal goal in life eventually shifted from building socialism in China to preventing an imaginary capitalist restoration--a shift that ultimately paved the way for the disastrous Cultural Revolution. The author interprets this shift in Mao''s narrative identity as a reaction to his repeated failure to advance the quest for modernization. Chapter 5 centers on Deng''s silent rebellion against Mao''s decision-making approach. The discussion here will showcase the power of self-reflection--a psychological exercise that subjects one''s past behavioral and thought patterns to ruthless scrutiny so as to learn lessons for the future. Having subsequently renounced his faith in Maoism and all other "isms," Deng espoused fact-based and practice-oriented decision making. Yet, this did not turn either him or the decision-making apparatus over which he presided into dispassionate robots. Beliefs and values, as shown in Chapter 6, still colored how Deng and his colleagues interpreted complex developments in China. These beliefs and values were shaped by the forces of personality, the power of worldviews, and the subjective manner by which different decision makers processed their past experiences. As a result, the senior leaders greatly differed in terms of their visions for advancing China''s quest for modernization. Chapter 7 concludes this book with a summary of the most important findings. It also elaborates on the question of how the developed hypotheses can be validated. Further, this chapter provides an overview of the most pronounced behavioral characteristics of both Mao and Deng.