“Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies” by Irene Kacandes : Summary and Critique

“Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies” by Irene Kacandes first appeared in 2003 in New Literary History and offers a critical reflection on the tensions between aesthetics and cultural studies in contemporary literary scholarship.

"Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies" by Irene Kacandes : Summary and Critique
Introduction: “Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies” by Irene Kacandes  

“Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies” by Irene Kacandes first appeared in 2003 in New Literary History and offers a critical reflection on the tensions between aesthetics and cultural studies in contemporary literary scholarship. Engaging directly with Elaine Scarry’s On Beauty and Being Just, Kacandes challenges the notion that cultural studies has banished beauty from academic discourse, arguing instead that aesthetic considerations remain central—even when they are not explicitly named. Drawing on figures like Antonio Gramsci and Raymond Williams, she asserts that foundational thinkers of cultural studies did not reject aesthetic inquiry but rather sought to situate it within broader historical and ideological frameworks. Kacandes highlights how discussions of beauty are most productive when they interrogate the socio-cultural forces that shape aesthetic judgment. Using case studies from German cultural studies and literary works like Gertrud Kolmar’s A Jewish Mother, she demonstrates how close attention to aesthetic features can reveal complex cultural dynamics, such as trauma, marginalization, and identity. The article is significant in literary theory for reclaiming the value of beauty—not as an isolated, apolitical ideal—but as a historically contingent and culturally meaningful category that enhances, rather than contradicts, the goals of cultural studies. By advocating for integrative approaches that respect both formal analysis and contextual inquiry, Kacandes provides a roadmap for revitalizing the role of literature in the humanities.

Summary of “Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies” by Irene Kacandes  

🎯 1. Challenging Scarry’s Generalizations on Beauty

Kacandes opens her article by critiquing Elaine Scarry’s On Beauty and Being Just for making unsupported generalizations about the “banishment of beauty” from academic discourse.

“It’s not only her repetitive passives that obscure the ‘guilty’ party, it’s also the lack of footnotes” (Kacandes, 2003, p. 157).

She argues that although Scarry raises a valid issue—the marginalization of beauty in scholarship—her framing oversimplifies the debate and lacks critical specificity.


🧠 2. Cultural Studies Has Never Truly Banished Aesthetics

Contrary to claims that cultural studies marginalizes beauty, Kacandes asserts that foundational thinkers like Gramsci and Williams deeply engaged with aesthetics.

“All of cultural studies has ultimately been a debate with aesthetics” (Davies, 1995, p. 67).

She cites Gramsci’s acknowledgment that art must be judged both ideologically and aesthetically, and Williams’s rejection of binaries between political and aesthetic responses.

“Williams takes pains to stress corporeal markers of the ‘aesthetic’” (Kacandes, 2003, p. 158).


🌍 3. Embedding Aesthetics in Socio-Historical Context

Kacandes argues that aesthetic experience should be understood through cultural context, not isolated as a purely formal or sensory experience.

“We have to learn to understand the specific elements… which socially and historically determine and signify aesthetic and other situations” (Williams, 1977, p. 157).

She sees this approach as vital to the revitalization of literature teaching.


🎶 4. Aesthetic Judgment as Social Practice: The Mendelssohn Case

Using Celia Applegate’s study on Mendelssohn’s revival of St. Matthew Passion, Kacandes illustrates how aesthetic value is culturally constructed.

“What factors allowed the same piece of music to be transformed… from something ‘strange’ to ‘a true enthusiasm’?” (Kacandes, 2003, p. 160).

This example highlights that aesthetic appreciation is not timeless or universal, but negotiated within historical contexts.


📱 5. Secondary Orality and the Crisis of Literary Value

Kacandes incorporates Walter Ong’s idea of secondary orality to explore why students struggle with reading in a media-saturated world.

“We are not ‘oral’ once again, we are ‘secondary oral’ for the first time” (Kacandes, 2003, p. 162).

She argues that cultural shifts in communication have led to declining literacy and, consequently, diminished literary engagement, a problem that must be addressed pedagogically.


📘 6. Reclaiming the Role of Literature through Cultural Studies

Kacandes defends the teaching of literature in a cultural studies framework that includes aesthetic dimensions.

“What is literature good for and why should students want to learn about it? Insofar as these are genuine questions, I find the answer that ‘literature is beautiful’ to be woefully insufficient” (Kacandes, 2003, p. 163).

She argues that literature’s cultural and emotional functions must be addressed through interdisciplinary, historically grounded analysis.


📖 7. Aesthetic Response and Trauma: The Case of A Jewish Mother

In analyzing Gertrud Kolmar’s A Jewish Mother, Kacandes introduces a dual method: examining both trauma in and as literature.

“The text… fails to tell the story by eliding, repeating, and fragmenting components of it” (Kacandes, 2003, p. 169).

She highlights how ellipses and stylistic inconsistency evoke trauma: “The ellipses mark the space to which… ‘willed access is denied’” (Caruth, 1995, p. 152).


💡 8. Beyond Beauty: Cultural Studies as Witnessing

Kacandes argues for a complex form of cultural analysis that recognizes aesthetic features as entry points into societal critique and memory work.

“We, as readers, are witnesses who have a moral obligation to try to understand how… individuals have tried to ‘respond to the state of the world and attempt to act on it’” (Paulson, 2001, p. 119).

Her conclusion insists that aesthetic categories like “beauty” are not ends in themselves but tools to interrogate power, trauma, and identity.


Theoretical Terms/Concepts in “Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies” by Irene Kacandes  
🧠 Theoretical Term & Symbol📖 Explanation & Usage in the Article
📚 Cultural StudiesAn interdisciplinary approach to cultural production and power. Kacandes argues it has not banished beauty or aesthetics but often engages with them deeply, especially in its origins and through figures like Gramsci and Williams (p. 157–158).
🎨 AestheticsRefers to notions of beauty and artistic value. Kacandes critiques simplistic appeals to beauty and calls for nuanced readings that combine aesthetic judgment with cultural critique (p. 158–160).
🔊 Secondary OralityOng’s concept describing a return to speech-dominance in an age of media. Kacandes uses it to explain the challenges to literacy and literature in today’s hybrid oral-textual culture (p. 162).
🗣️ Narrated MonologueA narrative device that blends character thought with third-person narration. In Kolmar’s novel, this form complicates interpretation and reflects internal trauma and ambiguity (p. 165–166).
💥 Trauma TheoryA way of understanding how literature can depict or perform unrepresentable suffering. Kacandes reads textual gaps in A Jewish Mother as mimicking trauma and engaging readers as witnesses (p. 169).
🛠️ Instrumentalization of ArtThe use of art for social or political ends. Kacandes shows how Kolmar’s unpublished novel functions as cultural work, bearing witness to Weimar anxieties and ideologies (p. 170).
🧩 IdeologySystemic beliefs shaping perception and text. Cultural studies and theorists like Gramsci viewed literature as always ideologically loaded—never neutral, never purely aesthetic (p. 157–158).
💔 KitschOverused or clichéd artistic forms. Kacandes examines how Kolmar’s stylized sentimentality and melodrama may act as cultural signals, intentionally drawing in or resisting certain aesthetic responses (p. 165).
Contribution of “Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies” by Irene Kacandes  to Literary Theory/Theories

🎨 1. Aesthetic Theory

  • Kacandes reclaims aesthetics within literary theory by challenging the binary of “aesthetic vs. political” in academic debates.
  • She argues that beauty has not been “banished” by cultural studies, contrary to Elaine Scarry’s claim (Scarry 1999: 57), but is alive through nuanced discussions of form and feeling.
  • ✍️ “It is an intellectual disservice to set up scapegoats… I will offer my own version of evidence that ‘beauty’ and aesthetics have not been banished by cultural studies” (p. 157).

🧩 2. Ideology and Marxist Literary Criticism

  • She aligns with Gramsci and Raymond Williams in asserting that literature is always situated within ideological and historical contexts.
  • Cultural studies, she insists, is not anti-aesthetic, but deeply rooted in Marxist critique where “aesthetic judgment and ideological awareness coexist” (p. 158).
  • 🧠 “Gramsci insisted that it was possible to appreciate the aesthetic merits… even while repudiating the ideology that informs it” (p. 157).

🧠 3. Cultural Studies

  • Kacandes extends cultural studies’ role in literary theory by emphasizing that formal and aesthetic elements are not excluded but central to meaningful cultural critique.
  • She uses Applegate’s analysis of Mendelssohn’s revival to show how aesthetic judgment is shaped by social and historical forces (p. 159–160).
  • 📍 “To understand [beauty], one must investigate what ‘beauty,’ ‘truth,’ ‘goodness’ meant in a specific culture and time” (p. 160).

🔊 4. Orality and Literacy (Ong’s Media Theory)

  • Introduces Walter Ong’s theory of secondary orality to literary pedagogy, linking media changes to changing relationships with reading and literature.
  • She contextualizes the decline in reading as a structural shift in how we communicate—“we are not oral again; we are ‘secondary oral’ for the first time” (p. 162).
  • 💬 This challenges literary theory to consider media environment and cognitive shifts caused by technology in analyzing texts.

💥 5. Trauma Theory

  • Kacandes contributes by showing how literature can not only depict trauma but also perform trauma, especially through narrative ellipses, fragmentation, and gaps.
  • Analyzing Kolmar’s A Jewish Mother, she claims the text itself enacts trauma, compelling readers to “witness” rather than resolve the trauma (p. 169).
  • 🕳️ “The ellipses mark the space to which, as trauma theory puts it, ‘willed access is denied’” (p. 169).

🗣️ 6. Narratology (Narrated Monologue & Perspective)

  • Through free indirect discourse in Kolmar’s novel, Kacandes explores how perspective complicates emotional and aesthetic responses.
  • This aligns with narratological approaches that examine how literary voice mediates subjectivity and ambiguity.
  • 🔄 “Kolmar’s extensive use of narrated monologue makes it hard to determine what position the text itself is taking” (p. 165).

💔 7. Kitsch and Sentimentality in Literature

  • Kacandes provocatively rehabilitates kitsch, suggesting it can be read not as aesthetic failure, but as a deliberate signal to provoke cultural reflection.
  • She urges readers to go beyond judging art as good/bad and instead ask what work it does within a cultural system (p. 166).
  • 🎭 “This kind of language ultimately led me to decide that there were numerous aesthetic clues – teasers – that could draw one in” (p. 165).

🛠️ 8. Literary Value and Ethics

  • Finally, Kacandes proposes a moral obligation in literary studies: to serve as witnesses to literature’s role in recording and resisting social trauma and exclusion.
  • She frames literary reading as a cultural and ethical practice, not just aesthetic or academic.
  • 🌍 “We, as readers, are witnesses who have a moral obligation to try to understand how individuals have tried to ‘respond to the state of the world’” (p. 170).

Examples of Critiques Through “Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies” by Irene Kacandes  

📚 Literary Work🧠 Type of Critique💡 Insights from Kacandes
📘 Gertrud Kolmar’s A Jewish Mother🎭 Trauma theory, aesthetic ambiguity, narrated monologue, cultural marginalization🔍 Shows how the novel enacts trauma through ellipses and fragmentation; critiques Weimar-era ideologies of gender, race, and motherhood; challenges simple notions of “bad” or “kitsch” literature by tying aesthetics to cultural critique.
📗 Elaine Scarry’s On Beauty and Being Just🧾 Rhetorical critique of generalization and lack of citation❗Criticizes Scarry’s vagueness and her creation of unnamed enemies; argues beauty was not “banished” but needs historicized conversation; urges more grounded discourse in literary theory.
📕 Raymond Williams’s Marxism and Literature⚙️ Socio-aesthetic integration, rejection of binaries🧩 Endorses Williams’s call to examine literature within the “full social material process”; supports idea that aesthetics and ideology are not oppositional but intertwined in cultural expression.
🎼 Mendelssohn’s Revival of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion (via Celia Applegate)🏛️ Historical-cultural aesthetic analysis📣 Uses the revival to show how perceptions of “beauty” emerge from institutional, cultural, and ideological forces; demonstrates how aesthetic value is socially produced and politically meaningful.
Criticism Against “Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies” by Irene Kacandes  

  • Ambiguity in Theoretical Position
    While Kacandes critiques binary thinking between aesthetics and cultural studies, she occasionally blurs her own stance—oscillating between defending aesthetics and prioritizing cultural critique without clearly resolving the tension.
  • 📚 Overreliance on a Single Case Study
    Her detailed focus on A Jewish Mother by Gertrud Kolmar, though powerful, may limit the generalizability of her broader claims about aesthetics and cultural studies.
  • 🧩 Complexity for Non-Specialists
    The article assumes a high level of familiarity with cultural studies, literary theory, and trauma theory, potentially alienating readers not already versed in these domains.
  • 🗣️ Underspecification of “Beauty”
    Kacandes critiques others (like Scarry) for vagueness but does not herself fully define what she means by “beauty” or how it should be engaged critically, leaving the concept abstract.
  • 🔄 Circling Without Concluding
    Some arguments feel recursive, particularly in her analysis of trauma and aesthetic response, which she admits cannot offer final conclusions—raising the question of theoretical payoff.
  • 🇺🇸 U.S.-centric Cultural Focus
    Although Kacandes gestures toward the importance of German cultural studies, the critique of U.S. Anglocentrism in cultural studies feels only partially addressed and not deeply developed.
  • Minimal Engagement with Contemporary Aesthetic Theory
    The essay could be seen as under-representing recent developments in aesthetic theory, such as affect studies, neuroaesthetics, or postdigital aesthetics, which might enrich her claims.
  • 🧪 Empirical Gaps in Pedagogical Claims
    Her anecdotes about student literacy and reading habits are powerful but not backed by empirical data, which may weaken her argument about the current state of literary education.
Representative Quotations from “Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies” by Irene Kacandes  with Explanation
🎯 Quotation📘 Explanation
“The banishing of beauty from the humanities… has been carried out by a set of political complaints against it… I mean something much more modest: that conversation about the beauty of these things has been banished.” (quoting Scarry, p. 57)🎭 Kacandes critiques Scarry’s rhetorical style and lack of specificity, noting the danger of vague accusations and calling for more grounded and evidence-based discussion of beauty.
“It is an intellectual disservice to set up scapegoats or bogeymen so that the author and her argument can look good.”🧠 This is a foundational critique in Kacandes’s essay—challenging the strawman arguments often found in aesthetic debates.
“All of cultural studies has ultimately been a debate with aesthetics.” (Davies 1995: 67)🔄 Kacandes uses this quote to refute the idea that cultural studies is anti-aesthetic, suggesting instead that it engages deeply with questions of artistic value.
“Gramsci insisted… it was possible to appreciate the aesthetic merits of a literary work even while repudiating the ideology that informs it.”⚖️ Shows how Gramsci serves as a model for integrating ideological and aesthetic criticism—a key theoretical anchor in Kacandes’s argument.
“If we are asked to believe that all literature is ‘ideology’… or that all literature is ‘aesthetic’… we may stay a little longer but will still in the end turn away.” (Williams 1977: 155)🔍 This Williams quote supports Kacandes’s advocacy for a spectrum of literary intention, not rigid binaries.
“A cultural studies approach need not—indeed must not—ignore the aesthetic dimension of cultural production.”💡 Kacandes affirms that aesthetics must remain central in cultural analysis, countering the idea that cultural studies dilutes artistic value.
“Avoiding both instrumental reductionism and aesthetic formalism… I hope to speak… of music’s general representational or ideational function.” (Applegate, 1997: 152–3)🎼 Applegate’s method becomes a model for Kacandes—using cultural studies to explore how beauty functions socially and historically.
“We are not ‘oral’ once again, we are ‘secondary oral’ for the first time.”🗣️ Introduces Ong’s concept of “secondary orality,” which Kacandes uses to explore changing modes of literacy and their implications for literature.
“Questioning the value of literature may be a kind of defensive cover for those whose literacy skills are simply not strong enough to get pleasure from written work.”📉 Kacandes suggests that illiteracy—not just theoretical critique—is partly behind the decline in aesthetic engagement with literature.
“I have used my emotional reactions to and aesthetic judgments of the novel to develop some reading strategies.”❤️ Shows how Kacandes values subjective, affective response as part of academic reading—merging aesthetics and critical interpretation.
Suggested Readings: “Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies” by Irene Kacandes  
  1. Zhang, Yehong, and Gerhard Lauer. “Introduction: Cross-Cultural Reading.” Comparative Literature Studies, vol. 54, no. 4, 2017, pp. 693–701. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.5325/complitstudies.54.4.0693. Accessed 9 Apr. 2025.
  2. Ning, Wang. “Comparative Literature and Globalism: A Chinese Cultural and Literary Strategy.” Comparative Literature Studies, vol. 41, no. 4, 2004, pp. 584–602. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40247451. Accessed 9 Apr. 2025.
  3. ARENS, KATHERINE. “When Comparative Literature Becomes Cultural Studies: Teaching Cultures through Genre.” The Comparatist, vol. 29, 2005, pp. 123–47. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/26237106. Accessed 9 Apr. 2025.
  4. Kacandes, Irene. “Beauty on My Mind: Reading Literature in an Age of Cultural Studies.” The Aesthetics of Cultural Studies (2005): 156-174.

“Psychoanalysis And Cultural Studies ” by Stuart Hall: Summary and Critique

“Psychoanalysis and Cultural Studies” by Stuart Hall first appeared in Cultural Studies, Volume 32, Issue 6, in 2018.

"Psychoanalysis And Cultural Studies " by Stuart Hall: Summary and Critique
Introduction: “Psychoanalysis And Cultural Studies ” by Stuart Hall

“Psychoanalysis and Cultural Studies” by Stuart Hall first appeared in Cultural Studies, Volume 32, Issue 6, in 2018. Originally delivered as a talk at the ICA in London in 1987 and later edited by Lawrence Grossberg, the essay marks a significant moment in cultural theory where Hall traces the complex and transformative “interruption” of psychoanalysis into the domain of Cultural Studies. The article is pivotal in rethinking how questions of subjectivity, sexuality, and representation—previously overlooked by Cultural Studies—are radically reframed through psychoanalytic discourse, particularly following the Lacanian rereading of Freud and its interaction with feminism. Hall emphasizes that this engagement does not provide a seamless integration but rather an enduring tension, where the unconscious disrupts sociological and ideological analyses, challenging Cultural Studies to confront its historical neglect of the psychical dimensions of culture. Notably, Hall critiques both the limits of traditional Marxist paradigms and the dogmatic rigidity of certain Lacanian interpretations, insisting on the necessity of a dual awareness: one that speaks to both the psychic and the social without reducing one to the other. His essay remains a foundational intervention in literary and cultural theory, inviting scholars to grapple with the uneasy, yet productive, dialogue between inner psychic structures and outer sociopolitical realities.

Summary of “Psychoanalysis And Cultural Studies ” by Stuart Hall

🔍 Psychoanalysis as a decisive but incomplete interruption in Cultural Studies
Hall argues that psychoanalysis did not merge seamlessly into Cultural Studies, but rather interrupted it, transforming its theoretical foundations. This intervention, however, remains “incomplete,” leaving unresolved tensions.

“The displacements, theoretically and in terms of the forms of study… have been irrevocably transformed by the opening up of the spaces and questions which psychoanalysis poses to it” (Hall, 2018, p. 889).
The essay traces how this disruption reshaped Cultural Studies, especially through the challenges of subjectivity, representation, and the unconscious.


📚 Only post-Lacanian psychoanalysis had a transformative impact
Hall distinguishes between earlier forms of psychoanalysis and the radical shift brought by Lacan’s rereading of Freud. It was this version that made psychoanalysis relevant to cultural theory.

“The decisive impact in cultural theory has been made by that form of psychoanalysis which arises after the Lacanian rereading of Freud” (p. 890).
Lacan’s emphasis on language, the symbolic order, and the divided subject significantly reframed core concepts in Cultural Studies.


🌸 Feminism and psychoanalysis as a dual break
The conjunction of post-Lacanian psychoanalysis and feminism brought radical reconfigurations to how Cultural Studies understands identity and social life.

“It is the couplet post-Lacanian psychoanalysis and feminism which disrupts Cultural Studies, reposing questions about subjectivity, sexuality, the unconscious, representation, language…” (p. 891).
This double intervention forces Cultural Studies to confront dimensions it previously ignored—especially gender and the psychic.


🧠 The unconscious challenges sociological models of the self
Cultural Studies had long relied on models of the subject shaped by Marxist or anthropological thought. But the Freudian unconscious—especially as reformulated by Lacan—displaces those assumptions.

“There is always… something irretrievably lost, a fundamental displacement” in the process of identity formation (p. 891).
This irreducibility of the unconscious renders simplistic “inside/outside” models of self and culture untenable.


⚧️ Sexuality enters Cultural Studies via psychoanalysis
Hall critiques Cultural Studies for historically ignoring sexuality and sexual difference, treating cultural subjects as asexual.

“It walked and talked and looked at and attempted to analyse a culture… as if the subjects of culture were unsexed” (p. 891).
Psychoanalysis, especially in feminist contexts, brings sexuality and its unconscious dimensions to the center of cultural analysis.


👥 Subjectivity is not unified but fragmented and processual
Traditional Cultural Studies conceived of subjects as unified individuals or collective identities. Psychoanalysis breaks this illusion.

“Subjectivity as a constitution… which cannot be formed without fragmentation and displacement” (p. 893).
Rather than being a coherent entity, the subject is a site of division and contradiction—never whole or finished.


💬 Ideology as representation, not illusion
Marxist theories often described ideology as “false consciousness,” but psychoanalysis reframes ideology as a system of representations.

“The shift from the notion of an illusion to a system of representations… upon which the effectivity of ideology depends” (p. 893).
This emphasizes how subjects internalize ideology not just cognitively but affectively—through unconscious structures of recognition and misrecognition.


🧩 Language is central to subject formation and cultural life
Building on Lacan, Hall emphasizes that language is not just a medium of communication but the structure through which subjects and meanings are constituted.

“The unconscious is structured like a language… the subject is constituted in and through language” (p. 894).
Language thus becomes foundational to the analysis of culture, identity, and power in post-psychoanalytic Cultural Studies.


🚧 Critique of Lacanian dogmatism and metaphor becoming doctrine
Although Hall values Lacanian insights, he critiques the dogmatic tendencies within Lacanian theory—especially its transformation of metaphor into rigid principle.

“What began as a set of very important perceptions were transformed into a kind of dogmatic doxology” (p. 894).
This rigid formalism can limit the openness and usefulness of Lacanian thinking.


⚖️ Need to balance the psychic and the social
Hall warns that the rise of psychoanalysis led some scholars to neglect the social altogether, replacing social critique with subjectivity.

“They still require a theory of subjectivity, but they cannot be replaced by a theory of subjectivity” (p. 895).
Cultural theory must engage both domains—psychic and social—without collapsing one into the other.


🔥 The internalization of violence complicates political struggle
Psychoanalysis reveals that violence is not merely external or structural—it is internal, part of psychic life.

“Psychic life itself is aggressive and violent… the violence is already in our inside” (p. 896).
This insight complicates political action, challenging simplistic binaries of good/evil or oppressor/oppressed.


🧭 Towards a politics that recognizes radical subjectivity
Although psychoanalysis helps us understand our inner complicity in domination, it remains unclear how these insights can generate political change.

“What forms of politics and cultural struggle might come out of these new kinds of conceptions… remains an intractable puzzle” (p. 896).
Hall leaves us with a challenge: to rethink both theory and practice in light of the complex interrelations between psyche, power, and culture.

Theoretical Terms/Concepts in “Psychoanalysis And Cultural Studies ” by Stuart Hall

🌟 Concept (with Symbol)📚 Explanation💬 Reference from Article
🔍 Post-Lacanian PsychoanalysisA reinterpretation of Freud through Lacan that emphasizes language, the symbolic order, and the fragmented subject. It brought cultural theory into new territories.“The decisive impact in cultural theory has been made by that form of psychoanalysis which arises after the Lacanian rereading of Freud” (p. 890).
🧠 The UnconsciousThe realm of hidden mental activity that drives behavior, shaping subjectivity beyond conscious control. It disrupts sociological models of the self.“The presence of the unconscious means that it is not possible… to accept a sociological… account” (p. 891).
👤 SubjectivityNot a fixed identity but a fragmented and constantly shifting construct shaped by unconscious processes, language, and power.“Subjectivity as a constitution… cannot be formed without fragmentation and displacement” (p. 893).
⚧️ Sexual DifferenceA central concern of psychoanalysis and feminism. Previously ignored by Cultural Studies, it highlights how identity is constructed through gendered binaries and power.“Cultural Studies had absolutely nothing to say about it… as if the subjects of culture were unsexed” (p. 891).
🖼️ Ideology as RepresentationMoves beyond seeing ideology as illusion or “false consciousness,” framing it instead as structured systems of meaning, language, and subjectivity.“Transform this conception of ideology… to a system of representations… on which the effectivity of ideology depends” (p. 893).
💭 FantasyNot just imagination, but structured desires and unconscious narratives (often sexualized) embedded in institutions and ideologies.“At the centre of institutions are… fantasies of power… without which no proper account… can be given” (p. 892).
🔄 DisplacementA psychoanalytic process where meaning is never direct—always deferred or transformed. Reflects the loss or shift in identity and cultural expression.“There is always… something irretrievably lost, a fundamental displacement” (p. 891).
🗣️ Language & the Symbolic OrderLanguage doesn’t merely reflect meaning—it produces subjects and social reality. Key to Lacan’s theory, it’s central to how culture and self are formed.“The unconscious is structured like a language… constituted in and through language” (p. 894).
🧾 RepresentationGoes beyond visuals—refers to systems of meaning-making central to ideology, identity, and cultural production.“Obliges us to look at [ideology] as a system of representation” (p. 893).
📚 Cultural StudiesThe interdisciplinary field concerned with analyzing culture, power, and identity. Hall critiques its early neglect of sexuality and unconscious processes.“Cultural Studies had absolutely nothing to say about [sexuality]…” (p. 891).
Contribution of “Psychoanalysis And Cultural Studies ” by Stuart Hall to Literary Theory/Theories

🔍 Redefining the Subject as Fragmented, Not Unified
Hall challenges the humanist conception of a stable, coherent subject prevalent in earlier literary theory. He introduces the psychoanalytic idea of the subject as split, dislocated, and constructed through processes of language and fantasy.

“Subjectivity as a constitution… cannot be formed without fragmentation and displacement” (Hall, 2018, p. 893).
This rethinking aligns with poststructuralist literary theory and changes how characters, narrators, and authors are interpreted.


🧠 Emphasizing the Unconscious in Cultural and Literary Analysis
Hall insists that the unconscious is a vital domain for understanding culture, ideology, and identity—moving beyond surface meanings.

“The presence of the unconscious means that it is not possible… to accept a sociological… account of how the inside gets outside and the outside gets inside” (p. 891).
This enriches psychoanalytic literary criticism by reaffirming the power of hidden desires and repression in textual production and interpretation.


🖼️ Transforming Ideology from Illusion to Representation
One of Hall’s most important contributions is shifting the understanding of ideology in literary theory. Rather than a “false consciousness,” ideology is seen as a system of representation that actively shapes subjectivity and meaning.

“The shift from the notion of an illusion to a system of representations… on which the effectivity of ideology depends” (p. 893).
This deepens Marxist literary theory and intersects with post-Althusserian analysis.


🗣️ Foregrounding Language as Structuring, Not Reflective
Drawing from Lacan, Hall shows that language produces meaning and identity rather than merely expressing them.

“The unconscious is structured like a language… the subject is constituted in and through language” (p. 894).
This insight reinforces structuralist and poststructuralist approaches in literary theory, where language is not transparent but generative.


⚧️ Introducing Sexual Difference as Central to Cultural and Literary Theory
Hall critiques Cultural Studies—and by extension, literary criticism—for historically ignoring sexuality. He argues that psychoanalysis and feminism force literary theory to engage with sexual difference as a site of meaning and conflict.

“Cultural Studies had absolutely nothing to say about it… as if the subjects of culture were unsexed” (p. 891).
This aligns with feminist psychoanalytic readings, like those by Juliet Mitchell and Jacqueline Rose.


💭 Bringing Fantasy into the Analysis of Institutions and Texts
Hall incorporates fantasy—especially sexual and power fantasies—into the core of institutional and cultural analysis. This adds a new dimension to literary theory’s treatment of genre, narrative, and discourse.

“At the centre of institutions are… fantasies of power… without which no proper account… can be given” (p. 892).
In literary terms, this supports deeper readings of symbolic structures in fiction and drama.


📚 Expanding Cultural Studies to Include the Psychical
Hall expands the scope of Cultural Studies, traditionally focused on the social and historical, to include the psychical and libidinal.

“It is only when psychoanalysis… focuses radically on its own object… that it throws an important, piercing but uneven light” (p. 890).
This shift reorients literary theory toward questions of interiority, trauma, repression, and symbolic meaning.


🔄 Questioning Smooth Theoretical Synthesis
Hall resists the totalizing integration of psychoanalysis with literary and cultural theory. Instead, he advocates for holding the tension between the psychic and the social.

“They still require a theory of subjectivity, but they cannot be replaced by a theory of subjectivity” (p. 895).
This stance challenges literary theories that seek unified explanatory models, favoring hybridity and contradiction.


🔥 Challenging the Idea of Pure Political Resistance
By showing that violence and repression are internal as well as external, Hall complicates the idea of ethical purity in political or literary resistance.

“Psychic life itself is aggressive and violent… the violence is already in our inside” (p. 896).
This affects literary theory’s engagement with the political, suggesting that texts and subjects are never outside complicity.


🧩 Inspiring New Interdisciplinary Methods in Literary Criticism
Hall’s essay bridges psychoanalysis, feminism, Marxism, and semiotics—encouraging interdisciplinary approaches in literary studies.

“Some grasp of the social whole… does require an ability to speak both these languages together in some way” (p. 895).
This opens literary theory to richer, more pluralistic readings.


Examples of Critiques Through “Psychoanalysis And Cultural Studies ” by Stuart Hall

📚 Literary Work 🔍 Critical Focus through Hall’s Framework🧠 Explanation Based on Hall’s Concepts
🧛 Dracula by Bram StokerSexual repression, fantasy, and ideology of the imperial bodyThe vampire represents repressed sexuality and unconscious desire, while colonial fear and Victorian morality form an ideological system of representation (Hall, 2018, p. 893). The fantasy of control and purity masks cultural anxieties around the foreign “Other.”
🪞 The Bell Jar by Sylvia PlathFragmented subjectivity and psychic violence under patriarchal institutionsEsther Greenwood’s mental breakdown illustrates Hall’s view of subjectivity as a constitution of fragmentation and displacement (p. 893). Cultural institutions (family, work, psychiatry) are embedded with fantasies of power and sexual difference (p. 892).
🕳️ Invisible Man by Ralph EllisonMisrecognition, racial ideology, and representational systemsThe protagonist’s invisibility reflects Hall’s notion that ideology functions through systems of misrecognition and unconscious positioning (p. 893). His journey critiques cultural structures that refuse to “see” Black subjectivity within symbolic orders of dominance.
🧵 Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean RhysColonial displacement, female subjectivity, and cultural fantasyAntoinette’s madness and erasure reveal the double break of psychoanalysis and feminism (p. 891). Her fragmented identity critiques how empire imposes ideological fantasies and sexual control on colonized women through language and cultural repression.

🧩 How This Reflects Hall’s Method:

Each critique uses Hall’s core insights:

  • Unconscious drives disrupt social narratives 🧠
  • Ideology is embedded in systems of representation 🖼️
  • Subjectivity is constructed, not given 👤
  • Fantasy underpins power and institutions 💭
  • Intersection with feminism and race reveals deeper displacements ⚧️🌍
Criticism Against “Psychoanalysis And Cultural Studies ” by Stuart Hall

🌀 Over-Complexity and Theoretical Density
Hall’s engagement with Lacanian psychoanalysis and its abstract language can alienate readers unfamiliar with psychoanalytic discourse.

“What began as a set of very important perceptions were transformed into a kind of dogmatic doxology” (Hall, 2018, p. 894).
📚 Critics argue this dense jargon may obstruct accessibility and interdisciplinary dialogue.


⚖️ Imbalance Between the Psychic and the Social
Although Hall insists on holding both domains in tension, some critics say the essay leans too far into subjectivity, potentially marginalizing material social structures.

“They still require a theory of subjectivity, but they cannot be replaced by a theory of subjectivity” (p. 895).
🌍 This concern reflects ongoing debates about how much psychoanalysis can explain systemic oppression, class struggle, or political change.


📉 Difficulty in Generating Political Praxis
Hall himself questions whether psychoanalysis can support political struggle, as it often emphasizes internal contradiction and complicity over clear agency.

“Whether it generates a politics or not, I don’t know… remains an intractable puzzle” (p. 896).
🚫 Critics may see this as undermining radical activism, favoring introspection over action.


🗣️ Ambiguity in Language and Terminological Slippage
Hall critiques Lacan for turning metaphors into literal claims (e.g., “the unconscious is a language”), yet he relies on similarly slippery formulations in parts of his own argument.

“The enormously suggestive metaphor… becomes… a really concrete established fact” (p. 894).
🔄 This opens his own essay to charges of imprecision.


🧠 Theoretical Elitism
The reliance on high theory—Lacan, Althusser, Freud—without extensive grounding examples or literary applications may seem elitist or detached from everyday cultural practices.
🎓 Critics from more practice-based traditions might see Hall’s psychoanalytic turn as moving away from grounded empirical Cultural Studies.


📌 Resistance from Within Cultural Studies
Traditional Cultural Studies emphasized materialism, empiricism, and class; integrating psychoanalysis disrupted this lineage, leading some to view it as a theoretical detour.

Hall acknowledges: “Cultural Studies had absolutely nothing to say about [sexuality]”—but some may argue that its original strengths were diluted in the psychoanalytic turn.

Representative Quotations from “Psychoanalysis And Cultural Studies ” by Stuart Hall with Explanation
💬 Quotation 📚 Explanation
🔀 “The displacements… have been irrevocably transformed by the opening up of the spaces and questions which psychoanalysis poses to it.” (p. 889)Psychoanalysis did not smoothly integrate with Cultural Studies—it disrupted its foundations and introduced new questions about identity, power, and meaning.
⚧️ “It is the couplet post-Lacanian psychoanalysis and feminism which disrupts Cultural Studies.” (p. 891)This key fusion opens critical pathways for rethinking subjectivity, sexuality, and representation within both literary and cultural theory.
🧠 “There is always… something irretrievably lost, a fundamental displacement.” (p. 891)Reflects the psychoanalytic idea (especially Lacanian) that identity formation is structured around lack, loss, and non-closure.
“Cultural Studies had absolutely nothing to say about it… as if the subjects of culture were unsexed.” (p. 891)A strong critique of early Cultural Studies for ignoring gender and sexuality, which psychoanalysis and feminism later forcefully foregrounded.
👤 “Subjectivity as a constitution… cannot be formed without fragmentation and displacement.” (p. 893)Hall challenges the humanist notion of a stable self; identity is a process marked by division and psychic contradiction.
💭 “At the centre of institutions are… fantasies of power… without which no proper account… can be given.” (p. 892)Cultural and social institutions are shaped not only by structures but also by unconscious fantasies—especially around power and sexuality.
🖼️ “Transform this conception of ideology… to a system of representations… on which the effectivity of ideology depends.” (p. 893)Moves from the Marxist idea of ideology as illusion to a more psychoanalytic view of ideology as embedded in symbolic representation.
🗣️ “The unconscious is structured like a language… constituted in and through language.” (p. 894)Highlights Lacan’s core idea that identity and meaning are produced through symbolic systems, not pre-existing essence.
🚫 “What began as a set of very important perceptions were transformed into a kind of dogmatic doxology.” (p. 894)Hall critiques how Lacanian theory, once radical, became rigid and closed, limiting the openness of cultural and theoretical inquiry.
🧩 “What forms of politics and cultural struggle might come out of these new kinds of conceptions… remains an intractable puzzle.” (p. 896)While psychoanalysis reveals deep insights, Hall admits that its translation into clear political or activist strategies remains unresolved.

Suggested Readings: “Psychoanalysis And Cultural Studies ” by Stuart Hall
  1. Hall, Stuart. “Psychoanalysis and cultural studies.” Cultural Studies 32.6 (2018): 889-896.
  2. WILSON, ARNOLD. “Science Studies, Context, and Psychoanalysis.” American Imago, vol. 72, no. 2, 2015, pp. 211–27. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/26305117. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
  3. YOUNG-BRUEH, ELISABETH, and MURRAY M. SCHWARTZ. “Why Psychoanalysis Has No History.” American Imago, vol. 69, no. 1, 2012, pp. 139–60. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/26304908. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
  4. Simms, Karl. “PSYCHOANALYSIS.” Key Ideas in Linguistics and the Philosophy of Language, edited by Siobhan Chapman and Christopher Routledge, Edinburgh University Press, 2009, pp. 189–93. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3366/j.ctt1g09vvm.71. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.

“Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?” by Scott Lash: Summary and Critique

“Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?” by Scott Lash first appeared in 2007 in the journal Theory, Culture & Society, Vol. 24(3), pp. 55–78.

"Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?" by Scott Lash: Summary and Critique
Introduction: “Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?” by Scott Lash

“Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?” by Scott Lash first appeared in 2007 in the journal Theory, Culture & Society, Vol. 24(3), pp. 55–78. Published by SAGE on behalf of the journal’s editorial board, the article marks a pivotal intervention in cultural theory by challenging the continued centrality of “hegemony” as the dominant framework for analyzing power in cultural studies. Lash contends that while the concept of hegemony—originating from Gramscian Marxism and influentially mobilized in the Birmingham School tradition—was vital in theorizing symbolic domination and ideology during the industrial and national period of modernity, it is increasingly inadequate for interpreting power in today’s global, post-industrial, and informational age. He argues that we now inhabit a post-hegemonic order where power has become ontological rather than epistemological, intensive rather than extensive, and communicational rather than representational. Drawing on a range of philosophical influences, including Foucault, Agamben, Deleuze, and Badiou, Lash charts a theoretical shift from “power-over” (potestas) to a generative “power-from-within” (potentia), emphasizing a move from normativity to facticity and from ideology to immanence. The article is significant in literary and cultural theory for proposing a new framework grounded in affect, media, and algorithmic control, and for repositioning cultural studies in relation to contemporary forms of biopolitical and networked power. Lash’s work reorients critical thought toward the ontological operations of power, making it a landmark text for scholars interested in post-Marxist theory, post-structuralism, and the politics of cultural production in the 21st century.

Summary of “Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?” by Scott Lash

🔹 Key Arguments and Conceptual Shifts

  • Hegemony Is Epoch-Specific
    Lash argues that hegemony was the defining concept for an earlier epoch of cultural studies but is no longer adequate to describe contemporary power.

“I want to suggest that power now, instead, is largely post-hegemonic.” (Lash, 2007, p. 55)

  • From Epistemology to Ontology
    Power has shifted from being exercised through knowledge/discourse to being enacted through being and existence.

“Power in the post-hegemonic order is becoming ontological.” (p. 56)

  • From Power-Over to Power-From-Within
    Classical hegemonic power was ‘power-over’; post-hegemonic power is immanent, generative, and arises from within systems and individuals.

“It is power that does not work through normalization… but through life and forms of life themselves.” (p. 61)

  • The Rise of Potentia over Potestas
    Lash draws on Spinoza and Negri to distinguish between potestas (dominating power) and potentia (creative/life force power).

“This is what Antonio Negri… calls potentia, which has more to do with power as force, energy, potential.” (p. 59)

  • From Normativity to Facticity
    Power is less about normative ideals and more about raw facts and immediacy.

“Post-hegemonic politics leaves such normativity and enters into the realm of the factual.” (p. 62)


🔹 Media, Communications, and Control

  • From Representation to Communication
    Cultural power no longer operates through representational discourse but through instantaneous communication.

“The communication is ‘lighter’ than the symbolic. Hence it can travel faster and further.” (p. 65)

  • Legitimation by Performance
    Legitimation is no longer discursively reasoned but achieved through technological or procedural performance.

“Legitimation… becomes automatic.” (p. 66)

  • Institutional Meltdown and Emergence of Empire
    With the decline of traditional institutions, power consolidates in decentralized, communication-based control systems.

“Domination in the global communications order is… through not discipline but control.” (p. 67)

  • Communication as Control
    Using cybernetics and media theory, Lash shows how power now flows through systems of control, not ideological discipline.

“Cybernetic power works through command, control, communications and intelligence.” (p. 67)


🔹 From Cultural Studies to Cultural Research

  • Second-Wave Cultural Studies
    Post-hegemonic cultural studies focus on ontology, media, algorithm, and life, in contrast to the semiotic, discourse-based first-wave.

“Second-wave cultural studies also understands things as… empirical that is already transcendental.” (p. 73)

  • Collapse of Epistemology into Ontology
    Deleuze, Lyotard, and others influence this new empiricism where media, code, and sensation become ontological.

“This logic… is immanent to sensation. In this ‘transcendental empiricism’, the transcendental is collapsed into the empirical.” (p. 73)

  • Culture Enters Industry; Industry Enters Culture
    Cultural critique and industrial production (e.g., architecture, media, ICT) now converge.

“Cultural studies must engage with the culture industries: with art, the media, architecture…” (p. 74)

  • From Organic to Inorganic Intellectuals
    The traditional class-based organic intellectual is replaced by coders, designers, and cultural technologists.

“Today’s ‘inorganic’, even crystalline intellectuals… work less as an organ… more as coders.” (p. 75)


🔹 Concluding Reflection

  • Ubiquity of Politics
    Politics now permeates all aspects of life, not through institutions, but through embedded, coded systems.

“The post-hegemonic order is not just… ubiquitous computing and media. It also bequeaths to us ubiquitous politics.” (p. 75)

Theoretical Terms/Concepts in “Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?” by Scott Lash
🌐 Term/Concept📘 Explanation📝 Reference from Article
🔗 HegemonyPower via consent and ideology; central to classical cultural studies, mediated through discourse and symbols.“Hegemony means domination through consent as much as coercion.” (p. 55)
🚀 Post-HegemonyA new form of power not based on consent or ideology, but on affect, force, and ontological immanence.“Power now… is largely post-hegemonic.” (p. 55)
🔤 Symbolic OrderLinguistic and cultural codes that structure subjectivity and legitimize hegemonic domination.“Hegemony… work[s] through ‘the symbolic order’…” (p. 56)
🧬 Ontological PowerPower as embedded in being itself, operating immanently rather than through external control.“Power in the post-hegemonic order is becoming ontological.” (p. 56)
📚 Epistemological PowerPower based on knowledge, classification, and normative discourse — predicative in nature.“Epistemological power works through logical statements or utterances…” (p. 56)
Potentia (Puissance)A Spinozan vitalist power — generative, affirmative, and rooted in life itself.“Potentia… has more to do with power as force, energy, potential.” (p. 59)
🛑 Potestas (Pouvoir)Authoritative, institutionalized power — external, coercive, and regulatory.“Potestas… works through external determination, like mechanism.” (p. 59)
🧱 FacticityEmphasis on actual conditions over abstract norms; a turn toward empirical, lived reality.“Post-hegemonic politics leaves such normativity and enters into the realm of the factual.” (p. 62)
📡 CommunicationReplaces structured symbolic representation; decentralized, immediate, and performative in function.“The communication… is the banalization of excess… it is immaterial.” (p. 65)
🔄 Extensive vs. Intensive PoliticsShift from norm-driven (extensive) politics to affective, immanent (intensive) forms of power.“Extensive power… displaced by a politics of intensity.” (p. 55)
🧠 Collective BrainImmanent organization and knowledge production within networks (e.g., “the multitude”).“The multitudes give self-organization in politics… a collective brain.” (p. 60)
🧮 Algorithmic PowerPower exercised through hidden, generative digital rules embedded in software and protocols.“Power through the algorithm is increasingly important…” (p. 70)
🌀 Transcendental EmpiricismDeleuzian framework where empirical data already embodies logic and ontology; knowledge is sensation-driven.“The transcendental is collapsed into the empirical.” (p. 73)
Contribution of “Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?” by Scott Lash to Literary Theory/Theories

🔁 Repositioning of Power from Hegemonic to Post-Hegemonic

  • Lash shifts the foundational paradigm from Gramscian hegemony (power as external, ideological, and discursive) to post-hegemonic power (internal, ontological, affective).
  • This challenges traditional literary criticism rooted in representational structures and ideological critique.
  • 📖 “Power now… is largely post-hegemonic… power… is becoming ontological.” (p. 55–56)

🌀 Integration of Ontological Turn into Literary and Cultural Analysis

  • Lash aligns with post-structuralist and post-humanist literary theory by embracing ontology over epistemology.
  • Encourages a reading of texts not through symbolic meaning, but as ontological events or forces.
  • 📖 “Post-hegemonic power… is less a question of cognitive judgments and more a question of being.” (p. 58)

🔤 Critique of the Symbolic Order and Semiotic Reading

  • Undermines traditional semiotics in literary theory (Saussure, Lacan, Barthes) by emphasizing the collapse of representation.
  • Reinforces postmodern literary theory’s skepticism toward fixed signs and stable meaning.
  • 📖 “The symbolic… becomes an apparatus of domination… power penetrates your very being.” (p. 58)

💬 Shift from Representation to Communication

  • Emphasizes performativity and immediacy over structured representation—vital to understanding contemporary narrative, media, and literary forms.
  • Affects interpretation of literary texts in the digital age, where discourse is replaced by affective flow.
  • 📖 “The symbolic… is collapsed into the order of communications… domination is through communication.” (p. 65–66)

💡 Value-ification of Fact and Post-Normative Ethics

  • Contributes to ethical literary criticism by introducing facticity as a space where ethics and aesthetics coexist without universal norms.
  • Encourages reading literature as engagement with the “factual” rather than idealized values.
  • 📖 “Post-hegemonic politics… is a politics not of normativity but of such facticity.” (p. 64)

🧠 Introduction of Algorithmic and Generative Logic

  • Foregrounds the role of algorithmic logic and generative rules in shaping narrative forms—important for digital literature and computational poetics.
  • 📖 “Power through the algorithm… is increasingly important… in digital rights management.” (p. 70)

🧬 Empirical–Transcendental Doubling of the Subject

  • Adapts Kantian and Durkheimian views of the subject into literary analysis by fusing empirical sensation with metaphysical depth.
  • Inspires renewed approaches to character, subjectivity, and consciousness in literature.
  • 📖 “Man is an empirical–transcendental double… we are metaphysical–physical doubles.” (p. 72)

🎨 Media, Art, and Cultural Practice as Literary Sites

  • Redefines the boundaries of literary theory by integrating new media, design, architecture, and cultural research into the literary field.
  • 📖 “Cultural studies must engage with the culture industries: art, media, architecture, ICT, software, protocol design.” (p. 74)

🧭 From Resistance to Dérive: New Strategies of Critique

  • Influences literary theory by promoting the dérive (drift) as a poetic, non-confrontational mode of critique—resonant with Situationist and avant-garde literature.
  • 📖 “To dérive is to do none of the above. It is to slip out… a strategy through movement.” (p. 67)

🧩 Collapse of the Epistemological into the Ontological

  • Echoes Deleuzian transcendental empiricism: literary theory becomes a matter of sensation, intensity, and being—not interpretation or classification.
  • 📖 “Epistemological and ontological collapse… the logic is immanent to sensation.” (p. 73)
Examples of Critiques Through “Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?” by Scott Lash
📖 Literary Work🔍 Critique via Lash’s Theory🧠 Explanation
🐇 Don DeLillo’s White Noise🌀 Communication over RepresentationReflects Lash’s thesis that power no longer works through symbolic institutions but via omnipresent media flows. The “white noise” of the novel illustrates how the symbolic is displaced by real-time data streams and commodified reality. (Lash, pp. 64–66)
🌀 J.G. Ballard’s Crash🔥 Ontological Power & Affective MachineryEmbodies Lash’s shift from epistemological control to ontological domination: bodies, machines, and desire fuse in an immanent power structure. The eroticism of death and technology bypasses norms to activate pure affect. (Lash, pp. 57–59)
🧬 Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go🧱 Facticity over NormativityPower doesn’t operate through norms or ideology but through biological “facts.” The clones’ existence is dictated not by discourse but by their being—what Lash terms ontological facticity. (Lash, pp. 62–64)
🔮 Samuel Beckett’s The Unnamable🌊 Dérive and Ontological DriftThe narrative disintegrates epistemological form and resists meaning. Lash’s notion of dérive—resistance through non-linear drifting—explains the narrator’s refusal to stabilize identity or knowledge. (Lash, pp. 67, 73–74)
Criticism Against “Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?” by Scott Lash

🔄 Overgeneralization of the “Post-Hegemonic” Claim
Lash argues that we are entirely in a post-hegemonic age, downplaying the continuing relevance of ideology, discourse, and hegemonic structures in many global contexts.

“Hegemony…has had great truth-value for a particular epoch…that epoch is now beginning to draw to a close.” (p. 55)


📏 Abstract Terminology and Dense Style
His frequent use of terms like ontology, facticity, puissance, and immanence—often without concrete examples—can alienate readers and obscure meaning.

“Potentia…becomes a much more physical notion of energy… transversal of all types of material beings.” (p. 59)


🌐 Neglect of Global and Colonial Power Structures
While claiming a global shift to post-hegemonic systems, Lash underemphasizes how many societies still experience domination through traditional forms of state and ideological coercion—especially in postcolonial contexts.

His framework largely focuses on Western, technological, and urbanized settings like Tokyo, London, and global cities.


⚙️ Idealization of Technology and Media
By emphasizing the “vitalization” of things and digital flows, Lash risks celebrating the same socio-technical systems that reproduce inequality and surveillance capitalism.

“Neo-commodities…come alive and move, not mechanically… but flow in their logic.” (p. 69)


💢 Ambiguity Around Ethics and Political Agency
In rejecting normativity for “facticity,” the framework potentially weakens moral critique and leaves unclear where ethical interventions or justice-oriented struggles can be grounded.

“Post-hegemonic politics is a politics not of normativity but of such facticity.” (p. 64)


📉 Loss of Class Analysis
Lash admits that class is “much less addressed” in post-hegemonic cultural studies—yet economic inequality has intensified, making the downplaying of class arguably problematic.

“Post-hegemonic cultural studies has much less to do with social class… its analyses are much the poorer for this.” (p. 69)


🧪 Too Conceptual for Practical Application
The theoretical abstraction, while rich, is difficult to translate into actionable research methods or empirical studies—limiting its use in applied cultural studies or political organizing.


📚 Over-Reliance on Continental Philosophy
Though drawing richly from thinkers like Deleuze, Heidegger, and Badiou, critics argue that Lash’s synthesis leans too heavily on speculative metaphysics and less on grounded cultural critique.

Representative Quotations from “Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?” by Scott Lash with Explanation
🔖 Quotation💬 Explanation
📉 “I want to suggest that power now… is largely post-hegemonic.” (p. 55)Lash introduces his thesis: we are moving beyond a world where power works through consent and ideology (hegemony), into a world shaped by direct, affective, and embedded forms of power.
🔄 “The hegemonic order works through a cultural logic of reproduction; the post-hegemonic power operates through a cultural logic of invention.” (p. 56)Contrasts old hegemonic systems that reproduce order via discourse with new systems that produce reality through innovation and immediacy.
🌌 “Power in the post-hegemonic order is becoming ontological.” (p. 57)Emphasizes a shift from epistemological control (through knowledge and representation) to ontological power—affecting the very being of subjects.
⚡ “Post-hegemonic power works… less like mechanism than like ‘life.’” (p. 59)Describes the new form of power as dynamic, vital, and organic—aligned with Spinoza’s potentia and Deleuzian concepts of force and energy.
🧬 “Power has become more sinister in a post-hegemonic age. In the age of hegemony, power only appropriated your predicates… it penetrates your very being.” (p. 59)Argues that modern power no longer shapes just our actions or roles—it invades the self, becoming internal and bio-political.
🌐 “Communication is at the heart of the post-hegemonic order.” (p. 65)In place of deep symbolic representation (like myth or discourse), modern power works via communications—fast, light, decontextualized exchanges.
🌀 “Legitimation is no longer separate from what it is meant to legitimate, it becomes automatic.” (p. 66)Critiques how performance and function substitute democratic discourse—there’s no outside authority, just self-justifying systems.
🧱 “In the post-hegemonic order, power comes to act from below: it no longer stays outside that which it ‘effects.’” (p. 60)Marks the immanence of contemporary power—it now operates from within systems, institutions, and subjects, not above them.
🧭 “The post-hegemonic order is not just an era of ubiquitous computing and ubiquitous media. It also bequeaths to us ubiquitous politics.” (p. 74)Suggests that in a digital and networked world, political dynamics are everywhere—across culture, media, and technology.
🧠 “If power has become ontological, intensive, factical and communicational… cultural studies must engage with such practice.” (p. 74)Concludes with a call to action: cultural studies must adapt to this new regime of power and integrate with art, design, media, and technology.
Suggested Readings: “Power after Hegemony: Cultural Studies in Mutation?” by Scott Lash
  1. Lash, Scott. “Power after hegemony: Cultural studies in mutation?.” Theory, culture & society 24.3 (2007): 55-78.
  2. Davies, Jonathan. “Rethinking Urban Power and the Local State: Hegemony, Domination and Resistance in Neoliberal Cities.” Urban Studies, vol. 51, no. 15, 2014, pp. 3215–32. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/26145959. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
  3. During, Simon. “Popular Culture on a Global Scale: A Challenge for Cultural Studies?” Critical Inquiry, vol. 23, no. 4, 1997, pp. 808–33. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1344050. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
  4. Ling, L. H. M. “Hegemony and the Internationalizing State: A Post-Colonial Analysis of China’s Integration into Asian Corporatism.” Review of International Political Economy, vol. 3, no. 1, 1996, pp. 1–26. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/4177172. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.

“Political Correctness and Cultural Studies” by James W. Carey: Summary and Critique

“Political Correctness and Cultural Studies” by James W. Carey first appeared in 1992 in the Journal of Communication (Vol. 42, No. 2, Spring).

"Political Correctness and Cultural Studies" by James W. Carey: Summary and Critique
Introduction: “Political Correctness and Cultural Studies” by James W. Carey

Political Correctness and Cultural Studies” by James W. Carey first appeared in 1992 in the Journal of Communication (Vol. 42, No. 2, Spring). In this seminal piece, Carey engages deeply with the ideological clashes surrounding cultural studies and the backlash against “political correctness” in academia, situating the debate within a broader critique of higher education’s structural and cultural decline. He draws a sharp distinction between two broad currents in cultural studies—one rooted in continental theory (Derrida, Foucault, Althusser) and another in American pragmatism (Dewey, James, Rorty)—aligning himself with the latter. Carey argues that cultural studies, while critical and anti-foundational, has become vulnerable due to theoretical fragmentation, its neglect of economic critique, and its increasingly narrow focus on race and gender as primary ideological axes. He critiques both the Left and the Right, asserting that the Left has failed to produce a unifying, pragmatic ideology while the Right has succeeded in mobilizing resentment against universities through the discourse of political correctness. Central to the article is Carey’s concern that cultural studies has abandoned the ideal of a shared public culture, leaving the field politically impotent and intellectually isolated. This essay remains significant in literary theory and cultural criticism as it articulates the internal contradictions of academic leftism and warns against the instrumentalization of education for ideological purposes. It is widely referenced for its sober reflection on the institutional and ideological responsibilities of scholars engaged in cultural analysis.

Summary of “Political Correctness and Cultural Studies” by James W. Carey

🧭 1. Two Camps in Cultural Studies: American Pragmatism vs. Continental Theory

Carey draws a foundational line between two philosophical sources within cultural studies: one rooted in American pragmatism (Dewey, James, Rorty) and the other in European poststructuralism (Derrida, Foucault, Althusser).

“Cultural studies… can be simplistically divided… into two broad camps: one that draws primarily upon continental sources… and one that draws primarily upon American sources” (Carey, 1992, p. 56).


🎯 2. Reclaiming Cultural Studies as a Democratic, Reformist Endeavor

Carey situates himself in the American tradition, advocating for cultural studies that supports liberal democracy, civic engagement, and communal responsibility.

“I have not as yet given up faith in liberal democracy… for an open, nonascriptive basis of community life” (p. 56).


⚔️ 3. Cultural Studies under Conservative Attack

Cultural studies has become a scapegoat in conservative critiques of academia, particularly in the discourse of “political correctness.”

“Roger Kimball… has identified cultural studies as part of the problem… rather than… part of the solution” (p. 56).
“The conservative critique… has identified cultural studies as part of the ‘problem of higher education’” (p. 58).


🧩 4. Internal Weaknesses of the Cultural Left

Carey criticizes the Left for lacking a cohesive ideology, becoming overly focused on critique rather than presenting constructive alternatives.

“The Left has a dozen different critiques of ideology; it just does not have an ideology” (p. 67).
“The cultural Left… cannot speak to the general public… because it is jargon besotted… and contemptuous of ordinary people” (p. 67).


🛠️ 5. The Crisis of Higher Education: Not Political Correctness, But Educational Failure

The real crisis in universities is not ideology but a decline in educational quality and purpose.

“The decadence besetting the academy is not political correctness but a genuine disinterest in education” (p. 58).
“Students approach us… as consumers… ingesting whatever is fashionable and forgettable this semester” (p. 58).


🧱 6. The Illusion of a Common Culture

Carey challenges both conservative nostalgia for a unified “Western tradition” and radical deconstruction of culture into fragments of race/gender, calling for a richer conception of American cultural experience.

“Cultural studies was not an argument against a common culture but against the simple-minded notion that… American culture was a direct… tributary of… the Greeks and the Bible” (p. 59).


⚖️ 7. The Over-Reduction of Culture to Race and Gender

Carey critiques the theoretical collapse in cultural studies where economic and structural analysis has been abandoned in favor of identity politics.

“Culture is now reduced to ideology and ideology in turn reduced to race and gender” (p. 60).
“The Left… forgot to develop a political program… that can speak to… citizens” (p. 67).


📉 8. Professionalization and Instrumentalization of Education

He argues that both liberal arts and professional programs have become overly utilitarian, losing sight of education as a civic and moral good.

“The liberal arts have… become professionalized… [and] the curriculum increasingly reflects… the professional interests… of faculty” (p. 69).
“Unless we can agree that education has purposes that are intrinsic to it… the university will be exploited… by extrinsic purposes” (p. 71).


🧠 9. The Debate as Theatrical, Not Transformational

The political correctness debate, Carey insists, is more performative than substantive, failing to address the actual problems of the university.

“This is a debate that confuses garnering publicity and producing celebrity with making political gains” (p. 63).
“The university described in the literature of political correctness is a fantasy” (p. 63).


🚨 10. Who Loses? The Students

Ultimately, the victims of these ideological failures are students—especially disadvantaged ones—who are promised transformative education but receive diluted curricula.

“The big losers in this great debate are the students and through them the country at large” (p. 72).
“It is the newcomers to higher education who are the big losers” (p. 72).


Theoretical Terms/Concepts in “Political Correctness and Cultural Studies” by James W. Carey
🔑 Theoretical Term📝 Explanation📖 Article Reference
📚 Cultural StudiesAn interdisciplinary field that views culture as an active process of meaning-making and a site of struggle, rejecting formalism and positivism.“Cultural studies arose as a revolt against formalism and was anti-positivist and anti-foundational… a process… of the making of meaning” (p. 58)
🧱 HegemonyDerived from Gramsci, it refers to ideological dominance achieved by appealing to shared human desires—not just class interests.“Ideologies achieve hegemony… by speaking to relatively enduring… human needs and desires” (p. 60)
⚖️ IdeologyA structured set of ideas shaping culture and social life; Carey critiques its reduction to race and gender in much of contemporary cultural studies.“Ideology has swallowed culture, and race and gender have swallowed ideology” (p. 60)
🔁 Base and SuperstructureA classical Marxist concept where the economic base shapes the cultural superstructure; Carey notes how cultural studies sought to revise this relation.“Cultural studies began as an attempt to undo the relation of base and superstructure in classical Marxist theory” (p. 60)
🌍 American PragmatismA tradition rooted in thinkers like Dewey and Rorty, focusing on democracy, reform, and practical engagement with social problems.“I take myself to be part of the Dewey group… because… I have not… given up faith in liberal democracy” (p. 56)
🧩 Identity PoliticsA political approach that emphasizes race, gender, and sexual identity; Carey critiques it as overly narrow and disconnected from broader civic concerns.“Race and gender have assumed a position as the new ‘base’” (p. 60)
🎭 Political CorrectnessA conservative label used to attack progressive academic movements; Carey calls it a “condensation symbol” reflecting real public resentment.“‘Political correctness’ is an effective political attack because it acts as a condensation symbol” (p. 58)
🏛️ Common CultureThe idea of a shared cultural foundation; Carey supports a nuanced, inclusive view against both nostalgic conservatism and radical fragmentation.“Cultural studies… was not an argument against a common culture but against… a simple-minded notion…” (p. 59)
🧠 Imagined CommunityFrom Benedict Anderson, this concept explains nations as socially constructed; Carey applies it to critique mythologized versions of American identity in the PC debate.“Every nation is an ‘imagined community’ in the sense Benedict Anderson has given to that phrase” (p. 60)
Contribution of “Political Correctness and Cultural Studies” by James W. Carey to Literary Theory/Theories

🧠 1. Cultural Studies & Literary Theory

Carey affirms and critiques the foundational assumptions of cultural studies as a form of literary and critical theory, helping expand its scope beyond textual analysis to institutional critique.

“Cultural studies arose as a revolt against formalism and was anti-positivist and anti-foundational: a form of both interpretive and critical theory” (p. 58).
Contribution: Carey reasserts cultural studies as a method for interrogating power, ideology, and meaning in both texts and institutions.


🧭 2. Pragmatism vs. Poststructuralism

He introduces a distinctly American pragmatist approach to cultural and literary theory, contrasting it with the European poststructuralist tradition.

“I take myself to be part of the Dewey group… because… I have not as yet given up faith in liberal democracy” (p. 56).
Contribution: Carey repositions literary theory within a pragmatic, reformist framework rooted in experience and democratic ideals.


🧱 3. Hegemony & Ideology Critique (Gramscian Theory)

Carey evaluates how cultural studies has handled Gramsci’s notion of hegemony, stressing the need for it to address broad civic and moral concerns beyond identity categories.

“Hegemonic analysis must move beyond ideology to culture and recognize that human interests cannot be exhausted by any social category” (p. 61).
Contribution: Expands literary theory’s engagement with hegemony toward inclusive civic imagination, not just ideological critique.


🧩 4. Identity Politics and Literary Criticism

He critiques the reduction of cultural analysis to identity categories, warning that literary theory risks losing its broader cultural relevance.

“Race and gender have assumed a position as the new ‘base’… Ideology has swallowed culture” (p. 60).
Contribution: Warns literary theory against becoming narrowly essentialist, encouraging a return to contextually rich, socially responsive analysis.


🔍 5. Anti-Canon & Curriculum Reform

Engaging the political correctness debate, Carey implicitly critiques the binary of canon vs. anti-canon in literary studies, calling for deeper reflection on curricular politics.

“Curriculum reform… has virtually nothing to do with what is going on in most college classrooms” (p. 63).
Contribution: Reorients literary curricular debates toward substantive educational and institutional realities rather than symbolic gestures.


🏛️ 6. Reimagining the “Common Culture”

Carey challenges both conservative and radical accounts of cultural heritage, advocating a historically grounded but evolving notion of shared culture.

“Cultural studies… was not an argument against a common culture but against… a simple-minded notion” (p. 59).
Contribution: Offers literary theory a model for balancing tradition and pluralism without retreating to essentialism or relativism.


📉 7. Institutional Critique of the Academy

He bridges literary theory with critical university studies, exposing the commodification of education and its impact on cultural and literary discourse.

“The university has pretty much disappeared as an independent and unitary institution” (p. 68).
Contribution: Elevates the role of institutional critique within literary theory, encouraging scholars to reflect on their positionality.


🗣️ 8. Language, Tropes, and Political Rhetoric

Carey critiques the way ideological discourse (including literary theory) becomes disconnected from real-world communication, saturated with jargon.

“We seem to be surprised that [ideology] speaks in tropes and hyperbole rather than flattened academic discourse” (p. 58).
Contribution: Calls for clearer, more engaged forms of literary criticism that resonate beyond academic circles.

Examples of Critiques Through “Political Correctness and Cultural Studies” by James W. Carey
📖 Literary Work🧠 Critique via Carey’s Framework🧰 Concepts Applied from Carey
🏞️ The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Mark Twain)Challenges to the racial and moral complexities of the novel can be deepened by avoiding over-politicization through identity categories alone.Identity Politics, Common Culture, American Experience: “Race and gender have assumed a position as the new ‘base’” (p. 60)
🗽 The Great Gatsby (F. Scott Fitzgerald)The novel’s focus on class illusion and economic ambition aligns with Carey’s critique of academia’s neglect of economic structures.Base and Superstructure, Ideology, Economic Critique: “The economy has been obliterated from theoretical view” (p. 60)
👒 The Awakening (Kate Chopin)While feminist readings are essential, Carey would caution against reducing the novel purely to gender politics, advocating broader civic insight.Hegemony, Pragmatism, Civic Culture: “Hegemonic politics works… by effacing those differences to constitute civil society” (p. 61)
🔥 Beloved (Toni Morrison)A powerful work of historical and cultural memory, Carey’s approach encourages analyzing its role in shaping national consciousness, not just identity.Imagined Community, Common Culture, Cultural Production: “The America imagined… is disconnected from experience” (p. 60)
Criticism Against “Political Correctness and Cultural Studies” by James W. Carey

⚖️ 1. Oversimplification of Identity Politics

Critics argue that Carey downplays the importance of race, gender, and sexuality by portraying them as narrow or reductive concerns within cultural studies.

🧩 He critiques identity as a “new base” replacing economic analysis, but this risks erasing the lived realities of systemic oppression.


🧵 2. Nostalgia for Civic Unity

His call for a shared “common culture” is seen by some as nostalgic or idealistic, failing to reckon with the structural inequalities that fragment cultural unity in the first place.

🏛️ The idea of “neighbors lending lawnmowers” may sound inclusive, but it presumes a level of privilege and stability not afforded to all communities.


📉 3. Lack of Engagement with Contemporary Theory

Carey’s critique of poststructuralism and theory-heavy approaches may dismiss valuable insights from deconstruction, feminism, queer theory, and postcolonialism.

📚 His framing of theorists like Derrida or Foucault as distant from public life overlooks how these theories have informed real-world activism and critique.


🔒 4. Overemphasis on Institutional Decline

Some scholars argue Carey blames universities too heavily for cultural decline without acknowledging broader neoliberal economic forces.

🏫 His claim that the university has “become a balance sheet” (p. 68) is valid but not unique to the academy—it reflects wider capitalist transformations.


🧠 5. Dismissal of Theoretical Rigor

Carey’s pragmatist disdain for jargon can be read as anti-intellectual or populist, limiting the capacity of scholarship to push conceptual boundaries.

💬 Calling theory “flattened academic discourse” may resonate rhetorically, but it risks alienating rigorous critical traditions.


📚 6. False Dichotomy Between Theory and Practice

He sometimes draws a sharp line between academic theory and real-world problems, but many scholars see this as a false divide.

🔄 The best of cultural studies—Stuart Hall, bell hooks, Judith Butler—has always linked theory to lived experience and activism.


🧩 7. Underestimation of Right-Wing Culture Wars

While Carey critiques both Left and Right, some argue he underplays the strategic, well-funded nature of conservative attacks on the humanities.

🎯 His suggestion that the Left “deserves to lose” risks validating coordinated disinformation campaigns against academic freedom.


🧭 8. Idealization of American Pragmatism

His celebration of Dewey and Rorty may seem too rooted in American exceptionalism, potentially ignoring global intellectual developments.

🌍 Cultural studies is international and transdisciplinary—Carey’s American framing may limit its scope and relevance globally.

Representative Quotations from “Political Correctness and Cultural Studies” by James W. Carey with Explanation
Quotation📝 Explanation
🧠 “Cultural studies arose as a revolt against formalism and was anti-positivist and anti-foundational.”Carey frames cultural studies as a critical departure from rigid academic structures, emphasizing interpretive over empirical methods.
📚 “Culture… is a process… of the making of meaning, a process… of ‘wording the world together.’”Culture, for Carey, is not fixed or external, but continuously shaped through human discourse and symbolic exchange.
⚖️ “Ideology has swallowed culture, and race and gender have swallowed ideology.”He critiques how cultural studies has become dominated by identity politics, reducing nuanced analysis to essential categories.
🏛️ “Cultural studies… was not an argument against a common culture but against… a simple-minded notion.”Carey defends the idea of shared cultural meaning, while rejecting conservative or narrow definitions of heritage.
🔍 “Political correctness is an effective political attack because it acts as a condensation symbol.”He argues that “political correctness” is less a real threat than a symbolic shorthand for broader anxieties about academia.
🗳️ “The Left has a dozen different critiques of ideology; it just does not have an ideology.”A critique of the academic Left’s lack of unified political strategy or vision, despite strong theoretical tools.
📉 “The university has pretty much disappeared as an independent and unitary institution.”Carey laments the erosion of academic independence, suggesting universities now serve external powers.
🛠️ “Higher education… is now solely the instrument of the powerful.”This reflects his fear that universities have lost intrinsic value and serve political and economic elites.
🌍 “The America imagined in the political correctness debate is disconnected from the experience of the majority.”Both Left and Right are critiqued for promoting abstract visions of American identity that ignore real social diversity.
🧵 “To continue the debate is to run the risk we shall bore one another to death.”Carey expresses fatigue with the repetitive nature of the PC debate, calling for more productive intellectual engagement.
Suggested Readings: “Political Correctness and Cultural Studies” by James W. Carey
  1. Carey, James W. “Political Correctness and Cultural Studies.” Journal of Communication 42.2 (1992): 56-72.
  2. Ross, Andrew, et al. “A Symposium on Popular Culture and Political Correctness.” Social Text, no. 36, 1993, pp. 1–39. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/466387. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
  3. Munson, Eve Stryker, and Catherine A. Warren, editors. “Political Correctness and Cultural Studies.” James Carey: A Critical Reader, NED-New edition, University of Minnesota Press, 1997, pp. 270–91. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5749/j.ctttsvzt.19. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
  4. Ohmann, Richard. “Political Correctness and the Obfuscation of Politics.” The Radical Teacher, no. 42, 1992, pp. 32–34. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/20709742. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.

“Literary Studies As Cultural Studies – Whose Literature? Whose Culture?” By Simon Frith: Summary and Critique

“Literary Studies As Cultural Studies – Whose Literature? Whose Culture?” by Simon Frith first appeared in 1992 in the journal Critical Quarterly, vol. 34, no. 1.

"Literary Studies As Cultural Studies - Whose Literature? Whose Culture?" By Simon Frith: Summary and Critique
Introduction: “Literary Studies As Cultural Studies – Whose Literature? Whose Culture?” By Simon Frith

“Literary Studies As Cultural Studies – Whose Literature? Whose Culture?” by Simon Frith first appeared in 1992 in the journal Critical Quarterly, vol. 34, no. 1. In this landmark essay, Frith offers a sociologically grounded critique of the state of English studies, arguing that the discipline’s identity has been fundamentally reshaped by the rise of cultural studies. He explores how English departments have moved from a narrow focus on canonical literature to embrace a broader, interdisciplinary approach that includes media, popular culture, and theory—changes he attributes to both internal academic critiques and external socio-political pressures such as neoliberal education policies and shifting definitions of culture. Frith’s central question—“whose literature? whose culture?”—challenges the elitist and exclusionary tendencies of traditional literary studies, foregrounding issues of class, race, and gender in the constitution of literary value. Drawing from thinkers like Raymond Williams and Peter Brooker, he outlines how cultural studies dismantled the “three autonomies” of literary scholarship: the independence of the text, the discipline, and the individual reader. Importantly, Frith doesn’t see this as a crisis, but as a necessary pluralization of method and content, albeit one that risks losing sight of aesthetic evaluation. His work remains significant in literary theory for its lucid examination of literature’s institutional evolution and for advocating a model of education that bridges analytic rigor with cultural relevance.

Summary of “Literary Studies As Cultural Studies – Whose Literature? Whose Culture?” By Simon Frith

🔑 Main Ideas with Supporting Quotations

  • English Studies Are in a State of Flux, Not Crisis
    • Frith notes the paradox of English studies: it’s institutionally strong but intellectually unsettled:

“There isn’t a crisis in any straightforward sense… Nonetheless, in the last twenty years literature departments have been unsettled by uncertainties” (Frith, 1991, p. 2).

  • Cultural Studies Has Redefined English Departments
    • English studies have expanded to include media, gender, race, and popular culture:

“What is now offered in many ‘English’ departments… would be better described as discourse analysis, or text analysis, or cultural studies” (Frith, 1991, p. 4).

  • Origins of Cultural Studies Are Class-Based and Political
    • Early cultural studies responded to elite literary traditions by incorporating working-class culture and media:

“Literature described a narrow band of experience for a narrow social group” (Frith, 1991, p. 5).

  • The Rise of Theory Brought Politics into English Studies
    • Feminist and poststructuralist critiques challenged the literary canon and demanded ideological analysis:

“The effect (a ’68 effect) was to politicise English studies” (Frith, 1991, p. 6).

  • Cultural Studies Appealed to Market Pressures and Institutional Needs
    • English departments adopted cultural studies partly to justify their relevance:

“English departments had to restate their purpose… persuade academic colleagues of their importance” (Frith, 1991, p. 6).

  • Expansion of the Canon Doesn’t Always Mean Transformation
    • Frith critiques how even radical changes in curriculum risk becoming institutionalized:

“Literary theory… absorbed into English departments not as a form of woodworm… but as a new scholasticism” (Frith, 1991, p. 8).

  • Definitions of Culture Are Shifting Nationally
    • Governmental and arts institutions increasingly treat pop culture as legitimate culture:

“The British Council’s sudden interest in ‘cultural studies’… clearly meaning an attention to ‘low’ as well as to high culture” (Frith, 1991, p. 9).

  • Debates on National Identity and Canon Are Politically Charged
    • Conservatives fear cultural studies undermine national cohesion and traditional values:

“The transmission of the culture that unites… is faltering” (Will as cited in Frith, 1991, p. 11).

  • The Notion of Literary Transcendence Is Historically and Socially Constructed
    • What is called “great literature” often excludes minority voices and serves elite identities:

“‘National identity’ is a class, gender and racial identity” (Frith, 1991, p. 13).

  • Cultural Studies Challenges Academic Elitism But Risks Losing Aesthetic Judgment
    • Frith warns that critical rigor may be replaced with political checklists:

“Nowhere… is there room to ask whether a book… is any good or what the answer might mean” (Frith, 1991, p. 17).

  • Popular Culture and Literature Are Interwoven in Contemporary Narratives
    • Examples from fiction show how pop music and mass media shape sensibility:

“For both writers… the point is precisely to follow the ways in which sensibilities are shaped by pop culture” (Frith, 1991, p. 24).

  • The Role of Experience and Identity in Reading Is Complex
    • Frith challenges the simplification of reading as vicarious empathy or mere representation:

“Is literary experience the equivalent of any other sort of experience?” (Frith, 1991, p. 23).


Theoretical Terms/Concepts in “Literary Studies As Cultural Studies – Whose Literature? Whose Culture?” By Simon Frith

🌈 Theoretical Term (with Symbol) Explanation📝 Usage in Frith’s Article
🎭 Cultural StudiesAn interdisciplinary field analyzing everyday life, media, and identity as sites of cultural struggle and meaning.Frith argues that cultural studies has “appropriated English,” shifting the focus beyond traditional literature (p. 4).
📚 CanonThe traditionally accepted set of literary works deemed culturally or artistically significant.Challenged by feminist and political scholars for being exclusionary; Frith notes its expansion and critique (p. 6).
🧪 TheoryAbstract frameworks like feminism, Marxism, psychoanalysis used to interpret culture and texts.Described as “new scholasticism” absorbed into English departments, sometimes routinely applied (p. 8).
🗳️ IdeologyA set of beliefs or values shaping cultural and political structures, often unconsciously.Literary texts are interpreted as either reproducing or resisting dominant ideologies (p. 18).
🏷️ RepresentationHow people, cultures, and ideas are portrayed or constructed in texts.Applied to how literature reflects gender, race, or identity (e.g., women’s or Black writing) (p. 23).
🔄 MultidisciplinarityThe blending of multiple disciplines (e.g., literature, sociology, philosophy) in academic study.English has historically drawn on many disciplines—“methodological pluralism” is central (p. 15).
🏛️ National IdentityShared cultural norms and values associated with a nation, often linked to language and literature.Tied to English curriculum debates and conservative efforts to preserve “Englishness” through literature (p. 11).
📈 Market Forces / NeoliberalismEconomic pressures in education and culture that prioritize utility, profit, and competition.Frith connects cultural studies’ rise to the need for departments to appear marketable and fundable (p. 6).
📺 Mass Culture / Popular CultureCulture produced for and consumed by the masses, such as pop music, TV, advertising.Frith explores how media culture reshapes sensibilities and literary practice (e.g., MTV, pop novels) (p. 22).
🧩 Structure of FeelingRaymond Williams’ concept: shared emotional experiences not easily articulated through ideology or structure.Used to emphasize the emotional/aesthetic aspects of culture studied through literature (p. 19).
🕳️ DeconstructionA critical approach that questions fixed meanings, binaries, and textual authority.Viewed with suspicion by conservatives; linked to critique of canon and truth in literature teaching (p. 11).
👓 Critical PedagogyEducational practices aimed at developing students’ critical thinking about culture, power, and identity.Literature is used to make students “culturally self-aware” and analytically competent (p. 17).
💬 Discourse AnalysisThe study of language and meaning in social contexts across various media.Describes the shift in English departments from literary interpretation to analyzing all forms of texts (p. 4).
Contribution of “Literary Studies As Cultural Studies – Whose Literature? Whose Culture?” By Simon Frith to Literary Theory/Theories

🎭 Cultural Studies

  • 📌 Frith positions cultural studies as a transformative force within literary studies, expanding English beyond the traditional literary canon to include media, popular culture, and everyday texts.

“What is now offered in many ‘English’ departments… would be better described as discourse analysis, or text analysis, or cultural studies” (p. 4).

  • 📌 Emphasizes the democratization of literature, arguing that cultural studies allows inclusion of marginalized voices (women, working-class, racial minorities).

“Adding ‘suppressed’ women’s texts or Afro-American writing to reading lists means that history reenters the domain of literary study” (p. 7).


🗳️ Marxist Theory / Ideology Critique

  • 🧭 Frith discusses how literature reflects and resists dominant ideologies, reshaping literature as a space of ideological struggle rather than pure aesthetic value.

“To treat literary studies as cultural studies is to treat literature as ideology… the question for students becomes how a fiction works to reproduce (or resist) dominant values” (p. 18).

  • 📉 Critiques the market-driven shift in education, noting how neoliberal forces push literary studies to justify itself through “transferable skills.”

“The impact of cultural studies… can also only be understood as a consequence of the impact of free market ideology on the education system” (p. 6).


♀️ Feminist Literary Criticism

  • 💡 Frith acknowledges feminist challenges to canonical authority, helping validate literary studies that include gendered experience and critique.

“A political dissatisfaction… hence, for example, the feminist critique of taken-for-granted tables of literary merit” (p. 5).

  • 📚 Supports inclusion of women’s texts as ‘representative’ writing, recognizing literature as a vehicle for identity and resistance.

“Experience re-emerges… in the concept of ‘representative’ writing – women’s writing representing the female experience…” (p. 23).


🕳️ Poststructuralism / Deconstruction

  • Questions the possibility of fixed meaning and authority in literary criticism, aligning with poststructuralist concerns.

“Theory already seems to have been absorbed… not as a form of woodworm… but as a new scholasticism” (p. 8).

  • 📎 Frith notes the conservative backlash to deconstruction, portraying it as a destabilizing force that undermines national and cultural unity.

“So-called literary theory mocks the very idea of ‘truth’… students are now compelled to read ‘politically correct’ feminist and black and gay ‘literature’” (p. 11).


🌐 Postcolonial Theory

  • 🌍 Touches on how literary curriculum can reinforce or challenge national identity, a core concern in postcolonial theory.

“The issue that faces literature departments is not the place of ‘theory’ as such, but how to respond to a general cultural tendency towards populism and relativism” (p. 10).

  • ✈️ Acknowledges multiculturalism and globalization in education, even quoting curriculum concerns over including “works from different cultures” (p. 12).

💬 Reader-Response Theory

  • 📖 Critiques the suppression of reader experience in favor of rigid theoretical applications, calling for attention to literary engagement.

“Teachers are apt to be dismissive of the ‘personal response’… but cultural studies teachers want to map texts onto people” (p. 23).


🎨 Aesthetic Theory

  • 🎭 Warns that aesthetic value is being replaced by political readings, cautioning against losing sight of literature’s formal and emotional dimensions.

“Discrimination is taught as a political rather than as an aesthetic act” (p. 17).

  • 📌 Calls to revive attention to beauty, ambiguity, and form, aligning with critics like Northrop Frye.

“Culture also describes an aesthetic sensibility… we need to draw from literature as Raymond Williams suggested in his concept of ‘a structure of feeling’” (p. 19).

Examples of Critiques Through “Literary Studies As Cultural Studies – Whose Literature? Whose Culture?” By Simon Frith

📚 Literary Work🔍 Critical Perspective (via Frith)💬 Relevant Quotation / Concept
Jane Austen’s NovelsAusten is reevaluated as a sexual and political figure, particularly in feminist and cultural studies contexts.“Today’s bluff commentators… hoot at the treatment of Jane Austen as a sexual figure…” (p. 11)
The Tempest by William ShakespeareExplored through imperialist and ideological critique; viewed as a text that can be re-read through power structures and colonial legacy.“Commentators scoff at the idea of The Tempest as an imperialist text…” (p. 11)
The Buddha of Suburbia by Hanif KureishiSeen as a fusion of literature and pop culture, showing how media and subculture shape literary form and identity.“Whether (and how) literature can occupy the same territory as pop music…” (p. 23)
The Golden Notebook by Doris LessingLessing’s novel is used to illustrate the complexity of form and disruption of reader expectations, resisting simple consumption or narrative closure.“A book is only… potent… when its plan and shape and intention are not understood…” (p. 21)
Criticism Against “Literary Studies As Cultural Studies – Whose Literature? Whose Culture?” By Simon Frith

🌐Main Point Criticism
🌀 Conceptual AmbiguityFrith blurs the lines between literary studies and cultural studies without fully resolving the tensions or boundaries between them. His essay raises more questions than it definitively answers.
🧱 Overextension of Cultural StudiesCultural studies is treated almost as a panacea, absorbing all of English studies, but this risks diluting disciplinary rigor, especially around textual aesthetics and formalism.
🎯 Vagueness in Pedagogical ApplicationWhile he outlines an ideal school day and diverse syllabi, he fails to offer clear pedagogical strategies for integrating these ideas into structured academic curricula.
⚖️ Political OverloadHis framing sometimes makes all literary judgment seem political, potentially undermining aesthetic value and students’ personal interpretations.
📚 Insufficient Literary Close ReadingFrith draws from a wide range of cultural and sociological sources, but rarely engages in direct close reading of specific literary texts, which weakens his case in traditional literary circles.
🏛️ Anti-Canonical BiasThough aiming for inclusivity, his dismissal of the canon at times seems ideologically motivated, raising the concern of replacing one orthodoxy with another.
🤹 Theory SaturationThe heavy reliance on overlapping theoretical models (feminism, Marxism, poststructuralism, media theory) can overwhelm clarity, making the essay feel conceptually cluttered.
🪞 Paradox of ReflexivityFrith critiques traditional disciplines for lacking reflexivity, but his own assumptions and positions aren’t always self-examined, especially regarding what qualifies as ‘good’ cultural study.
Representative Quotations from “Literary Studies As Cultural Studies – Whose Literature? Whose Culture?” By Simon Frith with Explanation
🗣️ Quotation🧠 Explanation
“📚 To study literature has always been to study culture.Frith emphasizes that literature and culture are inherently linked, opposing the notion of a purely aesthetic or text-centric approach.
“🎭 Literary judgment… becomes a matter of political assessment.Reading literature is never neutral—it involves decoding cultural and political ideologies embedded within texts.
“🏫 English departments seemed to move to the left as the political climate shifted to the right.Frith reflects on how English studies became a space for progressive theory as a reaction to conservative political trends.
“🔄 What was now at issue was the relationship between culture and ideology.This reveals how cultural texts serve as vehicles for ideological production and critique—central to cultural studies.
“🧱 The challenge to the old, ‘limited’ canon may… simply produce a new ‘extended’ canon.Frith warns that canon revision can risk tokenism if it lacks deep structural change in pedagogical methods.
“🧩 The problem is not what is meant by literature but what is meant by culture.Frith turns the focus away from text towards the shifting, expansive concept of “culture” in literary studies.
“💬 Experience re-emerges, in however mediated a form, in the concept of ‘representative’ writing.Cultural representation and identity politics shape how readers and students relate to literature.
“🌍 Cultural studies should be an exploration of how the ‘commercial’ and the ‘literary’ between them articulate the ‘popular’.Rather than binary oppositions, Frith urges an integrative analysis of literature, media, and mass culture.
“🎢 To move from an exclusive to an inclusive textual theory is to change the terms of the question of value.Inclusion in reading lists redefines what is deemed valuable, challenging elitist norms.
“🧭 We have to tread our own fine line between cultural celebration and dismissal.Frith advocates for critical discernment when engaging with both popular and academic culture, avoiding extremes.
Suggested Readings: “Literary Studies As Cultural Studies – Whose Literature? Whose Culture?” By Simon Frith
  1. Wolff, Janet. “Cultural Studies and the Sociology of Culture.” Contemporary Sociology, vol. 28, no. 5, 1999, pp. 499–507. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/2654982. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
  2. Frith, Simon. “Literary studies as cultural studies-whose literature? whose culture?.” Critical quarterly 34.1 (1992).
  3. Gallagher, Catherine. “Raymond Williams and Cultural Studies.” Social Text, no. 30, 1992, pp. 79–89. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/466467. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
  4. Staiger, Janet. “FILM, RECEPTION, AND CULTURAL STUDIES.” The Centennial Review, vol. 36, no. 1, 1992, pp. 89–104. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/23739835. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.

“History as Usual?: Feminism and the “New Historicism” by Judith Newton: Summary and Critique

“History as Usual?: Feminism and the ‘New Historicism’” by Judith Newton first appeared in the journal Cultural Critique, No. 9 (Spring 1988), published by the University of Minnesota Press.

"History as Usual?: Feminism and the "New Historicism" by Judith Newton: Summary and Critique
Introduction: “History as Usual?: Feminism and the “New Historicism” by Judith Newton

“History as Usual?: Feminism and the ‘New Historicism’” by Judith Newton first appeared in the journal Cultural Critique, No. 9 (Spring 1988), published by the University of Minnesota Press. In this influential article, Newton interrogates the rise of the New Historicism within literary studies, critiquing its failure to account for the foundational contributions of feminist theory and feminist historiography. She challenges the marginalization of feminist scholars in the narrative of postmodern literary theory and contends that feminist criticism not only anticipated many of the assumptions later associated with New Historicism—such as the cultural construction of subjectivity and the historicity of representation—but often did so from a more politically engaged and socially transformative position. Newton argues that feminist critics had long explored how power, gender, and ideology shaped historical narratives and literary production, and she calls for a broader, more inclusive definition of New Historicism—one that integrates feminist insights and refuses the erasure of women’s intellectual labor. The essay is widely considered a key intervention in literary theory, urging scholars to recognize the political stakes of theoretical practice and to engage in more inclusive historiographies of criticism.

Summary of “History as Usual?: Feminism and the “New Historicism” by Judith Newton

🔑 Key Ideas from Judith Newton’s “History as Usual?: Feminism and the ‘New Historicism'”

🔹 1. New Historicism’s Ambiguous Identity

  • Newton critiques the vagueness and internal contradictions in defining “new historicism,” noting it is “as marked by difference as by sameness” (Newton, 1988, p. 87).
  • She asks whether it’s “a unique and hot commodity” or simply a “set of widely held, loosely ‘postmodernist’ assumptions” (p. 87).

🔹 2. Core Assumptions of New Historicism

  • Practitioners assume “no transhistorical or universal human essence,” with subjectivity “constructed by cultural codes” (p. 88).
  • Representations are not neutral; they “make things happen” by “shaping human consciousness” (p. 89).

🔹 3. Feminist Scholarship’s Exclusion from New Historicist Narratives

  • Newton criticizes how feminist contributions have been omitted from histories of theory and new historicism, despite feminist theory’s foundational role (p. 91).
  • Feminists “have sometimes participated in this erasure of their own intellectual traditions” (p. 92).

🔹 4. Feminist Origins of Postmodern Assumptions

  • Feminist thought contributed to “postmodernist” critiques before French theory was widely embraced, often rooted in “personal change and commitment” (p. 94).
  • These ideas, rooted in activism and experience, fostered a “sense of political possibilities” (p. 94).

🔹 5. Feminist Rearticulation of Theory

  • Feminist theorists developed distinctive takes on objectivity, proposing “situated and embodied knowledges” over relativism (p. 98).
  • They aim for “webs of connection, called solidarity in politics and shared conversation in epistemology” (p. 99).

🔹 6. Feminist History and the Redefinition of “History”

  • “New Women’s History” foregrounded the role of women as agents in history, challenging the public/private binary and masculinist historiography (p. 100).
  • Feminist historians revealed how “gender relations and gender struggle” shaped historical developments, often predating Foucault (p. 101).

🔹 7. Feminist Literary Criticism as Historical Practice

  • Feminist critics “situate literature in relation to history,” treating representation as “political” and deeply intertwined with gendered power (p. 104).
  • Historical readings by feminist literary scholars often emphasize “materialist” and interdisciplinary strategies (p. 105).

🔹 8. Gender as Central to Understanding Power

  • Feminist work redefines power not only as dominance but also “power in disguise,” such as resistance, silence, and emotional labor (p. 102).
  • This insight reframes power dynamics traditionally overlooked by male-centered models.

🔹 9. Feminism’s Potential to Transform New Historicism

  • Newton proposes that “materialist feminist literary/historical practice” yields a richer, more nuanced understanding of history and subjectivity (p. 117).
  • She argues for greater collaboration between feminists and cultural materialists to deepen historical analysis (p. 120).
Theoretical Terms/Concepts in “History as Usual?: Feminism and the “New Historicism” by Judith Newton
🌟 Term/Concept📖 Explanation🔍 Usage in the Article
🌀 New HistoricismA literary-critical movement that sees literature as embedded within cultural, social, and political discourses.Newton explores whether it is a unified school or a broad set of postmodernist strategies. She critiques its emerging orthodoxy and exclusion of feminist histories.
♀️ Feminist TheoryCritical approaches grounded in the analysis of gender inequality and the representation of women.Newton insists feminist theory shaped “postmodern” assumptions and calls out its omission in new historicist narratives.
🧠 SubjectivityThe ways in which individuals are shaped by and internalize cultural codes and social norms.Feminism brought focus to how women’s subjectivity is constructed differently and often invisibly in history.
📜 PostmodernismA skeptical, anti-essentialist stance toward grand narratives, objectivity, and fixed meanings.Newton aligns feminist critique with postmodernist assumptions but argues for feminism’s distinct articulation.
🧱 Cultural MaterialismA British form of Marxist literary criticism that views literature as a material product of culture and ideology.Mentioned as a cousin to new historicism; Newton emphasizes feminism’s deeper roots and more intersectional critique.
🔄 Cross-cultural MontageJuxtaposition of literary and non-literary texts to reveal ideological interrelations.Newton shows how feminists had already been doing this with diaries, manuals, legal records, etc., before new historicism labeled it.
📚 RepresentationThe depiction or construction of reality through language, images, or discourse.Newton insists that representation has material consequences and is a site of ideological struggle.
💬 Hegemonic IdeologyDominant worldviews that naturalize power structures.Newton critiques how non-feminist new historicism overemphasizes hegemony, underplaying resistance and female agency.
🔥 Social Change & AgencyThe potential for individuals or groups to transform society.Central to Newton’s feminist critique — she shows how feminism models social change and not just cultural reproduction.
🚪 MarginalizationThe social process of relegating groups to the edge of cultural, political, or academic discourse.Newton critiques how feminist work has been marginalized in academic histories of theory like deconstruction and new historicism.

Contribution of “History as Usual?: Feminism and the “New Historicism” by Judith Newton to Literary Theory/Theories

1. 📚 New Historicism

📌 Contribution:
Newton critiques the notion that New Historicism is a neutral or revolutionary academic practice. She shows how it marginalizes feminist contributions, portraying it as a male-dominated project that reinvents ideas feminists were already working with.

🔍 Example from the Article:

“Histories of the ‘new historicism’ are beginning to remind me of…deconstructive thought…even the most current histories represent feminist theory as the simple receptor of seminal influence…” (p. 91)

📌 Impact:
Newton challenges the disciplinary canonization of New Historicism, calling for a broader, intersectional approach that includes gender and feminist labor. She insists feminist work should not be retroactively appropriated into male-defined theoretical traditions.


2. ♀️ Feminist Literary Criticism

📌 Contribution:
Newton defends and repositions feminist criticism as not only responsive but foundational to theoretical developments. She positions it as a producer of theory, especially around subjectivity, power, and representation.

🔍 Example from the Article:

“Feminist theorizing of the ‘post-modern’ variety has been part of the Women’s Movement from the beginning.” (p. 94)

📌 Impact:
She articulates a feminist historicism that emphasizes experience, situated knowledge, and personal-political engagement, challenging the idea that feminist theory is derivative of deconstruction or postmodernism.


3. 📖 Postmodernism

📌 Contribution:
Newton critiques postmodernism’s tendency toward relativism and depoliticization, showing how feminists developed postmodern ideas (e.g., the critique of objectivity, constructed subjectivity) through lived experience and political urgency.

🔍 Example from the Article:

“Feminist challenges to the notion of ‘objectivity’ have not usually led to relativism… but rather to defining a ‘feminist version of objectivity’—situated and embodied knowledges…” (p. 98)

📌 Impact:
Newton offers a version of politicized postmodernism, grounding theoretical abstraction in feminist and activist contexts. She promotes epistemological alternatives rooted in accountability and partial perspective (à la Haraway, Harding).


4. 📕 Cultural Materialism

📌 Contribution:
While cultural materialism and New Historicism are typically linked, Newton shows how materialist feminist criticism shares common assumptions but articulates them differently—especially in recognizing women’s labor, agency, and discursive contributions.

🔍 Example from the Article:

“Although materialist feminist criticism has drawn heavily on Marxist and cultural materialist theory… it may still be differentiated… by the degree to which it takes gender as an organizing category in ‘history.’” (p. 106)

📌 Impact:
She positions materialist feminism as a distinctive critical formation, not to be absorbed under male-defined theories. She emphasizes the intersection of gender and class in ways cultural materialism alone often neglects.


5. 🧩 Reader-Response and Psychoanalytic Theories

📌 Contribution:
Newton doesn’t engage directly with these, but she implies their limitations by contrasting them with feminist historicism’s focus on experience, community, and material history, over textual play or personal introspection.

🔍 Example from the Article:

“What is theory, after all, ‘good’ for?” she asks rhetorically, insisting theory should serve political and communal purposes (p. 96)

📌 Impact:
Her perspective aligns more with object-relations feminist theory (e.g., Chodorow, Gilligan), as she encourages literary historians to consider emotional and material conditions shaping subjectivity and representation (p. 120).


🧱 Summary: Key Contributions

📌 Theory🚀 Newton’s Contribution
New HistoricismCritiques male dominance, calls for feminist inclusion and restructuring
Feminist CriticismCenters feminist theory as original, radical, and epistemologically unique
PostmodernismAdvocates for politicized, situated knowledge over relativist detachment
Cultural MaterialismInsists on gender as a structural, historical analytic often ignored by class-based models
Psychoanalysis (implied)Prefers feminist-materialist notions of the self over textual or personal abstraction
Examples of Critiques Through “History as Usual?: Feminism and the “New Historicism” by Judith Newton
📚 Literary Work📝 Critique Through Newton’s Lens🧠 Theoretical Frame🌈 Symbolic Marker
🏰 Condition of England Novels (e.g., Mary Barton, North and South)These novels reflect a paradoxical Victorian ideology: portraying working-class suffering while reinscribing patriarchal domesticity. Newton notes their public/private binary reproduces gendered power.New Historicism + Feminist Critique of Domestic Ideology⚖️ Public vs Private
👑 Victorian Women’s Manuals (e.g., The Book of Household Management by Mrs. Beeton)Manuals promote domestic ideology from a female-authored, moralizing voice, showing how women contributed to hegemonic power while also resisting it subtly. Newton highlights their agency within containment.Cultural Materialism + Materialist Feminism🧵 Gendered Agency
💉 Medical Discourse & Birth Debates (e.g., chloroform in childbirth debates)Newton (via Poovey) critiques how male-dominated scientific texts pathologized women’s bodies while excluding women’s voices, illustrating epistemic violence through “objective” discourse.Postmodern Feminism + Situated Knowledge💊 Power of Representation
🧚‍♀️ Victorian Governess Novels (e.g., Jane Eyre)Newton shows how these novels represent gender-class intersectionality, as women navigate public labor while performing femininity. Feminist historicism reveals the contradictions of subjecthood.Feminist Historicism + Class/Gender Critique🎭 Multiple Identities

📌 Key Concepts Across All:
  • Representation has material consequences 🧠
  • Gender and class must be analyzed intersectionally 🎯
  • Women were both subject to and producers of ideology 🔄
  • Private/domestic spheres were politically charged 🏠

Criticism Against “History as Usual?: Feminism and the “New Historicism” by Judith Newton

Overemphasis on Feminist Contribution as Original

Some critics argue that Newton overclaims the uniqueness of feminist theory, suggesting feminists were the first to introduce postmodern insights (like the constructed subject) when these were also present in other theoretical traditions like post-structuralism and Marxism.
→ Critique: Exaggeration of feminist “primacy” in theory development.


🔍 Selective Reading of New Historicism

Newton tends to highlight the male dominance in New Historicism, but critics suggest she downplays the diversity within the field, including scholars like Jean Howard, who also engage feminist concerns.
→ Critique: Unfair generalization of “new historicists” as gender-blind.

📘 Symbol: 📖 Partial Scope


📏 Not Enough Empirical Engagement

While Newton critiques others for ignoring feminist scholarship, she herself is seen as insufficiently grounded in historical primary texts in parts of her analysis, relying heavily on secondary commentary.
→ Critique: More rhetorical than evidentiary in some places.

📘 Symbol: 📉 Light on Data


🧩 Theory Over Accessibility

Though Newton advocates valuing feminist labor and accessibility, parts of her own work remain densely theoretical. Critics find this in tension with her call for clarity and solidarity among feminist theorists.
→ Critique: Calls for inclusivity yet adopts academic jargon.

📘 Symbol: 🌀 Theory vs Praxis


⚖️ Binary Framing of Feminism vs New Historicism

Some readers argue that Newton frames feminism and New Historicism as mutually exclusive or antagonistic, missing opportunities to emphasize synergies and hybrid approaches.
→ Critique: False dichotomy weakens nuanced collaboration.

📘 Symbol: ⚔️ Unnecessary Polarization


📚 Neglect of Non-Western Feminist Historicism

The essay largely centers American and British feminist discourse, with little mention of postcolonial or global feminist voices. Critics see this as a missed opportunity to de-center Western theory.
→ Critique: Limited geographical inclusivity.

📘 Symbol: 🌍 Western-Centric Lens


🎭 Idealization of Feminist Theory’s Internal Diversity

While Newton rightly emphasizes feminist theory’s heterogeneity, some argue she idealizes feminist unity and underplays internal conflicts (e.g., between radical, liberal, and postmodern feminists).
→ Critique: Glossing over feminist ideological tensions.

📘 Symbol: 🧵 Over-unity

Representative Quotations from “History as Usual?: Feminism and the “New Historicism” by Judith Newton with Explanation
📘 Quotation 🌈 Explanation
🔍 “Feminists… have sometimes participated in this erasure of their own intellectual traditions.”Newton critiques how feminists at times accepted marginal positions, contributing to their own invisibility.
🌟 “She who writes history makes history… speaking from somewhere other than the margins.”A powerful call for feminist scholars to claim intellectual authority rather than remain peripheral.
📚 “‘New historicism’… comes out of the new left… but barely alluded to… are the mother roots—the women’s movement.”She exposes the absence of feminism in standard narratives about the rise of New Historicism.
🧬 “Feminist theory… womb containing the ‘seeds’ of deconstructive thought… those ‘seeds’ were really ovum all along.”Newton flips metaphors to assert that feminist theory wasn’t derivative—it was generative.
🗺️ “Writing feminist theory and scholarship into the histories… may mean participating in the definition of what ‘new historicism’ is going to mean.”Feminist scholars must actively shape academic movements and definitions.
🔥 “It was our passion that put these matters first on the theoretical agenda.”Feminist theory is driven by real-world urgency and emotional truth—not abstract detachment.
“Feminists had their own break with totalizing theories… Anger is more like it.”Feminists rejected male-dominated grand narratives with righteous rage and a hunger for change.
👩‍🔬 “Women’s theoretical labor seemed part of life and therefore not like ‘real’… male—theoretical labor at all.”Feminist contributions were undervalued because they didn’t conform to academic (i.e., male) standards.
🧩 “Middle-class ideology is implicitly challenged… but internally it is fairly stable…”Ignoring gender flattens complexity—ideologies appear more stable than they are.
🌱 “Perhaps their labels by now may be wearing thin… Perhaps… their new history is no longer new… and it is no longer—history as usual.”Newton envisions a future where feminist theory is integrated into the norm—not treated as a novelty.
Suggested Readings: “History as Usual?: Feminism and the “New Historicism” by Judith Newton
  1. Newton, Judith. “History as Usual?: Feminism and the ‘New Historicism.’” Cultural Critique, no. 9, 1988, pp. 87–121. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/1354235. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
  2. Newton, Judith. “History as Usual?: Feminism and the New Historicism.” Starting Over: Feminism and the Politics of Cultural Critique, University of Michigan Press, 1994, pp. 27–58. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3998/mpub.10109.6. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
  3. Dimock, Wai-Chee. “Feminism, New Historicism, and the Reader.” American Literature, vol. 63, no. 4, 1991, pp. 601–22. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/2926870. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.
  4. Harpham, Geoffrey Galt. “Foucault and the New Historicism.” American Literary History, vol. 3, no. 2, 1991, pp. 360–75. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/490057. Accessed 8 Apr. 2025.

“Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies” by Thomas S. McCoy: Summary and Critique

“Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies” by Thomas S. McCoy first appeared in Medien Journal in its 14th year, issue 3 of 1988.

"Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies" by Thomas S. McCoy: Summary and Critique
Introduction: “Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies” by Thomas S. McCoy

“Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies” by Thomas S. McCoy first appeared in Medien Journal in its 14th year, issue 3 of 1988. This article holds a significant position in the intersection of literary theory and cultural studies by reframing the relationship between power, ideology, and discourse through the lens of Michel Foucault’s theoretical insights. McCoy argues that Foucault’s conceptualization of power—understood not as solely repressive but productive, relational, and pervasive—offers a potent supplement to the ideological critiques that dominate the cultural studies tradition exemplified by figures such as Stuart Hall. Unlike Hall, who places ideology at the center of cultural analysis, Foucault resists this framework, focusing instead on how discursive formations shape subjectivity and produce regimes of truth. McCoy traces the implications of Foucault’s theories for understanding mass media, particularly television, as instruments not only of representation but of social normalization and discipline. By invoking Foucault’s concepts of biopower, surveillance, and the rejection of the “repressive hypothesis,” McCoy demonstrates how media subtly regulate behavior and reinforce hegemonic norms under the guise of entertainment and information. The article is essential in literary and media theory for advocating a Foucauldian shift from ideological interpretation to an analysis of discursive power, illuminating how media discourse constitutes social reality and subject positions. As such, McCoy’s work marks a critical moment where Foucault’s post-structuralist thought is methodically integrated into Anglo-American cultural studies, reshaping debates on power, representation, and social control.

Summary of “Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies” by Thomas S. McCoy

🔄 Power as Productive, Not Merely Repressive

Foucault redefines power beyond the classical repressive model, emphasizing its productive and relational nature.

“Power is productive as well as coercive, situational as well as pervasive” (McCoy, 1988, p. 71).
“Foucault examines the workings of power through local, ‘micro-processes’… producing regimes of truth that pervade society” (p. 71).


📺 Media as a Vehicle of Power/Knowledge

Mass media—especially television—do not merely reflect society, but actively shape discursive norms and subjectivity.

“Television presents carefully structured, strategically shaded versions of social life… enculturating viewers to values and norms” (p. 71).
“The media shape public discourse… in accord with Foucault’s conception of power-knowledge” (p. 71).


🧠 Critique of Ideology: Hall vs. Foucault

While Stuart Hall grounds cultural studies in ideology, Foucault sidesteps ideology in favor of discursive formations and subject production.

“Hall emphasizes the centrality of ideology. Foucault leaves ideology alone” (p. 71).
“Foucault does not primarily concern himself… with blocs of ideas… he is concerned with power” (p. 71).


🧩 Normalization Over Repression

Foucault replaces the “repressive hypothesis” with a more nuanced concept of normalization as a subtle and pervasive form of control.

“He advances a conception of social discipline as a productive, complex social function” (p. 71).
“Normalization took place, values and morals emerged… to structure the tactics” (p. 79).


🧍 Power and the Formation of the Subject

Foucault’s theory shifts the focus from the autonomous subject to one produced by power relations and discursive practices.

“The individual… is the product of a relation of power exercised over bodies, multiplicities, movements, desires, forces” (Foucault 1980d, cited in McCoy, p. 74).
“It is not power, but the subject, which is the general theme of my research” (Foucault 1983: 209; p. 75).


🧬 Biopower and the Materiality of Control

Biopower represents the subtle embedding of power into institutions, bodies, and routines to regulate populations and produce docile subjects.

“Bio-power… structuring and educating individuals to facilitate the order of things” (p. 78).
“The great fantasy is… a social body constituted by the universality of wills. [Instead, it is] the materiality of power operating on the very bodies of individuals” (Foucault 1980d: 55; p. 79).


🎥 Cultivation and Surveillance through Television

Television functions as a disciplinary device, teaching norms through ritual and dramatization, subtly reinforcing hegemony.

“Television extends the legitimacy of the social formation… through ritual” (Gerbner & Gross, 1976, cited in McCoy, p. 85).
“Heavy viewers… are more likely… to call themselves moderate, but hold… conservative positions” (Gerbner et al., 1982; p. 86).


🧾 Reframing Hegemony Beyond the State

Foucault decentralizes power, moving away from state-centric models and focusing on dispersed networks and capillary processes.

“Foucault attempts to outflank… the State/civil distinction. He locates social discipline and regulation as practices evoking power-knowledge relations” (p. 74).
“There seems to me no necessity to postulate the State as the locus for condensing various social practices” (p. 74).


🔍 Power-Communication Distinction

Power must be distinguished from communication—it structures what can be said, not merely how it is said.

“It becomes necessary also to distinguish power relations from relationships of communication… language, signs or symbolic mediums” (Foucault 1983: 217; p. 78).
“Power works its way intentionally but anonymously… systematic and self-generative” (p. 75).


🔗 Media and ‘Thinkable Thought’

Mass media in liberal democracies structure what is publicly debatable, creating boundaries around acceptable discourse.

“Mass media order society’s discourses by structuring the thresholds of thinkable thought” (p. 88).
“Within public discourse, Chomsky locates a ‘framework for possible thought’” (Chomsky, 1985; p. 82).

Theoretical Terms/Concepts in “Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies” by Thomas S. McCoy
🧠 Theoretical Term📖 Usage in the Article
⚖️ HegemonyA central term drawn from Gramsci and developed by Hall to describe the cultural dominance of ruling classes. McCoy explains that hegemony functions not through force but by shaping norms: “Hegemony is the process by which a historical bloc of social forces is constructed and the ascendancy of that bloc secured” (p. 72).
🔁 Power/KnowledgeA foundational Foucauldian concept that power and knowledge are mutually reinforcing. McCoy writes: “Knowing is perhaps power’s corporeality… Power is made for cutting” (p. 75).
🔬 Micro-processes of PowerFoucault emphasizes small, localized power mechanisms embedded in institutions: “Foucault examines the workings of power through local, ‘micro-processes’… producing regimes of truth” (p. 71).
🧱 DiscourseLanguage, practices, and representations that construct meaning and organize social life. The media operate as a discursive field: “The politics of signification take place largely through the media” (p. 72).
🧩 NormalizationThe process through which norms are internalized, producing docile subjects: “Normalization took place… values and morals emerged to treat or structure the tactics” (p. 79).
🧍 SubjectivityFoucault rejects the autonomous subject, arguing the self is produced by power relations: “The individual… is the product of a relation of power exercised over bodies…” (Foucault 1980d, p. 74).
📡 SurveillanceDrawn from Foucault’s Panopticon, surveillance is key in social control: “The all-seeing, controlling model of the ‘Panopticon’ formed the bedrock for the social disciplines” (p. 81).
🧪 Disciplinary SocietyInstitutions (schools, prisons, media) that manage individuals through observation and regulation: “Their aim is not to understand human beings… but to control them” (p. 81).
🧬 BiopowerRefers to modern strategies of regulating life and populations: “Bio-power works by motivating the management of life through… disciplines and regulatory controls” (p. 79).
🧠 IdeologyCentral for Hall, contested by Foucault. Hall sees ideology as shaping consciousness, while Foucault focuses on discursive practices instead: “Hall emphasizes the centrality of ideology. Foucault leaves ideology alone” (p. 71).
🧷 ArticulationA concept used by Hall to link ideological elements. Foucault doesn’t use the term, but McCoy notes: “He simply does not situate it on ideological terrain” (p. 74).
💭 Repressive HypothesisFoucault critiques the notion that power represses and truth liberates: “Foucault labels the repressive hypothesis… and replaces it with normalization and discipline” (p. 76).
🌀 PluralismFoucault’s methodological approach, rejecting totalizing theory: “Foucault is a pluralist… His critical pluralism avoids totality” (p. 73).
🛠️ Technologies of the SelfTechniques through which individuals shape their identities, often influenced by institutional discourses (p. 81).
🪞 Regimes of TruthSystems of discursive legitimacy that organize what is accepted as true: “Producing regimes of truth that pervade society” (p. 71).
Contribution of “Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies” by Thomas S. McCoy to Literary Theory/Theories

🎭 Contribution to Cultural Studies and Ideology Critique (Hall, Gramsci)

  • 📌 Bridges Foucault and Hall: McCoy positions Foucault’s ideas as a complement, not an opposition, to cultural studies:
    “While Hall and Foucault by no means trace the same territory… their approaches are not mutually exclusive” (p. 71).
  • 📚 Extends the concept of hegemony: He elaborates on Gramsci’s and Hall’s concepts by introducing Foucault’s focus on discipline and normalization as additional mechanisms:
    “Ideology organizes social experience… signification formulates socially advantageous outlooks… that uphold hegemony” (p. 72).
  • 🧠 Challenges totalizing ideology-based frameworks: McCoy suggests that ideology alone cannot explain contemporary power:
    “Foucault… simply does not situate it on ideological terrain” (p. 74).

🌀 Contribution to Poststructuralist and Foucauldian Literary Theory

  • 🔍 Centers Power/Knowledge in cultural analysis: McCoy reinforces that knowledge is not neutral, but structured by power:
    “Knowing is perhaps power’s corporeality… Power is made for cutting” (p. 75).
  • 🧩 Proposes discourse as a critical method: Instead of ideology, Foucault introduces discursive formations as sites of meaning production:
    “Foucault examines… discursive formations producing regimes of truth that pervade society” (p. 71).
  • 🧬 Rejects the “Repressive Hypothesis”: He critiques theories that equate power only with repression, expanding literary theory’s approach to subjectivity:
    “He advances a conception of social discipline as a productive, complex social function” (p. 71).

🪞 Contribution to Theories of the Subject and Identity

  • 🧍 Decenters the Cartesian subject: Foucault, through McCoy’s lens, redefines the subject as a construct of power relations:
    “The individual, with his identity and characteristics, is the product of a relation of power exercised over bodies…” (Foucault 1980d, p. 74).
  • 🪡 Supports theories of subjectivation: The article integrates “technologies of the self” with cultural critique, applicable to literary depictions of identity:
    “Discursive practices, tactics and strategies influence development… yet again, no one plans such developments” (p. 77).

📺 Contribution to Media Theory and Cultural Criticism

  • 🧠 Applies Foucauldian power to mass media: McCoy brings Foucault into media theory, a move not fully taken by Foucault himself:
    “The media affect the formations of discourse… strategically shaded versions of social life” (p. 71).
  • 📡 Frames media as disciplinary apparatus: The media are shown to be central in forming docile subjects:
    “Television… aids in the production, as well as the reproduction, of social discipline” (p. 71).
  • 🧪 Aligns with Gerbner’s cultivation analysis: This empirical angle demonstrates how media enculturate values, echoing Foucault’s “docile bodies”:
    “Television cultivates common perspectives… enculturating viewers to norms” (p. 86).

⚖️ Contribution to Political Theory and Literary Representations of the State

  • 🧱 Deconstructs the State as a totalizing force: McCoy, through Foucault, moves beyond Althusser’s structural model of the state:
    “There seems… no necessity to postulate the State as the locus for condensing various social practices” (p. 74).
  • 🧷 Reveals the State’s subtle normalization strategies: The article argues that power in liberal democracies is not always coercive but operates through norms and discourse:
    “Normalization has taken precedence over the coercive legal apparatus” (p. 80).

🧠 Epistemological Impact on Literary and Communication Theory

  • 📖 Redefines truth as constructed: Foucault undermines traditional humanist ideas of literary “truth” or authorial intention:
    “The real problem lies not in the idea that humanity progresses, but in what fashion have events unfolded…” (p. 77).
  • 🗂️ Connects narrative structures to power networks: The article supports analyses of literature and media that trace power’s distribution rather than fixed meanings:
    “Power relations, not power itself, form the field of analysis” (Foucault 1983, p. 78).
Examples of Critiques Through “Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies” by Thomas S. McCoy

📚 Literary Work🔍 Foucauldian Focus (via McCoy)💬 Quotation from McCoy
📖 1984 by George OrwellSurveillance and normalization as instruments of state power. Thought and language are controlled by institutions to maintain social discipline.“The media shape public discourse… strategically shaded versions of social life… aid in the production, as well as the reproduction, of social discipline” (p. 71).
📖 The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret AtwoodBiopower and the regulation of bodies, gender roles, and reproductive control reflect McCoy’s focus on power/knowledge shaping individual subjectivity.“Bio-power works by motivating the management of life through the polar activities of disciplines and regulatory controls” (p. 79).
📖 Brave New World by Aldous HuxleyDiscipline masked by pleasure and consumer culture. Norms are produced through entertainment and media, not through overt coercion.“Television presents rules of power through programs… enculturating viewers to values and norms useful to the development of ‘docile’ individuals” (p. 71, 85).
📖 The Trial by Franz KafkaMicro-processes of power and bureaucratic normalization obscure the individual’s understanding of their position within systemic power.“Power does not simply seize upon one’s mind… the individual is the product of a relation of power exercised over bodies, multiplicities, movements, desires” (p. 74).
Criticism Against “Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies” by Thomas S. McCoy

🔻 ⚖️ Overreliance on Foucault’s Perspective
McCoy privileges Foucault’s framework at the expense of other valid critical approaches.

“Foucault remained agnostic with regard to formations of class struggle… the truth of discursive relations is not of primary import” (p. 73).
This detachment can appear dismissive of the material consequences of class and economic inequalities.


🔻 🧩 Lack of Theoretical Synthesis with Stuart Hall
Although McCoy compares Hall and Foucault, he doesn’t fully resolve their theoretical incompatibilities.

“Hall chides Foucault for his emphasis on difference over unity” (p. 73).
Hall’s holistic emphasis on ideology is never fully reconciled with Foucault’s pluralist model.


🔻 🔍 Ambiguity in Application to Media
McCoy stretches Foucault’s ideas to mass media without Foucault having directly addressed them.

“While Foucault researched… he did not write about mass communication. Yet his method appears applicable to communication study…” (p. 75).
This interpretive leap can be critiqued as speculative and lacking empirical grounding.


🔻 📉 Limited Engagement with Counter-Arguments
The article doesn’t fully engage critics of Foucault who emphasize collective agency or emancipatory politics.

“He does not accept the analysis of critical theory… nor especially with those who argue that the truth will free us” (p. 73).
Such dismissal may ignore the liberatory potential within traditional Marxist or postcolonial critiques.


🔻 🧠 Neglect of Subjective Experience
Foucault’s rejection of the Cartesian subject, though discussed, overlooks the importance of lived, affective experience in cultural studies.

“The individual… is the product of a relation of power exercised over bodies, multiplicities, movements, desires, forces” (p. 74).
This mechanistic model of subject formation might underplay personal agency and resistance.


🔻 📡 Generalization of Media Function
McCoy arguably treats television and media as monolithic instruments of hegemony.

“Television presents rules of power through programs that portray what befalls people who violate those rules…” (p. 85).
This risks ignoring the multiplicity and contestation within media audiences and texts.

Representative Quotations from “Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies” by Thomas S. McCoy with Explanation
🌟 Quotation💡 Explanation
“Power is made for cutting.” (Foucault 1984a)Power is not merely repressive but active and strategic; it divides, organizes, and structures society.
“The individual, with his identity and characteristics, is the product of a relation of power…” (1980d: 74)Foucault dismantles the notion of a fixed self; identity is shaped through power acting upon the body and social practices.
“Television presents carefully structured, strategically shaded versions of social life.” (McCoy, p.71)Mass media construct reality by presenting normative content that supports hegemonic ideologies.
“Power does not work only as repression, but displays multiform productive aspects as well.” (1980f)Power also enables: it creates discourses, norms, knowledge systems, and identities—not just oppression.
“The prison was meant to be an instrument… comparable with the school, the barracks or the hospital…” (1980c: 40)Institutions share techniques of control—disciplinary power operates through subtle, systematic normalization.
“It is both much more and much less than ideology. It is the production of effective instruments…” (1980e: 102)Power exceeds ideology by acting through techniques, apparatuses, and administrative systems that shape conduct.
“Knowledge is not primarily a product of understanding. Inextricably imbued with power…” (McCoy, p.75)Knowledge is never neutral; it emerges within power relations and reinforces structures of control.
“Public discourse is formed, to a significant extent, by discourse as presented in the media.” (McCoy, p.82)Media do not merely reflect reality—they manufacture the terms and limits of public debate and knowledge.
“Normalization took place, values and morals emerged to treat or structure the tactics.” (McCoy, p.79)Norms arise from practices and discourses, forming strategies of social control that appear natural.
“The media structure the public discourse by creating forms of truth telling…” (Postman 1985, in McCoy)Media shape how society defines truth, legitimacy, and credibility—often through entertainment-based narratives.
Suggested Readings: “Hegemony, Power, Media: Foucault and Cultural Studies” by Thomas S. McCoy
  1. McCoy, Thomas S. “Hegemony, power, media: Foucault and cultural studies.” (1988): 71-90.
  2. Behlman, Lee. “From Ancient to Victorian Cultural Studies: Assessing Foucault.” Victorian Poetry, vol. 41, no. 4, 2003, pp. 559–69. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40007031. Accessed 7 Apr. 2025.
  3. Beverley, John. “Cultural Studies.” Latin American Literary Review, vol. 20, no. 40, 1992, pp. 19–22. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/20119618. Accessed 7 Apr. 2025.
  4. Morris, Gay. “Dance Studies/Cultural Studies.” Dance Research Journal, vol. 41, no. 1, 2009, pp. 82–100. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/20527625. Accessed 7 Apr. 2025.

“Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling” by Jean Burgess: Summary and Critique

“Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling” by Jean Burgess first appeared in the Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies in 2006 (Vol. 20, No. 2, pp. 201–214), and was published online on January 19, 2007, by Routledge.

"Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling" by Jean Burgess: Summary and Critique
Introduction: “Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling” by Jean Burgess

“Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling” by Jean Burgess first appeared in the Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies in 2006 (Vol. 20, No. 2, pp. 201–214), and was published online on January 19, 2007, by Routledge. As a pivotal contribution to cultural studies and media theory, the article explores how digital storytelling—a form where ordinary people produce short autobiographical films—redefines participation, creativity, and agency in the age of networked media. Burgess critiques celebratory narratives of user empowerment and “creative consumers,” arguing instead for a more grounded approach centered on vernacular creativity: creative practices that emerge from non-elite, everyday cultural contexts. This notion challenges the elitist dichotomy between high art and amateur production and emphasizes the dignity and affective power of ordinary voices. Situating digital storytelling as both a media form and a site of democratic participation, Burgess bridges critical theory with participatory practice, revealing how affective presence, sincerity, and self-representation reshape the politics of voice, access, and cultural legitimacy in new media. Her work continues to resonate in literary theory and cultural studies for its call to “listen” rather than theorize over the everyday stories that lie at the margins of dominant cultural production.

Summary of “Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling” by Jean Burgess

🎤 🌍 Amplifying the Ordinary Voice: A Cultural Studies Imperative

Jean Burgess opens by affirming that cultural studies must engage seriously with everyday or amateur media production, particularly as digital tools allow ordinary individuals to express themselves (Burgess, 2006, p. 201). She notes that these expressions, often dismissed as marginal or trivial, are deeply political and cultural acts:
🔹 “Recent developments in the uses of new media have ethical and methodological implications for cultural studies” (p. 201).


💻 🎨 Vernacular Creativity: Redefining Cultural Production

Burgess introduces vernacular creativity as a concept that describes how people remix everyday language and cultural forms into creative expressions rooted in non-elite, lived experience.
🔹 She states that it “illuminates creative practices that emerge from highly particular and non-elite social contexts” (p. 206).
🔹 Unlike elitist definitions of creativity, this perspective centers on “recombining available cultural resources in ways that are both familiar and innovative” (p. 206).


📸 🌀 Cultural Participation vs. Commodification

While the rise of user-generated content and blogging may suggest empowerment, Burgess is cautious. She critiques overly celebratory views that digital tools alone ensure democracy.
🔹 She writes, “The mere fact of productivity in itself is not sufficient grounds for celebration… we must also ask ‘who is heard, and to what end?'” (p. 203).
🔹 Platforms like lomography and camgirls are explored as aestheticized spaces that may look subversive but often reinforce capitalist structures (p. 204).


📢 🌈 Digital Storytelling: Participatory, Personal, Powerful

Burgess explores digital storytelling—short, autobiographical video stories—as an example of vernacular creativity in action. Unlike mainstream media, these stories highlight personal experiences with sincerity and warmth.
🔹 She asserts that digital stories allow for “relatively autonomous and worthwhile contributions to public culture” (p. 207).
🔹 Their power lies not in technical sophistication, but in how they “prioritize narrative accessibility, warmth, and presence” (p. 207).


🧑🎓 👂 Listening to, Not Interpreting Over, Ordinary Voices

Cultural studies, Burgess argues, must stop speaking over people and start listening.
🔹 Referring to Jenny’s story—a young mother who found new purpose through education—Burgess writes, “When I stop and look at where my life is today, I know they were wrong” (p. 208), showing how personal narrative can challenge social stigmas.
🔹 Burgess critiques theorists who reduce people to symbolic texts: “Too often, ‘the people’ are reduced to ‘the textually delegated, allegorical emblem of the critic’s own activity'” (Morris, 1990, p. 23; cited on p. 209).


🧵 💞 Emotional Authenticity: The ‘I-Voice’ of Digital Stories

Digital storytelling emphasizes the voice—literally—as central to authenticity and empathy.
🔹 Burgess uses Chion’s concept of the “I-voice”—a voice both deeply internal and universally present—as a metaphor for this form’s affective power (Chion, 1990, p. 79; cited on p. 210).
🔹 These stories “recapture the warmth of human intimacy from the imperative of innovation” (p. 210).


🎓 📚 Everyday Literacies as Cultural Capital

Digital storytelling is built on vernacular literacies, not formal artistic training.
🔹 Participants use intuitive skills like “scrapbooking, storytelling, arranging photos, and layering voiceovers” learned from daily life (p. 209).
🔹 These literacies bridge “formal and informal learning”, fostering confidence among marginalized voices (p. 209).


📈 📡 Democratization Without Illusion

Though digital storytelling opens access, Burgess remains aware of its limits. Institutional control and stylistic norms can shape and constrain these stories.
🔹 She acknowledges, “Distribution channels… are frequently under the control of the institutions that provided the workshops” (p. 209).
🔹 Yet, for many, “without additional support, they may never use a computer at all” (p. 209), underscoring the critical importance of support infrastructures.


💬 🫂 Universal Themes, Specific Lives

Burgess concludes that while digital stories may use universal themes—love, hope, loss—their particularity is what makes them powerful.
🔹 These stories offer “a means of ‘becoming real’ to others, on the basis of shared experience and affective resonances” (Peters, 1999, p. 225; cited on p. 210).
🔹 “If we are working within a politics of participation, we need to learn to listen to these autobiographical narratives” (p. 211).


🔚 🎯 Final Reflection: A Call for Cultural Empathy

Ultimately, Burgess insists that cultural studies must shift from interpreting to supporting and amplifying the voices of those previously unheard.
🔹 “The task for cultural studies is not to speak heroically on behalf of ordinary voices but to find ways to understand and practically engage with the full diversity… in which they are, or are not, being heard” (p. 211).


Theoretical Terms/Concepts in “Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling” by Jean Burgess
🌈 Concept / Term📖 Definition / Explanation🔗 Reference in Article
🗣️ Vernacular CreativityDescribes creative practices emerging from non-elite, everyday contexts using local, familiar cultural codes. Challenges high-culture notions of creativity.“Creative practices that emerge from highly particular and non-elite social contexts” (p. 206)
🧑‍🎤 Creative ConsumerA figure associated with the participatory media landscape who not only consumes but also creates, reshaping media culture.“The figure of the ‘creative consumer’… is seen as both a key to the new economy…” (p. 201)
🌐 Digital StorytellingA participatory media form where ordinary people create short autobiographical films using digital tools.“A workshop-based process by which ‘ordinary people’ create their own short autobiographical films…” (p. 207)
🧩 Democratization of TechnologyThe idea that access to media tools empowers ordinary users; critiqued for assuming equality where structural barriers still exist.“We must also ask ‘who is heard, and to what end?'” (p. 203)
🔄 RemediationTransformation of older media or everyday storytelling practices into new media forms like digital storytelling.“Digital storytelling… works to remediate vernacular creativity…” (p. 209)
🎧 I-Voice (Chion)A cinematic/audiovisual term denoting a voiceover that is intimate and emotionally powerful, representing both the speaker and listener’s inner voice.“It is both completely internal and invading the entire universe…” (p. 210)
🎭 Demoticization (vs. Democratization)Turner’s critique that increased visibility of ordinary people in media doesn’t shift power, but integrates them into celebrity culture.“Represents not the ‘democratization’ but the ‘demoticization’ of the media” (p. 203)
🧠 Active AudienceA foundational cultural studies idea that audiences are not passive but interpret and even co-create meaning in media consumption.“The ‘active audience’ is now both a fact and a commercial imperative” (p. 202)
📚 Vernacular Theory (McLaughlin)Frameworks of knowledge and interpretation emerging from everyday people rather than institutional elites.“Challenging cultural studies to recognize… knowledges of non-elite cultures” (p. 206)
🧵 Empathy in Cultural StudiesA methodological and ethical commitment to listening to and valuing ordinary voices rather than speaking over or analyzing them reductively.“A commitment to empathy and respect for the ‘ordinary’ or ‘popular’ cultural formations” (p. 206)
🖼️ Aestheticized EverydayThe idea that even mundane, amateur forms (e.g., lomography) can be stylized and commodified, often losing their radical edge.“A fetishized and aestheticized version of everyday life” (p. 205)
🧮 Cultural Value ChainThe shift in meaning-making from producers to consumers; cultural value now flows through consumer interpretation and remix practices.“Cultural value… shifted from cultural elites… to cultural consumers” (p. 202)
✏️ Narrative AccessibilityA key principle of digital storytelling: stories are structured for emotional clarity and ease of understanding, emphasizing sincerity over complexity.“Narrative accessibility, warmth, and presence are prioritized” (p. 207)
🧱 Institutional MediationRecognition that digital storytelling often occurs within structured environments (like workshops), which shape and sometimes limit expression.“Distribution channels… frequently under the control of the institutions…” (p. 209)
Contribution of “Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling” by Jean Burgess to Literary Theory/Theories

🔍 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Reader-Response Theory
Contribution: Burgess amplifies the reader’s role as co-creator in the digital age, aligning with reader-response theory’s emphasis on interpretation and subjectivity.
🔹 She highlights how “cultural value… has shifted from cultural elites… to cultural consumers” (p. 202), reinforcing the idea that meaning is made in reception, not just in production.
🔹 In digital storytelling, the affective power of the voice (“I-voice”) invites identification, making the audience an emotional participant (p. 210).


💬 📖 Narrative Theory / Autobiographical Theory
Contribution: Digital storytelling introduces a new, vernacular form of life writing, expanding the boundaries of autobiographical narrative beyond literary or elite spaces.
🔹 “The personal narrative, told in the storyteller’s unique voice, is central… and is given priority” (p. 207).
🔹 Stories like Jenny’s reflect not only personal growth but also identity construction through narrative (p. 208).


🎙️ 📢 Poststructuralism & the Death of the Author (Barthes)
Contribution: Burgess complicates Barthes’s notion of the “death of the author” by returning to the affective presence of the speaker, especially through the intimate “I-voice.”
🔹 Rather than eliminating the author, digital storytelling repersonalizes authorship in non-elite forms: “the voice the spectator internalises as his or her own” (p. 210).


🏘️ 🌍 Cultural Materialism / New Historicism
Contribution: The article ties everyday creativity to social and economic contexts, grounding narrative in material realities (e.g., digital access, community workshops).
🔹 “Distribution channels… are frequently under the control of institutions” (p. 209), showing how material conditions shape literary/cultural output.
🔹 Minna’s and Jenny’s stories are rooted in socio-historical specificity—WWII and contemporary motherhood—underscoring how life context informs narrative production (pp. 208–210).


🧩 💡 Structuralism & Genre Theory
Contribution: Burgess identifies how digital stories remix genre conventions (photo albums, scrapbooking, oral storytelling), forming hybrid narrative structures.
🔹 She emphasizes “the recombination of familiar genre conventions and shared knowledges” (p. 206) as central to vernacular creativity.
🔹 The narrative economy of digital stories—250-word scripts, 12 images—acts as a structure of constraint and meaning (p. 207).


🧶 ❤️ Affect Theory
Contribution: One of the most important interventions is in showing how affective resonance—not intellectual analysis—is the key to understanding digital storytelling.
🔹 Stories are “sincere, warm, and human” (p. 208), and the “I-voice” creates an embodied experience of voice and presence.
🔹 “The digital story is a means of ‘becoming real’ to others… based on shared experience and affective resonances” (p. 210).


🗺️ 🧠 Feminist Literary Theory
Contribution: Through Jenny’s narrative and Burgess’s refusal to pathologize “ordinary” femininity, the article contributes to feminist concerns of agency, motherhood, and narrative voice.
🔹 “Becoming a mother has created opportunities rather than closing them off” (p. 208), challenging dominant scripts around reproduction and female identity.
🔹 Burgess resists reducing ordinary women’s stories to ideological critique, aligning with feminist aims of validating lived experiences.


🎮 🕹️ Media Theory & Multimodality
Contribution: Burgess bridges literary theory with media theory, showing how multimodal texts (voice, image, music) reshape narrative form.
🔹 “Remediation of vernacular creativity through digital tools transforms everyday experience into public culture” (p. 209).
🔹 This broadens the field of literary narrative to include hybrid, multimodal expressions.


📢 Summary of Impact
Jean Burgess’s article provides a critical bridge between traditional literary theory and emerging digital storytelling practices, emphasizing:
✔️ Empathy and emotion over formal complexity
✔️ Non-elite authorship as legitimate cultural production
✔️ Everyday narrative as both affective and political

She reconfigures how literary studies can engage with contemporary, multimedia, vernacular forms—not just as texts to analyze but as voices to hear.


Examples of Critiques Through “Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling” by Jean Burgess

🌟 Literary Work🧠 Critique Through Burgess’s Lens📌 Key Concept from Burgess
📖 “The Color Purple” by Alice WalkerThis epistolary novel, told in Celie’s own voice, aligns with Burgess’s emphasis on affective authenticity and everyday vernacular voice. It privileges the emotional and linguistic world of an ordinary, Black woman in the rural South—what Burgess calls a form of “vernacular creativity” (p. 206). The narrative challenges elitist aesthetics through its sincerity and intimacy.🗣️ Vernacular Creativity & I-Voice (pp. 206, 210)
🕯️ “Mrs. Dalloway” by Virginia WoolfBurgess’s idea of remediating everyday life (p. 209) can be used to re-read Woolf’s stream-of-consciousness style as an early literary attempt to give dignity to ordinary voices and interiorities. Clarissa’s walk through London becomes a digital story in prose, capturing affective resonances of the mundane, much like digital storytelling captures lived moments.💞 Everyday Life as Creative Field (p. 203)
💌 “Persepolis” by Marjane SatrapiAs a graphic memoir, Persepolis embodies Burgess’s concept of multimodal vernacular storytelling—blending visuals and personal narrative for public discourse. Like digital stories, it uses accessible aesthetics and personal voice to engage with cultural memory and political identity (p. 207). It challenges elitist literary forms through its emotive directness.🎨 Multimodality & Participatory Authorship (p. 209)
🎮 “Ready Player One” by Ernest ClineWhile the novel celebrates user-driven digital culture, Burgess’s critique warns us of conflating interactivity with equality. The novel privileges tech-savvy, nostalgic subcultural capital—limiting who is “heard” in this imagined participatory world (p. 203). It exemplifies how “ordinary creativity” can still replicate exclusivity and commercial logic.⚠️ Democratization vs. Demoticization (p. 203)

Summary Insight:

Burgess’s work helps us re-evaluate literature not only by what is said, but who gets to speak, how they are heard, and under what technological and cultural conditions. From Persepolis to Mrs. Dalloway, her ideas reposition emotional storytelling, non-elite narratives, and affective presence as central literary values, not peripheral ones.

Criticism Against “Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling” by Jean Burgess

Romanticization of the “Ordinary”
➡ Burgess risks idealizing vernacular expression, potentially overlooking how “ordinary voices” can also perpetuate dominant ideologies, prejudices, or stereotypes.

Even though she critiques celebratory populism, her framing often valorizes sincerity and emotion without always questioning content or ideology (p. 208).


🔹 🏗️ Institutional Mediation is Underplayed
➡ While she acknowledges the role of institutions (e.g., BBC, QUT), critics may argue that she underestimates how institutional contexts shape and limit “authentic” storytelling.

The curated nature of digital storytelling workshops may normalize certain narrative templates, leading to homogeneity (p. 209).


🔸 📊 Limited Structural Critique of Power
➡ Burgess focuses on representation and affect, but critics from Marxist or critical theory backgrounds might say she offers an insufficient critique of material inequality or systemic barriers.

Who gets access to technology, training, or platforms remains a major structural issue underexplored in her celebratory tone.


🔹 🧠 Under-theorization of Digital Literacy Gaps
➡ The assumption that digital storytelling is “empowering” may ignore deep differences in digital competence due to education, age, language, or socio-economic status.

Even with workshop support, not everyone can meaningfully participate—a fact that complicates the democratic framing (p. 208–209).


🔸 🎨 Emotional Appeal Over Analytical Depth
➡ By emphasizing “warmth, sincerity, and affect” (p. 208), Burgess may be overlooking narrative complexity or literary experimentation, potentially sidelining stories that don’t conform to her affective model.


🔹 🎢 Risk of Essentializing “Authentic” Expression
➡ What counts as “authentic” or “vernacular” is culturally coded and potentially exclusionary.

There’s a danger of privileging certain emotional styles (e.g., sentimental storytelling) as more legitimate, silencing others that are ironic, fragmented, or culturally divergent.


🔸 📹 Lack of Engagement with Algorithmic Mediation
➡ The piece does not consider how algorithms shape visibility, relevance, or virality of digital content—critical in today’s participatory culture where “being heard” is highly platform-dependent.


🔹 🔁 Repetition of Cultural Studies Debates
➡ Some may argue that Burgess revisits long-standing cultural studies debates (e.g., agency vs. structure, resistance vs. co-option) without significantly advancing them, even as she brings them into digital context.


🧩 Summary Takeaway:

While Jean Burgess’s article is visionary in championing everyday creativity and emotional storytelling, it can be critiqued for idealism, institutional blind spots, and limited engagement with power structures and digital inequalities.


Representative Quotations from “Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling” by Jean Burgess with Explanation

📝 Quotation (with Symbol)💬 Explanation
🎙️ “Digital storytelling… aims not only to remediate vernacular creativity but also to legitimate it as a worthwhile contribution to public culture.” (p. 207)Emphasizes the shift from private, everyday expression to public cultural recognition, a major theme of the article.
🧠 “Creativity is the process by which available cultural resources… are recombined in novel ways.” (p. 206)Redefines creativity in a non-elitist, participatory way, moving beyond traditional, high-art frameworks.
🗣️ “What we are looking at when we look at a digital story is something that sits uncomfortably with both our celebrations and ideological critiques of ‘popular culture’.” (p. 208)Shows how digital storytelling resists simplistic categorization, calling for nuanced critical approaches.
❤️ “Stories are in general marked by their sincerity, warmth, and humanity.” (p. 208)Reflects the affective tone of digital stories and their value outside irony or avant-garde formalism.
📢 “The question we ask about ‘democratic’ media participation can no longer be limited to ‘who gets to speak?’ We must also ask ‘who is heard, and to what end?'” (p. 203)Challenges superficial views of access and participation by emphasizing audibility and impact.
🛠️ “The personal narrative, told in the storyteller’s unique voice, is central… and is given priority.” (p. 207)Asserts the centrality of voice and personal experience as valid cultural contributions.
🔍 “Cultural studies… has been ‘shaped as a response to the social uptake of communications technologies.'” (p. 202)Positions cultural studies as inherently reactive and adaptive to technological change, especially in media.
🌐 “We now must understand cultural production to be part of everyday life in a much more literal sense.” (p. 202)Marks a paradigm shift where culture isn’t just consumed—it’s constantly produced by users in daily life.
💡 “Vernacular creativity… includes as part of the contemporary vernacular the experience of commercial popular culture.” (p. 206)Blurs the line between folk and mass culture, embracing hybrid creative forms.
🔊 “The digital story is a means of ‘becoming real’ to others, on the basis of shared experience and affective resonances.” (p. 210)Underscores the intimate and connective power of storytelling in public digital spaces.
Suggested Readings: “Hearing Ordinary Voices: Cultural Studies, Vernacular Creativity and Digital Storytelling” by Jean Burgess
  1. Burgess, Jean. “Hearing ordinary voices: Cultural studies, vernacular creativity and digital storytelling.” Continuum 20.2 (2006): 201-214.
  2. Di Blas, Nicoletta. “Authentic Learning, Creativity and Collaborative Digital Storytelling: Lessons from a Large-Scale Case-Study.” Educational Technology & Society, vol. 25, no. 2, 2022, pp. 80–104. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/48660126. Accessed 6 Apr. 2025.
  3. Anderson, Kate T., and Puay Hoe Chua. “Digital Storytelling as an Interactive Digital Media Context.” Educational Technology, vol. 50, no. 5, 2010, pp. 32–36. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/44429857. Accessed 6 Apr. 2025.
  4. Michael Wilson. “‘Another Fine Mess’: The Condition of Storytelling in the Digital Age.” Narrative Culture, vol. 1, no. 2, 2014, pp. 125–44. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.13110/narrcult.1.2.0125. Accessed 6 Apr. 2025.

“Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies” by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley & J. Macgregor Wise: Summary and Critique

“Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies” by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley and J. Macgregor Wise first appeared in Cultural Studies in 2018 and was published online on September 16th of that year.

"Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies" by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley & J. Macgregor Wise: Summary and Critique
Introduction: “Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies” by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley & J. Macgregor Wise

“Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies” by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley and J. Macgregor Wise first appeared in Cultural Studies in 2018 and was published online on September 16th of that year. The article is a comprehensive genealogical inquiry into the uptake, influence, and evolving role of Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari’s concepts within the journal Cultural Studies over the past three decades. Rather than simply charting citations, the authors engage in a metatheoretical reflection, treating the journal itself as an actor-network and a discursive node that articulates various historical, institutional, and intellectual trajectories. Central to their inquiry is the notion of theory as a “toolbox,” drawing on Foucault and Deleuze, wherein theoretical concepts are mobilized not for abstraction but for intervention in specific conjunctures. Key Deleuzo-Guattarian concepts such as nomadology, deterritorialization, assemblage, affect, and control are traced across thematic plateaus—from the romanticized “nomad” figure of the 1980s to the ascendant discourse of “assemblage” in the 2010s. Wiley and Wise argue that while concepts like affect and territorialization have shaped much of the field’s analytic grammar, others such as diagram, Body without Organs, and mixed semiotics remain underexplored but ripe for future engagement. Importantly, the authors advocate not merely for borrowing Deleuze and Guattari’s ideas, but for following their method: inventing new concepts adequate to contemporary conditions. Their work contributes significantly to literary theory and cultural studies by demonstrating how Deleuzo-Guattarian thought can be generative for understanding the production of subjectivity, agency, and political transformation within shifting socio-cultural assemblages.

Summary of “Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies” by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley & J. Macgregor Wise

🎒 Theory as Toolbox: Cultural Studies and Deleuze–Guattari

🔧 Deleuze and Guattari’s concepts are not rigid ideologies but flexible tools, echoing Foucault’s notion of theory as a “toolbox” (Foucault, 1977; Wiley & Wise, 2018, p. 2).
🎯 Cultural Studies should return from theory to context — theory is a detour, not a destination (Hall, 1992).


🌏 The Journal as Actor-Network

🧵 Using Latour’s actor-network theory, the journal Cultural Studies is seen as a node connecting scholars, institutions, translations, and concepts (Latour, 2005, p. 68).
📚 Why Deleuze and Guattari were read often depends on institutional networks, educational access, and editorial translations (Morris & Muecke, 1991, p. 77).


🕰️ Chronology of Conceptual Trends

📍 1980s – Nomadism

🏕️ “Nomad” emerged as a postmodern subject and metaphor for deterritorialized knowledge (Morris, 1988; Grossberg, 1988).
⚠️ Critics warned against romanticizing marginality (Muecke, 1992; Wolff, 1993).

🗺️ 1990s – Territory and Deterritorialization

🌐 Reflecting the spatial turn, cultural theory engaged territories and flows (Grossberg, 1991).
🎵 Music became a metaphor for affective spatial structuring.

🧠 2000s – Control and Affect

🎛️ The “control society” gained traction via Postscript on Control Societies (Deleuze, 1992) and Hardt & Negri’s Empire (2000).
💓 Affect became a lens to study bodies, pedagogy, shame, and everyday life (Massumi, 1995; Probyn, 2004).

🧩 2010s – Assemblage

🧬 Assemblage (agencement) emerged in response to the “material turn” and offered a model for theorizing non-human agency and complexity (Slack, 2008; Grossberg, 2014).
🧱 It emphasized dynamic construction of relations, rather than fixed structures.


📚 Most-Cited Works and Concepts

📘 A Thousand Plateaus tops the citation list, followed by Anti-Oedipus, and What is Philosophy? (Wiley & Wise, 2018, p. 7).
🔑 Frequently used concepts:

  • ❤️ Affect
  • 🌍 Territory
  • 🔁 Deterritorialization/Reterritorialization
  • 🧩 Assemblage
  • 🌀 Becoming
  • 👁️‍🗨️ Control

🧠 Reimagining Cultural Studies through Deleuze & Guattari

🛠️ Eight landmark essays redefined cultural studies using Deleuze and Guattari’s frameworks (Seigworth & Wise, 2000; Grossberg, 2014).
⚡ Theory must be used creatively, not religiously. Concepts are to be invented, not just applied (Deleuze & Guattari, 1994, p. 27).


🛠️ Doing Cultural Studies with D&G’s Concepts

🔍 Articles applied Deleuzoguattarian tools to diverse topics:

  • 📹 Surveillance (Wise, 2004)
  • 🎵 Music and politics (Grossberg, 1991)
  • 🧑‍🏫 Pedagogy (Albrecht-Crane, 2005)
  • 🎤 Affect and identity (Keeling, 2014; Probyn, 2004)

🧳 Underused Concepts & Future Potentials

🕳️ Despite their richness, some Deleuzoguattarian ideas are underexplored:

  • 🌀 Body without Organs
  • 🧬 Sense and Sensation
  • 📐 Diagram and Fold
  • 🧠 Schizoanalysis and Desire

🌿 Guattari’s solo works — The Three Ecologies, Chaosmosis — are beginning to reshape new directions in cultural studies (Grossberg & Behrenshausen, 2016).


🌱 Concept Creation as Cultural Practice

🌟 Cultural studies must invent new concepts that meet the needs of the moment — echoing D&G’s call to “create concepts for problems that necessarily change” (Deleuze & Guattari, 1994, p. 28).
🔭 Instead of following theoretical trends, the field should create new possibilities for thinking and acting.

Theoretical Terms/Concepts in “Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies” by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley & J. Macgregor Wise
🌈 Symbol🧠 Concept📜 Brief Explanation / Use in the Article
🧩AssemblageRefers to heterogeneous elements (material, discursive, affective) coming together to form dynamic relations. Dominant in the 2010s (p. 10).
🌀BecomingTransformation over time; emphasizes process over stability. A key Deleuzoguattarian idea (p. 6, 14).
🧱Territorialization / DeterritorializationProcesses that stabilize or destabilize meaning, identity, and space. Central in the 1990s (p. 7).
💓AffectIntensity, emotion, and embodied response. Gained traction in the 2000s and 2010s; connects to politics and everyday life (p. 8).
🎛️ControlConcept from Deleuze’s “Postscript on the Societies of Control”; addresses surveillance and neoliberal governance (p. 8).
🏕️NomadologyThe study of nomadic thought and movement. Prominent in the 1980s as a metaphor for flexible subjectivity (p. 7).
🌿HaecceityThe individuality of a moment or assemblage. Used to understand cultural formations beyond identity (Slack, 2008; p. 11).
🕸️Actor-Network TheoryLatour’s idea of mapping relationships across material/social networks. Used to understand how D&G ideas traveled into cultural studies (p. 3).
🖇️Toolbox MetaphorFrom Foucault/Deleuze: theory as a set of tools used contextually, not dogmatically (p. 2).
💡Concept CreationCore practice of D&G philosophy; emphasized as essential to cultural studies’ future (p. 16).
🎨SensationFrom Deleuze’s work on art (Francis Bacon); underutilized but vital for aesthetic and affective engagement (p. 15).
🔁Assemblage/AgencementOften mistranslated; emphasized as dynamic, political arrangements with trajectory (p. 10).
🎭EnunciationFrom Guattari’s mixed semiotics; focuses on how meaning and expression emerge through interaction (p. 12).
🔮The MinorFrom Kafka: Toward a Minor Literature; denotes marginal, subversive modes of expression (p. 14).
📐DiagramRefers to abstract machine mappings; used in Guattari’s and Deleuze’s theory of power and creativity (mentioned as underused, p. 15).
🧬Body without Organs (BwO)A space of potential beyond organization and structure; a rarely cited but key Deleuzian figure (p. 15).
⚙️Machine/MachinicNot just technical but social/desiring assemblages; frequently misread as mechanical (p. 15, 18).
🌊FlowsDesires, capital, ideas moving across systems; tied to Anti-Oedipus and theories of capitalism (p. 15).
🔗Agencement (Original French)Implies arrangement and agency formation; more active than its English counterpart “assemblage” (p. 10).
🎤SubjectivationProcess of becoming a subject; central to Guattari’s theories of politics and media (p. 16).
Contribution of “Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies” by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley & J. Macgregor Wise to Literary Theory/Theories

🔁 Poststructuralism & Deconstruction

  • 🧷 Destabilization of Meaning
    Challenges representational and structuralist readings by emphasizing fluidity, assemblages, and deterritorialization.

“The concept of the minor… making this seem like a productive, yet underutilized, concept” (p. 14).
Also emphasized in Difference and Repetition, Logic of Sense, and the anti-representational critique of affect (p. 15–16).

  • 🕳️ The Rhizome as Anti-Structure
    Rhizomatic thinking subverts hierarchical structures in texts, suggesting a non-linear, multiplicities-based model of interpretation.

“Concepts… are not eternal… they bring forth an Event that surveys us…” (Deleuze & Guattari, 1994, pp. 27–28).


🔮 Affect Theory

  • 💓 Centering Affect over Representation
    Proposes a non-discursive, bodily dimension of meaning, expanding literary critique beyond semiotics.

“Affect should not be understood as a separate, fetishized force… but in its contextual formations” (Grossberg & Behrenshausen, 2016, p. 6).
See also: Boler (1997), Probyn (2004), Seigworth (2000).


🧩 Postmodernism

  • 🏞️ Nomadology and the Fragmented Subject
    Applies the Deleuzoguattarian nomad to postmodern identity and critique of grand narratives.

“The 1980s: all we hear about are nomads” (p. 7).
Essays by Grossberg, Morris, Radway, Wolff engage this postmodern figure.

  • 🎭 Multiplicity over Identity
    Undermines fixed subject positions in literary characters and readers; favors processual becoming.

“What is the philosophical form of the problems of a particular time?” (p. 2, Deleuze & Guattari, 1994).


🧱 Spatial Literary Theory / Geocriticism

  • 🧭 Territorialization and Reterritorialization
    Literature seen as mapping spatial production of meaning; connects with Doreen Massey, Henri Lefebvre.

“Culture as an active agent in the production of places and spaces” (Grossberg, 1992, p. 27).
“Rock, Territorialization and Power” (Grossberg, 1991, p. 364).

  • 🧳 The Minor and the Margin
    Texts/literatures from marginal cultures conceptualized through Kafka’s minor literature.

“Minor” literature used in works on Yiddish, postcolonialism, and Hong Kong cinema (p. 14).


🗺️ Cultural Materialism

  • 🔧 Theory as Toolbox
    Echoes Foucault and Deleuze’s claim that theory should be applied, not revered.

“Theory as a toolbox… What concepts are useful for this particular conjuncture?” (p. 2).

  • ⚙️ Assemblage as Literary Formation
    Texts seen as events or agencements, not static forms, shaped by material and semiotic processes.

“Culture itself should be understood as a production of assembled agency” (Wiley, 2005, p. 11).


🧬 New Materialism / Posthumanism

  • 🌐 Post-Anthropocentric Literary Analysis
    Encourages critiques of texts that move beyond human-centeredness, embracing material agency.

“Bodies do not exist outside discourse, but cannot be reduced to it” (Slack, 2008, p. 11).
Guattari’s Three Ecologies and Schizoanalytic Cartographies mentioned (p. 5, 16).

  • 🛠️ Semiotics Beyond Language
    Guattari’s “mixed semiotics” implies that signification operates across bodily, affective, and machinic registers.

“Shift the ground of argument from affect to the broader question of expression and signs” (Grossberg & Behrenshausen, 2016, p. 19).


📦 Literary Pedagogy

  • 🧑‍🏫 Affective Pedagogy and Minor Modes of Teaching
    Redefines the classroom as a site of affective assemblages, challenging linear learning.

“Pedagogy as friendship… a model of encounter as affective and multiple” (Albrecht-Crane, 2005, p. 9).


Examples of Critiques Through “Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies” by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley & J. Macgregor Wise
📖 Literary Work🧠 Deleuzo-Guattarian Lens🔍 Critique Focus📌 Related Concepts from Article
“Ulysses” – James JoyceRhizome & Minor LiteratureRhizomatic structure of narrative and the deterritorialized use of language reflect the “minor” mode (Kafkaesque deterritorialization).“Nomad” and “Minor” concepts applied to literature that deterritorializes language and identity (p. 14).
“Beloved” – Toni MorrisonAffect & AssemblageTrauma and memory as affective assemblages of personal and historical violence, disrupting linear time and identity.“Affect… not as separate force but in contextual formations” (p. 6); affect as a political and literary force (p. 8).
“The God of Small Things” – Arundhati RoyBecoming & TerritorializationThe children’s perspectives and broken narrative syntax resist adult authority and cultural fixity—emphasizing becoming-child.“Deterritorialization” and “Becoming” in cultural critique; critiques of dominant power structures (p. 7–9).
“Frankenstein” – Mary ShelleyMachinic Assemblage & SubjectivationThe creature as a machinic subject, produced through flows of power, science, and social exclusion. Text explores shifting subjectivities.Guattari’s “mixed semiotics,” subjectivation, and machinic assemblages (p. 15–16); critique of overcoding and identity politics.

🧭 Key Theoretical Anchors from the Article
  • 🔺 Rhizome: Non-linear, interconnected textual structures (Joyce).
  • 💢 Affect: Non-discursive intensity tied to trauma or embodiment (Morrison).
  • 🌍 Deterritorialization: Unsettling of fixed identities, borders, or language (Roy).
  • ⚙️ Assemblage: Textual formation of human and non-human agents (Shelley).

Criticism Against “Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies” by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley & J. Macgregor Wise

🔍 Overemphasis on Citational Presence

While the authors admit the limitations, the method still privileges explicit citation over implicit influence, potentially ignoring nuanced or indirect incorporations of Deleuzian-Guattarian thought.
📌 “Explicit citations in a published journal article are only one kind of trace” (p. 6)


📉 Neglect of Guattari’s Solo Work

The article critiques this itself, but doesn’t deeply address the imbalanced focus on Deleuze or co-authored works over Guattari’s independent theoretical contributions, such as The Three Ecologies or Schizoanalytic Cartographies.
📌 “Guattari’s solo-authored work is cited infrequently” (p. 7)


🌀 Conceptual Redundancy in Cultural Studies

Some may argue the frequent use of concepts like assemblage, affect, and territory risks becoming buzzwords rather than truly transformative tools in cultural analysis.
📌 “What this work can do is shift some of the questions we ask” (p. 17) – but do they?


📚 Lack of Engagement with Literary/Cultural Texts

The paper is more meta-theoretical than applied—it maps usage patterns but doesn’t offer in-depth readings of actual cultural or literary texts using Deleuze & Guattari.
📌 The article is focused on Cultural Studies journal discourse, not on practical applications in literary or media criticism.


🗂️ Archival vs. Analytical Imbalance

The study is strong on archival mapping but weaker on philosophical critique. There’s little interrogation of how Deleuze-Guattari’s ontology challenges or complicates key cultural studies assumptions (e.g., agency, representation).
📌 The philosophical depth is somewhat backgrounded in favor of taxonomy.


📈 Limited Global or Intersectional Scope

While it notes the global spread of Deleuzian ideas, the primary focus remains Anglophone, particularly the U.S. and Australian scenes, with less attention to non-Western or intersectional adaptations.
📌 Brief nods to global circulation (e.g., Japan, Brazil) are not explored substantively (p. 17).


🧩 Ambiguous Relation to Politics

Despite emphasizing “intervention” and “assemblage,” the paper offers limited concrete examples of political transformation through D&G’s theories in Cultural Studies praxis.
📌 It critiques theory fetishism but doesn’t show how to fully move from theory to transformative action.

Representative Quotations from “Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies” by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley & J. Macgregor Wise with Explanation


🔧 1. “Theory is a toolbox”
🟠 Explanation: Echoing Foucault and Deleuze, theory is not an end in itself but a set of practical tools used to intervene in specific conjunctures.
➤ Highlights cultural studies’ emphasis on utility over abstraction.


🌱 2. “Follow the concepts!”
🟢 Explanation: A call to trace how Deleuzian and Guattarian concepts evolve across time and texts, adapting to new historical and social problematics.
➤ Encourages genealogical and contextual analysis of theory.


🌐 3. “Cultural studies is not driven by theory (or at least it shouldn’t be).”
🔵 Explanation: A reminder that theory should serve practice, not dominate it — a Hall-inspired critique of over-theorization.
➤ Reinforces practice-based, politically grounded scholarship.


🧰 4. “What concepts are useful for this particular conjuncture?”
🟡 Explanation: Emphasizes situational relevance in selecting theoretical tools, mirroring Guattari’s schizoanalytic approach.
➤ Encourages responsiveness to context and specificity.


🧭 5. “We see this chronology of concepts, citations, and deployments as notes for a future genealogy.”
🟣 Explanation: The authors propose a historical mapping of intellectual influence, not as closure but as an invitation to continue tracing conceptual trajectories.
➤ Promotes open-ended scholarly inquiry.


📡 6. “The journal itself as a node… a relay… a point of articulation.”
🔴 Explanation: A Latour-inspired view of the journal as a network hub connecting diverse actors and intellectual exchanges.
➤ Situates academic publishing within dynamic actor-networks.


🌀 7. “Cultural studies itself should be understood as a production of ‘assembled agency.’”
🔵 Explanation: Applies the Deleuzo-Guattarian concept of assemblage to the academic practice of cultural studies.
➤ Positions scholarship as collaborative, emergent, and political.


🔥 8. “The 1980s: all we hear about are nomads… The 2000s: all we hear about is affect and control.”
🟤 Explanation: Identifies shifting thematic focuses across decades using Deleuze and Guattari’s concepts as cultural barometers.
➤ Reflects how key concepts reflect broader sociopolitical concerns.


💬 9. “Philosophy often becomes a grazing ground for those seeking theoretical tools.”
🟢 Explanation: A caution against superficial or selective use of theory without deep engagement.
➤ Calls for ethical and intellectual responsibility in scholarship.


🪐 10. “What this work can do is shift some of the questions we ask…”
🌈 Explanation: A humble proposition — not to provide answers, but to redirect thought and inquiry.
➤ Reframes the task of theory as generative, not conclusive.


Suggested Readings: “Guattari, Deleuze, and Cultural Studies” by Stephen B. Crofts Wiley & J. Macgregor Wise
  1. Thayer-Bacon, Barbara J. “PLANTS: DELEUZE’S AND GUATTARI’S RHIZOMES.” Counterpoints, vol. 505, 2017, pp. 63–88. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/45177696. Accessed 6 Apr. 2025.
  2. Grisham, Therese. “Linguistics as an Indiscipline: Deleuze and Guattari’s Pragmatics.” SubStance, vol. 20, no. 3, 1991, pp. 36–54. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/3685178. Accessed 6 Apr. 2025.
  3. “Bibliography: Gilles Deleuze, Félix Guattari.” SubStance, vol. 13, no. 3/4, 1984, pp. 96–105. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/3684777. Accessed 6 Apr. 2025.

“Emergence: Stuart Hall And Cultural Studies Across The World” by M. Madhava Parsad: Summary and Critique

“Emergence: Stuart Hall and Cultural Studies Across the World” by M. Madhava Prasad first appeared in Inter-Asia Cultural Studies in 2014, published by Routledge.

"Emergence: Stuart Hall And Cultural Studies Across The World" by M. Madhava Parsad: Summary and Critique
Introduction: “Emergence: Stuart Hall And Cultural Studies Across The World” by M. Madhava Parsad

“Emergence: Stuart Hall and Cultural Studies Across the World” by M. Madhava Prasad first appeared in Inter-Asia Cultural Studies in 2014, published by Routledge. In this reflective and semi-autobiographical essay, Prasad underscores the global impact of Stuart Hall’s intellectual legacy and the formation of Cultural Studies as a field uniquely suited to addressing questions of identity, politics, and the transformation of social consciousness. Rooted in the personal narrative of his academic initiation at the University of Pittsburgh during the early 1990s—a time when British academics, including Colin MacCabe, sought refuge in American universities—Prasad weaves his journey of encountering Hall’s work with broader geopolitical and cultural transformations. Central to the article is the idea of emergence: the rise of new political subjectivities and the reconstitution of public discourse through them, a recurring theme in Hall’s work. Prasad critically examines the unique evolution of Cultural Studies in the Indian context, emphasizing how the postcolonial subject, once objectified by colonial knowledge systems, now challenges and reorients those very epistemologies. Drawing from Hall’s insights—particularly concepts like “conjuncture,” “hegemony,” and “common sense”—Prasad situates Cultural Studies as a critical response to both Western objectivism and indigenous elitism. This essay is significant in literary theory and cultural critique for illustrating how theory becomes transformative when tethered to lived histories and collective emergence, especially in contexts where identity and knowledge production are under contestation.

Summary of “Emergence: Stuart Hall And Cultural Studies Across The World” by M. Madhava Parsad

🔸 Cultural Studies as an Interdisciplinary Formation

  • Cultural Studies is not defined by conventional disciplinary boundaries but rather functions as “an interdisciplinary space for asking new questions” across the humanities and social sciences (Prasad, 2014, p. 191).
  • At the University of Pittsburgh, Cultural Studies operated as a “meeting ground” across departments, reflecting its inherently hybrid and collaborative nature.

🔸 Learning from Stuart Hall: Hegemony, Conjuncture, and Social Reading

  • Prasad credits Stuart Hall for his understanding of “hegemony” and “conjuncture”, concepts that challenge traditional notions of class struggle and encourage reading social realities as texts (Prasad, 2014, p. 191).
  • Hall’s critique of the Left’s failure in “shaping the culture and educating desire” deeply resonated with India’s own political struggles during its neoliberal shift.

🔸 English Literature and Its Cultural Prestige in Postcolonial India

  • In 1970s India, English Literature promised upward mobility and symbolic capital but masked its political function as a colonial holdover.
  • Despite the presence of radical professors, there was “little or no consciousness of the political significance of the persistence of English as the ‘queen of the humanities'” (Prasad, 2014, p. 192).

🔸 Cultural Studies and Social Shifts in Indian Academia

  • As students from marginalized backgrounds entered universities, the symbolic and cultural authority of English was “radically redefined” (Prasad, 2014, p. 192).
  • Cultural Studies offered these students a more inclusive and responsive intellectual space, aligning with Hall’s commitment to emergent political identities.

🔸 British vs. Indian Cultural Studies: Sociology vs. Anthropology

  • British Cultural Studies arose in response to sociology’s objectification of the working class (e.g., Hoggart’s “scholarship boy”), while in India, anthropology played this role.
  • The story of an Indian student discovering his “own widowed mother” in an anthropological journal epitomizes the postcolonial shock of seeing one’s life objectified by Western academia (Prasad, 2014, p. 192).

🔸 Knowledge, Modernity, and the Postcolonial Subject

  • Prasad argues that the “Indian subject is a stain in the field of knowledge”—an unsettling presence in structures that were meant to objectify the colonized (Prasad, 2014, p. 193).
  • Postcolonial intellectuals must disrupt the inherited knowledge apparatus rather than “acquiesce in one’s own subjective effacement.”

🔸 The Subaltern Elite and Suppression of Indigenous Voices

  • The Indian ruling class, described as the “subaltern elite” (via Partha Chatterjee), seeks Western approval while suppressing grassroots voices (Prasad, 2014, p. 193).
  • Cultural Studies in India positions itself “on the side of the indigenous challengers” rather than the postcolonial elite allied with English literary traditions.

🔸 Hall’s Legacy: Subjective Experience Without Theoretical Abandonment

  • Stuart Hall’s method blends autobiography with rigorous theory. His essays, such as “Cultural Studies and Its Theoretical Legacies” and “New Ethnicities”, insist that subjectivity should “not be mistaken for an indifference to theory” (Prasad, 2014, p. 193).
  • Hall provides a model for how marginalized identities can write themselves into public discourse without reducing intellectual inquiry to confession.

🔸 Emergence as Political and Epistemological Transformation

  • The central concept of emergence refers to the appearance of new political subjectivities and their impact on knowledge and society.
  • Prasad echoes Hall’s insight that “for the process of emergence to be successful, it must be simultaneously a transformation of the world into which we emerge” (Prasad, 2014, p. 193).

Theoretical Terms/Concepts in “Emergence: Stuart Hall And Cultural Studies Across The World” by M. Madhava Parsad

Term with SymbolExplanation (as used in the article)
📚 Cultural StudiesNot a fixed discipline but “an interdisciplinary space for asking new questions”, bridging humanities and social sciences to examine culture as a site of power and resistance.
🔄 ConjunctureA term from Hall, signifying the historical moment where different political, economic, and cultural forces converge, demanding new ways of understanding social change.
👑 HegemonyBorrowed from Gramsci and central to Hall’s thought; refers to the ways dominant ideologies become normalized as “common sense” through cultural, not just economic means.
🧠 Common SenseAnother Gramscian term used by Hall to describe the internalization of dominant values; Thatcherism’s success lay in reshaping the nation’s “common sense”.
📖 “Reading” (with quotation marks)Signifies interpreting cultural and social phenomena like texts. As Prasad notes, Hall taught how to “read something that is not a text, but a piece of social reality.”
🧭 Subject-in-EmergenceDescribes new political subjects entering public life and knowledge systems—“a subject-in-emergence will necessarily disturb… the apparatuses” of older epistemologies.
👥 Subaltern EliteFrom Partha Chatterjee, used to critique postcolonial Indian elites who seek Western validation while silencing domestic, marginalized voices in public discourse.
💬 Autobiographical MethodHall’s distinctive way of blending personal narrative with theory—“individual autobiography is also the narrative of a collective identity”—as a tool of critical reflection.
🧩 EmergenceThe article’s central theme: “the advent of new subjectivities” and the idea that their appearance must also lead to structural transformation, not just visibility.
Contribution of “Emergence: Stuart Hall And Cultural Studies Across The World” by M. Madhava Parsad to Literary Theory/Theories

🟣 1. Contribution to Postcolonial Theory

  • 🪷 Re-centering the Postcolonial Subject: Prasad underscores how formerly colonized subjects struggle to move from being objects of knowledge to subjects of intellectual production. He writes that “the Indian subject is a stain in the field of knowledge. A subject-in-emergence will necessarily disturb and seek to reconstitute the objective apparatuses” (Prasad, 2014, p. 193).
  • 🧵 Threading Subjectivity into Postcolonial Critique: Prasad uses the metaphor of emergence to map how the postcolonial subject both inhabits and destabilizes colonial epistemologies—an insight that aligns with and expands the concerns of postcolonial theorists like Gayatri Spivak and Homi Bhabha.

🔵 2. Contribution to Cultural Materialism & Marxist Literary Theory

  • 🛠️ Focus on Cultural Hegemony over Economic Determinism: Influenced by Hall’s reading of Gramsci, Prasad shows how Thatcherism succeeded not economically, but by reshaping “common sense”, i.e., cultural hegemony (Prasad, 2014, p. 191). This shifts focus in literary theory from base/superstructure models to cultural power and meaning.
  • 📦 Literature as Part of Ideological Apparatuses: English literature’s role in Indian academia is examined not just as pedagogy but as ideology. Prasad notes the absence of reflection on “the political significance of the persistence of English as the ‘queen of the humanities’ in independent India” (p. 192).

🟡 3. Contribution to Reader-Response and Reception Theory

  • 🔍 Social Texts as Objects of Interpretation: Prasad extends the act of “reading” beyond traditional literary texts, echoing Stuart Hall’s insight that we can “read something that is not a text, but a piece of social reality” (p. 191). This broadens interpretive practice to include culture itself as a text, a hallmark of reception theory.
  • 📖 Interpreting Emergence as Reading: The idea of emergence as a collective narrative that demands interpretation aligns with reader-oriented approaches to meaning-making in literature and society.

🟢 4. Contribution to Identity Politics & Ethnic Literary Studies

  • 🧑🏽‍🤝‍🧑🏾 Foregrounding Marginal Subjectivities: Through Hall, Prasad elevates the significance of personal and collective identity in theory, stating that Hall’s autobiography is also “the narrative of a collective identity” (p. 193). This deeply informs ethnic literary criticism and theorizing about voice and representation.
  • 🌱 Emergence of New Political Identities: Prasad connects Hall’s ideas of Black British politics with Indian contexts—“it is the emergence of new subjects onto the political stage that is at issue” (p. 193). Such emergence is central to theorizing subaltern and caste-based literature in India.

🔴 5. Contribution to Interdisciplinary Theory

  • 🔗 Blurring Disciplinary Boundaries: Prasad reinforces that Cultural Studies is inherently interdisciplinary, with “courses co-taught by faculty from different departments” and insights emerging from diverse fields (p. 191). This encourages literary theory to embrace sociology, anthropology, and political theory.
  • 🧪 Literary Studies as Cultural Critique: English literature is no longer isolated but embedded in broader cultural, institutional, and political critiques, helping reposition the role of literature within academic inquiry.

🟤 6. Contribution to Autobiographical and Narrative Theory

  • 📘 Life-Writing as Political Theory: Drawing from Hall’s “Cultural Studies and Its Theoretical Legacies”, Prasad shows how autobiography becomes a mode of theorization—“individual autobiography is also the narrative of a collective identity” (p. 193).
  • 💡 Personal History as Epistemological Entry Point: This approach affirms narrative theory’s argument that personal stories are central to identity formation, cultural memory, and resistance literature.

🟠 7. Contribution to Decolonial Literary Studies

  • 🛑 Critique of Imported Theories: Prasad critiques Indian social science for becoming “knowledge as obedience”, simply applying “readymade theories” from the West without questioning their origin or context (p. 193).
  • 🧠 Call for Indigenous Theoretical Frameworks: This aligns with decolonial theory’s insistence on knowledge production from within local histories and subjectivities.
Examples of Critiques Through “Emergence: Stuart Hall And Cultural Studies Across The World” by M. Madhava Parsad
🌍 SymbolLiterary Work
🟣 1. Untouchable by Mulk Raj Anand (1935)🔍 This novel can be read through the lens of emergence, where Bakha, the Dalit protagonist, represents a “subject-in-emergence” who disturbs the colonial and caste-based epistemological order. Like Prasad’s emphasis on new political subjectivities, Bakha’s awareness challenges dominant “common sense” about caste (Prasad, 2014, p. 193).
🔵 2. Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys (1966)🧠 Rhys’s novel rewrites Jane Eyre from the perspective of a Caribbean Creole woman. Through Prasad’s critique of postcolonial knowledge and objectification, Antoinette can be seen as the colonized subject who, like the widowed mother in anthropology journals, is objectified and silenced. The novel enacts the struggle to reconstitute the subject’s voice within dominant Western discourse (Prasad, p. 192).
🟢 3. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy (1997)💬 This novel critiques social hierarchies and the persistence of English as cultural capital in postcolonial India. Drawing from Prasad’s observation that English literature remained the “queen of the humanities” (p. 192), Roy’s depiction of caste, family, and language reveals the contested space of cultural knowledge and elitism, aligning with Cultural Studies’ project of deconstructing ideological normalcy.
🔴 4. Native Son by Richard Wright (1940)✊🏾 Wright’s portrayal of Bigger Thomas aligns with Stuart Hall’s theory of Black subjectivity and Prasad’s idea of the “autobiographical narrative as collective identity” (p. 193). The novel embodies the emergence of a racialized subject whose marginalization is shaped by hegemonic structures, and whose violence is both a symptom and critique of social containment.

🌟 How This Table Connects to Prasad’s Essay:
  • Each work illustrates the emergence of marginalized voices into hegemonic discourse, a core concern of the article.
  • The texts reflect what Prasad calls the “disturbance and reconstitution of objective apparatuses” of knowledge (p. 193).
  • They show how Cultural Studies as a method enables critiques of both literary form and institutional knowledge, in both the colonial and postcolonial contexts.
Criticism Against “Emergence: Stuart Hall And Cultural Studies Across The World” by M. Madhava Parsad

Potential Criticisms of the Essay


🔸 ⚖️ Over-Reliance on Autobiography

  • While Prasad draws on personal experience to theorize Cultural Studies, critics may argue that the essay leans too heavily on individual narrative without sufficient empirical or comparative analysis of global contexts beyond India and the UK.

🔸 🌍 Limited Global Scope Despite Global Title

  • Although titled “Cultural Studies Across the World,” the article primarily focuses on Britain and India, leaving out engagement with Cultural Studies movements in Latin America, East Asia (beyond brief reference), or Africa, thereby narrowing its supposed international scope.

🔸 📘 Absence of Deep Engagement with Literary Texts

  • Despite its implications for literary theory, the essay does not closely analyze any literary texts. This could be seen as a missed opportunity to demonstrate how Cultural Studies can transform literary interpretation in practice.

🔸 📉 Lack of Critical Engagement with Stuart Hall

  • While the essay pays tribute to Hall’s influence, it does not critically interrogate his theories or their limitations. The tone leans toward homage rather than critical dialogue, which might limit its analytical depth.

🔸 🏛️ Institutional Critique Without Systematic Evidence

  • The critique of English departments and Indian social sciences as ideologically compromised is compelling but under-supported. Statements like “knowledge as obedience” (Prasad, 2014, p. 193) would benefit from case studies or institutional data to back the argument.

🔸 🔗 Complex Language, Dense Expression

  • The essay’s dense and theoretical language may alienate readers unfamiliar with Hall, Gramsci, or the specific Indian academic context. This makes the text less accessible, especially for undergraduate or interdisciplinary audiences.

🔸 🧩 Fragmented Structure

  • The essay moves quickly between personal anecdote, institutional critique, postcolonial theory, and global reflections, which some may find lacks structural cohesion. It reads more like a reflective essay than a rigorous academic article.

Representative Quotations from “Emergence: Stuart Hall And Cultural Studies Across The World” by M. Madhava Parsad with Explanation
🔹 Quotation💬 Explanation
1. “Cultural Studies is not a discipline in the conventional sense so much as an interdisciplinary space for asking new questions.”Highlights how Cultural Studies transcends academic silos, functioning as a dynamic field that interrogates culture, politics, and identity across disciplines.
2. “The Left had failed in ‘shaping the culture and educating desire’: tasks that the Indian Left has never been known to take seriously.”Refers to Stuart Hall’s critique of the Left’s neglect of cultural work, emphasizing how ideological battles must also be fought at the level of desire and everyday life.
3. “I learnt about the ‘conjuncture,’ learnt what it meant to ‘read’ something that is not a text, but a piece of social reality.”Introduces key concepts—’conjuncture’ and ‘reading’—that shift analysis from literary texts to social structures as culturally meaningful texts.
4. “Hall, departing from the economism of the established Left, points to the cultural roots of Thatcherism.”Marks Hall’s major theoretical intervention—his move away from class-only analysis to a more nuanced reading of how culture reinforces political dominance.
5. “There was… little or no consciousness of the political significance of the persistence of English as the ‘queen of the humanities.'”Critiques the uncritical prestige of English literature in postcolonial India and its role in maintaining cultural hegemony.
6. “The shock of encountering one’s own life thus converted into objective disciplinary knowledge is perhaps a necessary stage in postcolonial self-knowledge.”Reflects the traumatic realization that postcolonial subjects are often studied rather than heard, captured in disciplines like anthropology.
7. “The Indian subject is a stain in the field of knowledge. A subject-in-emergence will necessarily disturb and seek to reconstitute the objective apparatuses.”Emphasizes how the marginalized subject’s entry into knowledge disrupts colonial and elite academic structures.
8. “Much of social science in India is nothing but knowledge as obedience, an unquestioning application of readymade theories.”Critiques intellectual dependency in Indian academia and the blind reproduction of Western theoretical frameworks.
9. “Individual autobiography is also the narrative of a collective identity.”Shows how Hall’s personal experiences reflect larger cultural and political shifts, positioning biography as a theoretical tool.
10. “For the process of emergence to be successful, it must be simultaneously a transformation of the world into which we emerge.”Captures the article’s key thesis: true emergence involves not just entering dominant discourse but transforming it from within.

Suggested Readings: “Emergence: Stuart Hall And Cultural Studies Across The World” by M. Madhava Parsad
  1. Hall, Stuart. “The Emergence of Cultural Studies and the Crisis of the Humanities.” October, vol. 53, 1990, pp. 11–23. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/778912. Accessed 6 Apr. 2025.
  2. Phillips, Caryl, and Stuart Hall. “Stuart Hall.” BOMB, no. 58, 1997, pp. 38–42. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40426392. Accessed 6 Apr. 2025.
  3. Kenneth Surin. “‘MARXISM, WITHOUT GUARANTEES’: WHAT I LEARNED FROM STUART HALL.” Cultural Critique, vol. 89, 2015, pp. 136–49. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.5749/culturalcritique.89.2015.0136. Accessed 6 Apr. 2025.
  4. Beverley, John. “Cultural Studies.” Latin American Literary Review, vol. 20, no. 40, 1992, pp. 19–22. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/20119618. Accessed 6 Apr. 2025.