Left Theory and the Alt-Right

by Jeffrey R. Di Leo (Editor), Sophia A McClennen (Editor)

The alt-right movement in the United States has actively been endorsing the use of left theory to achieve its ends—and with varying degrees of success. Tracing occasions where figures on the alt-right reference left theory, this volume asks if the alt-right’s reference of left theory is just bad reading, or are there troubling ways that certain types of left theory encourage such interpretations? What if the connections between left theory and the alt-right lie in the shared disdain for certain types of institutions, structures of power, and the status quo? Are there lessons to be learned in what can often appear as an overlapping desire to deconstruct concepts like truth, justice, freedom, and democracy? Drawing on the longer history of right-wing readings of left theory, this volume seeks to unpack these recent developments and consider their impact on the future of theory.

189 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 23, 2023

About the author

Jeffrey R. Di Leo is Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences and Professor of English and Philosophy at the University of Houston–Victoria. He is editor and founder of the critical theory journal symplokē, editor and publisher of the American Book Review, and Executive Director of the Society for Critical Exchange.

Di Leo is a past member of the Modern Language Association Delegate Assembly (Teaching as Profession), and is the former president of the Society for Comparative Literature and the Arts.

He received a BA in Philosophy and Economics from Rutgers University, New Brunswick, and an MA in Philosophy, an MA in Comparative Literature, and a dual PhD in Philosophy and Comparative Literature from Indiana University, Bloomington. He has taught at Georgia Tech and the University of Illinois, Chicago.

Di Leo was born and raised in Vineland, New Jersey. He lives in Victoria, Texas with his wife, Nina, and their two sons.