The Theory Toolbox: Critical Concepts for the Humanities, Arts, & Social Sciences

by Jeffrey T. Nealon, Susan Searls Giroux

This text involves students in understanding and using the "tools" of critical social and literary theory from the first day of class. It is an ideal first introduction before students encounter more difficult readings from critical and postmodern perspectives.

Nealon and Searls Giroux describe key concepts and illuminate each with an engaging inquiry that asks students to consider deeper and deeper questions. Written in students' own idiom, and drawing its examples from the social world, literature, popular culture, and advertising, The Theory Toolbox offers students the language and opportunity to theorize rather than positioning them to respond to theory as a reified history of various schools of thought. Clear and engaging, it avoids facile description, inviting students to struggle with ideas and the world by virtue of the book's relentless challenge to common assumptions and its appeal to common sense.

Updated throughout, the second edition of The Theory Toolbox includes a discussion of new media, as well as two new chapters on life and nature.

Genres: Nonfiction, Philosophy, Theory, Education, Reference, Literary Criticism, Teaching

290 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Jeffrey T. Nealon is Professor of English at Penn State University. He is the author of "Double Reading: Postmodernism after Deconstruction" (1993), "Alterity Politics: Ethics and Performative Subjectivity" (1998), and "The Theory Toolbox" (2003).

Reviews

[Tara Brabazon · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the most complex areas of teaching in the humanities is 'theory.' It is odd how the word 'theory' is used, both outside and inside universities. It carries the connotation of being abstract, difficult, pointless, esoteric and difficult. It can be all of these attributes. However the notion that there is a space, place or position 'outside' of theory always amuses me.

When we put our shoes on in the morning, we have a theory about dressing. First trousers. Then shoes. That is a theory. It is an approach to clothes. It can be tested. Other ways (theories) to dress are possible, but difficult. But after a few attempts at scrunching into skinny jeans while wearing doc marten boots, the theory of 'first trousers, then shoes' has a certain applicability.

But removing a student's fear of theory (difficult, confusing, abstract - how can I use this?) is a challenge. And that is because most theories are difficult. They are difficult to learn and to teach. The spiral learning method is best. Define a theory. Then apply it. Then define it again and apply it in a different way. Continue this process through their degree.

Through my undergraduate degree, I lived in the Fontana Dictionary of Modern Thought. Whenever I would worry about the definition of structuralism, poststructuralism, discourse or ideology, I would flick through this book, confirm my knowledge (again) and then continue on with my reading.

The Theory Toolbox solves many of these problems in teaching theory. It is well written, calming, gentle and applicable. All the big terms and theorists are here and they are explained with care and respect. This is not a 'dumbed down' book, but a gentle guide for new students through 'theory.' The two great attributes of this book are (1) the strong affirmation of why 'interpretation' rather than 'truth' matters in modern life and (2) the potentials and challenges of living in a world of posts: postmodern, poststructural, postindustrial and postfordist. This book should be on all first year further reading lists and for students really struggling to make the connections with knowledge systems, this is the book for them to read.

Also, I wish to correct GoodReads' listing. The book is written by Susan Searls Giroux and Jeffrey Nealon, rather than Searls Giroux alone.

[Ashley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had to read this for class and a lot of it just went over my head, to be honest. But then again I didn’t read it very closely because I found most of the topics boring or incoherent.

[The Awdude · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a great intro to critical theory on a broad scale (although it typically and disappointingly excludes psychoanalytic theory, which is understandable since Nealon is a Marxist-Deleuzean and has written a book on Foucault, who presumably would have omitted Lacan from any overview of theory he might have written). Nealon is a great writer (I don't know much about his co-author) and I also highly recommend his book on Foucault. There's only so much you can do with an intro book like this, so I can't really fault it for oversight (except the snubbing of Lacan). Its best quality, in my opinion, is the way Marxism is presented in gentle nudges, which, I think, won't be too difficult for young Americans to swallow (provided they are semi-thinking people). My only major regret is that a book like this could be written for a high school audience rather than for college/grad students. But I suppose this is America.

[Delynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

In terms of an introductory theory book, this is great. It gives a nice overview of concepts that can be further explored later without seeming like it's skipping things. I liked the modern examples that made the technical theory seem more applicable, but it also dates the book. I think it's a really good starter book, but it needs an update! I'm normally against new editions but I really feel like it would help this one hit home just a little more.

[Mehdi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great for a person starting of in the humanities. Thoughtful discussions on fundamental jargons. the experience of reading this is that of a critical conversation. The authors make their point by leaving the reader critically with a situation at hand.
In my opinion, this book works as a framework to organize your other readings. To situate historical facts and ideas in time. Overall an easy read explaining modernity and pre posts of it.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

My search for a new textbook is at an end. This is as close to perfect as I can find for an accessible introductory text to the main questions behind theory. I've tired of the different traditional methods of teaching this material (history of theoretical discourse, opposing viewpoints), and I was on the lookout for a text that focused on questions more than people. That way, my students are bettered prepared to confidently question texts with a breadth of thinking in upper-division courses (rather than haphazardly choose a Marxist of feminist "lens" because that's all they remember from their intro to theory course) and will refrain from the undergraduate mistakes of professing to "know" Derrida, Foucault, etc.

There are certainly gaps, and the sometimes inane examples (Beavis and Butthead, binge drinking) will probably annoy my students who are typically more mature than your typical first-year student down the road at State U. But it avoids the pedantic and needless density of some guides, the obsession with historical development of others (biology students don't start their careers learning about Lamarck, so why start English majors with Leavis and the New Critics?) and the fire-hose feeling of most anthologies.

I will heavily supplement with critical sources and literature, but this is a big improvement over the text I used before (which went out of print and forced my hand in this search!).

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being a little fed up by perpetual confusion on matters of "theory" (cultural anthropology, I suppose) in reading about art or literature or film or even pop music, I was recommended this book. It's written specifically for freshmen in college -- so it puts things in layman's terms etc, which I appreciated a lot. And it's references are very user-friendly for someone my age (or younger, really) -- gang of four, beavis & butthead, television ads. And that's essential to this whole interest, is the fact that it's very relevant and does tie in immediately with your day-to-day; that this sorta stuff isn't at all just for academics. It's just that there are better ways to think about such day-to-day themes, better perspectives.

On the other hand, this book basically decodes a lot of the jargon or terminology of cultural anthropology or Theory. So there's that.

[Rick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Does not have clearly outlined theories or theoretical lenses. I found it rather difficult, and it makes a lot of statements, especially regarding race and class with absolutely no sources. Claims are taken out of context, example being "women make less than men," but excludes the fact that on a national average, women work less hours. I didn't benefit from it.

[rory · Rating 4 out of 5]

very thought-provoking and accessible in its writing style - a thorough but not overly esoteric introduction to most considerations of theory. however, it posed a lot of unanswered rhetoricals, which, while useful to promote reflection on the content, could have been even more useful if explored further.

[Eliana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book. It broke down theory in a way that was understandable while still deep and complex.

[miranda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a second year grad student and this is by far the most digestible theory textbook I have read.

[Shepher]

Gg

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Used this to teach an introductory course in cultural studies and it is a decent introduction to critical theory. However, it is getting a bit dated (some students thought it was older than it is due to some of the cultural references). And it does get a bit strident in places, even for me.

I feel that the section on "surveillance" needs to be reworked as it seems to be outright dismissing the idea of a "surveillance society" as no longer relevant, something that is more relevant than ever in our current cultural climate.

[Rahil Patel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was looking for something which could help me express my thoughts during times I'm deeply thinking about he world around me: words, ideas, concepts; so I picked this up, along with Raymond William's Keywords: A Vocabulary of Culture and Society, a kind of critical theory dictionary with the history / evolution of the words. I'm guessing William's suits my need better. [Update: William's book did not suit my needs better.]

It turns out this is more of an introduction to standard social / cultural concepts that everyone should know, but surely doesn't, which makes this book perhaps one of the most important books, because, you know, it's about accessibility: educating the common people. This kind of book should be updated as society progresses. Even I don't know what Zizek is talking about at times, though at least he tries to make it accessible.

This book has its roots firmly in the classroom— specifically, in the “introduction to theory” course at Penn State.
- "Acknowledgements", first sentence

Ive recently happened to be stuck near a library, and desiring to travel, tried digging into cultures of ancient societies, it being the first time to really read anything about history, learning by doing, swathing through the horribly insular world of books, which increases in insularity as one goes further back in time (you know, the things that came from uncritical, privledged Western elite schools' publishing presses). Anyway, this recent awful experience lead to many thoughts about history, of which the book has an excellent chapter on; of what a history is (thankfully not just limited to the written medium), the job of the historian, political and social history (though they avoid using such terms), etc. The exposition goes deep yet is absolutely lucid. It's as dense as a good critical theorist's writings, yet it provides simple everyday contemporary life examples. I was happy that he invoked the Benjamin to describe how to capture history, ~trying to capture the image that flashes up...."If past events are available only as images, not as stories, then they must be constructed as such.", and so on.

Though this is a book on theory, there isn't any bullshit in it because the concepts are limited to the basics; It's not an inquiry into the social world. In limiting its scope, it successfully avoids the trappings of theory writers.

I'm not sure if I'll need to read much of the book, because much of the content is (should be) common-sense [a few chapters]: differences (in class, sex, race, etc.), post-colonialism, reading, subjectivity, culture, ideology. I'll definitely read the chapter on biopower and postmodernism. But because the chapter on history was so well-written, I feel I may in the future want to read the concepts that I already understand, just as one may want read an ethical treatise: in fact, this may just be my (anti-) Enchiridion

[Eugene Obutu · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a good introductory book, I’m assuming, for anyone who’s pursuing a humanities or social sciences degree because I’m not. Though if you aren’t , it still has very pin-pointed, almost molecular insight into different aspects of our society, all of which I had to read through a couple of times to understand.
I do not have nearly enough expertise in the subject matter to give any tangible critiques so I’ll just describe my experience reading it. I’d summarise my experience reading this as a running loop of me telling myself ‘what?’ every time I read something I didn’t understand. The language is very..academic, for lack of a better word(maybe I’m just outing myself as a dummy).There were some chapters that kind of flew over my head cause I was not familiar with any works related to them, like post structuralism, so I’d just ‘smile and wave’ or the equivalent of that when you read a book. The working questions at the end of every chapter were really great, they helped contextualise whatever topic was being discussed in familiar situations. I particularly enjoyed the chapter on socioeconomic class because it gave me the words to articulate how I’ve been feeling for a long time. I’ll definitely need to read it again though, cause I think you need to intimately interact with its content to truly understand it.

[SicleMince · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had to read this for my History Methods and Theory course just recently and I found this book to actually be a very knowledgeable read. The other theory books that I have had to read in the past have always been so dry, droll, and made me want to fall asleep every two sentences. This book was different, the light tone of the book helped it to flow more smoothly and allows you to grasp the complex ideas that are discussed easier. There were only a couple chapters that left my head in a tizzy, but the majority of them were actually very interesting and helped to expand my "theory toolbox" going into future research projects in the history field. For anyone studying in the humanities or social science field this would be a definite one to pick up and read.

[Candis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Teaching this one now (as first edition is out-of-print). Still strong, still highly-teachable, but the added sections don't really 'add' enough to warrant the extra weight or cost of this edition.

Like the first edition, it is a really accessible entry for students to think about critical thinking and reading, power, and knowledge production. There is very little 'fat' in its chapters, and most are punctuated with fun examples and solid working questions.

[Holland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Necessary and foundational concepts, this book changes the way you go about life. It forces you to rethink the most fundamental patterns of thinking. Nevertheless, it is pretentious and can get repetitive. Fairly long-winded, a model of sitting in a lecture hall and listening to that professor with the checkered bow tie.

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Provocative without being unduly transgressive. Nealon and Giroux argue that theory is mainly about skepticism: "everything is suspicious." The topics are bracing, particularly at the back end of the book where the typical topics of author, reader, and interpretation give way to Life, Nature, and Agency.

[Miroslaw Aleksander · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice introduction into theory. Understandable and offering many thought-provoking questions, the book nonetheless does seem to skim over several important topics, but this could be my nit-picking, and I'm not sure whether its a fair comment in light of a book which is an introduction to the topic.

[Lorraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book if you want to step out of your comfort zone. It discuss theories about life, society in general. Theories on race, gender, queer, and more are touched here. Read it! I would love to discuss this book with anyone who reads it!

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am currently sitting in SUPA training and we have to read this book. As it is slowing down my nightly progress of "Pride and Predjudice and Zombies" I thought I should add at least one of the books to my list.

[Beth Quick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I came in to a PhD program after a long time away from school, and I felt I was really missing some core theory concepts for my work. This book is certainly introductory, but I felt much more on solid ground after reading it, like I had more facility with the language of the academy.

[Candis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of the two editions, this is the strong one. Thinner, less intimidating and (a lot) cheaper for students.

[Jena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this for an English class. A little frustrating at times but a good introduction to heavy concepts without being convoluted.

[Lindsay Joy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good introduction to theory, but you'd probably want to hide it if any intellectuals were around.

[Zoltán Ginelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

good textbook for students

[Rachel Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book for class, it's dense but interesting.

[Inge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book. Great introduction to all important theories in humanities and social sciences research, in an easy and not-so-Ivory-Tower-way. Fun jokes, witty and smarts.

[Aaron Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have the potential to expand the mind of the reader to think in ways for the better.