The Way We Argue Now: A Study in the Cultures of Theory

by Amanda Anderson

How do the ways we argue represent a practical philosophy or a way of life? Are concepts of character and ethos pertinent to our understanding of academic debate? In this book, Amanda Anderson analyzes arguments in literary, cultural, and political theory, with special attention to the ways in which theorists understand ideals of critical distance, forms of subjective experience, and the determinants of belief and practice. Drawing on the resources of the liberal and rationalist tradition, Anderson interrogates the limits of identity politics and poststructuralism while holding to the importance of theory as a form of life.



Considering high-profile trends as well as less noted patterns of argument, The Way We Argue Now addresses work in feminism, new historicism, queer theory, postcolonialism, cosmopolitanism, pragmatism, and proceduralism. The essays brought together here--lucid, precise, rigorously argued--combine pointed critique with an appreciative assessment of the productive internal contests and creative developments across these influential bodies of thought.

Ultimately, The Way We Argue Now promotes a revitalized culture of argument through a richer understanding of the ways critical reason is practiced at the individual, collective, and institutional levels. Bringing to the fore the complexities of academic debate while shifting the terms by which we assess the continued influence of theory, it will appeal to readers interested in political theory, literary studies, cultural studies, gender studies, and the place of academic culture in society and politics.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction

224 pages, Paperback

First published October 24, 2005

Reviews

[Lee]

An important defense of the concept of normativity from current theoretical orthodoxies and an effective critical re-staging of theoretical debates about the value and political efficacy of proceduralism. Anderson thinks critics and theoryheads need to return to the language of ethos and character, which she shows crucially underwrites even their most subjectivity-denying claims. Though the arguments are cogent, the style can be somewhat dense, noun-heavy, and hypotactic. Mostly for theoryheads.

[Katarzyna Bartoszynska · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book because it tackled so many of the questions I've pondered for years (universalism, agency, thought vs feeling, political aesthetics) and approached them in ways I had never considered. Although the critiques occasionally register as a bit harsh, and some of the ideas aren't followed through as much as one might like, the writing is admirably clear and highly engaging. A great book to think with.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is incredible... for any student of continental philosophy, literary criticism, critical/cultural theory, this book illuminates major contentions in the field and upends assumptions about normative ethics, agency, and cosmopolitanism

[Ron Christiansen · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The alliance between the poststructuralist critique of reason and the form of sociological reductionism that governs the politics of identity threatens to undermine the vitality of both academic and political debate insofar as it becomes impossible to explore shared forms of rationality" p. 2

[Risa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Way We Argue Now: A Study in the Cultures of Theory by Amanda Anderson (2005)

[Will Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Habermasian in literary studies. Sigh.