Synopses & Reviews
Using the cheap desktop publishing techniques of 'zine culture, and supplementing them with an extensive presence on the World Wide Web, the Bad Subjects Production Team has produced one of the only successful political 'zines in the US, as well as one of the first--and longest-running--on-line publications in the world.
Bad Subjects offers a critique of the post-1960s left in the United States, and attempts to reclaim a utopian vision for a political movement which has become fragmented and cynical about the possibility of social transformation. Indeed, Bad Subjects itself is simultaneously a valuable resource and an inspiration, a record of what politically-engaged cultural criticism can achieve, and an example of a progressive political community making use of new technologies.
Offering a way out of vulgar multiculturalism--based on separatism and the idea of "authenticity"--into a critical identity politics founded on coalitions, hybridity, and class consciousness, Bad Subjectsspeaks to readers both in and outside of the academy. Taking their cue from the feminist slogan, "the personal is political," and from Marxist injunctions to study "everyday life," Bad Subjects covers everything from popular culture and high technology to economic restructuring and political organizing, from Raymond Williams to The Dead Kennedys.
In the terrain of cultural criticism, Bad Subjects is an off-road vehicle roaring away from the beaten path.
Review
"Revels in a self-consciously renegade spirit." -The Chronicle of Higher Education,
Review
"The wired left." -Toronto Globe and Mail,
Review
"Lively and smart." -San Francisco Chronicle,
Review
"Revels in a self-consciously renegade spirit." - The Chronicle of Higher Education
"The wired left." - Toronto Globe and Mail
"Lively and smart." - San Francisco Chronicle
Synopsis
This general survey of medieval European economy, society, and culture is intended as a first guide to the subject for college students. In writing
The Medieval Experience, Jill Claster has been particularly concerned to demonstrate the vitality and diversity that the world of the Middle Ages achieved, despite the fact that "the physical aspects of life were exceedingly difficult." This very usable and accessible textbook is enhanced by illustrations and source quotations which help convey a sense of the period's historical texture.
The range of topics explored is extensive. Economic factors such as progress in agriculture and the growth of commerce are thoroughly examined, as are the political and social histories of feudal Europe. Claster loks particularly closely at monasticism, the cultural influence of religion, and the revival of learning. She probes the problems faced by Jews in a predominantly Christian society, and contemplates as well the problems faced by women.
About the Author
The Bad Subjects Production Team is Ron Alcalay, Charlie Bertsch, John Brady, Brock Craft, Cynthia Hoffman, Peter Ives, Ed Korthof, Joe Lockard, Jeremiah Luna, Mike Mosher, Annalee Newitz, Kim Nicolini, Steven Rubio, Jillian Sandell, Geoff Sauer, Joel Schalit, Jonathan Sterne, and Matt Wray.