Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Elizabeth Wilson explores the contradictory nature of cultural relations through an examination of fashion, feminism, consumer culture, representation and postmodernism. Debates within feminism on the nature and effects of pornography are used to illustrate a particular kind of cultural contradiction.
Synopsis
In this book, one of the most accomplished and thoughtful cultural commentators of the day, considers the contradictory nature of cultural relations. Elizabeth Wilson explores these themes through an examination of fashion, feminism, consumer culture, representation and postmodernism. Debates within feminism on the nature and effects of pornography are used to illustrate a particular kind of cultural contradiction. Wilson recognizes that postmodernism permitted the reappropriation of subjects that were not previously considered worthy of attention, or opposed to the idea of emancipation, chief among these was fashion. She shows that the association of an interest in this culturally significant subject with a revisionist project raises doubts about the coherence of postmodernism itself.
This is a searching and clear-eyed book, which uses examples from popular culture to illustrate its arguments. It broaches questions that go to the heart of the study of culture today, and as such will be required reading for students of the sociology of culture and cultural studies.