Ten Lessons in Theory: A New Introduction to Theoretical Writing

Description

The first edition of Ten Lessons presented itself as a "literary" introduction to theoretical writing, a strong set of pedagogical prose poems unpacking Lacanian psychoanalysis, continental philosophy, Marxism, cultural studies, feminism, gender studies, and queer theory. The revised, updated, and expanded second edition still argues for theoretical writing as a genre of creative writing, a way of engaging in the art of the sentence, the art of making sentences that make trouble, that desire to make radical changes in very fabrication of social reality. The book still features 10 "lessons," each based on an axiomatic sentence selected from the canons of theory, each exploring the basic assumptions and motivations of theoretical writing while also providing a glossary of critical keywords. But while each lesson explains the working terms and core tenets of theory, each also attempts to exemplify theory as a "liberatory practice" (bell hooks), to liberate theory as a "practice of creativity" (Foucault) in and of itself. And, with a more urgent emphasis on Afropessimism, critical race theory, and other developments in postcolonial Black cultural production, the second edition of Ten Lessons enacts itself an anti-racist overhaul of the first. In addition, the new edition is designed to serve as a companion text to several other recent Bloomsbury publications: The Bloomsbury Handbook of Literary and Cultural Theory, edited by Jefferey R. di Leo, The Bloomsbury Handbook of 21st Century Feminist Theory, edited by Robin Truth Goodman, and, particularly, Adventures in Theory: A Compact Anthology, edited by Calvin Thomas.

Calvin Thomas is Professor of English at Georgia State University in Atlanta, USA. His publications include Adventures in Theory: A Compact Anthology (Bloomsbury, 2019), Masculinity, Psychoanalysis, Straight Queer Theory: Essays on Abjection in Literature, Mass Culture, and Film (2008), Straight with a Twist: Queer Theory and the Subject of Heterosexuality (2000), and Male Matters: Masculinity, Anxiety, and the Male Body on the Line (1996).

I know of nothing else like it on the market. There is no better single-volume textbook for introducing, explaining, and engaging thoughtfully (and literarily) with conceptual ideas and the power of language to change the world. Period. * Kristen L. Over, Associate Professor of English and Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies, Northeastern Illinois University, USA * Ten Lessons in Theory: An Introduction to Theoretical Writing is an excellent, thoughtful, and sophisticated introduction to the use of theory in critical work. Calvin Thomas encourages readers to have a better understanding of foundational theoretical texts on a fundamental level ... This introduction is nuanced and holds something for everyone. * Literary Research and British Postmodernism [on the 1st edition] * Thomas's advocacy is a spirited rhetorical performance, made more valiant when considered in the context of our distinctly post-theory climate. ... In lesser hands, this ambitious exercise might have easily ended up in a dizzying theoretical tour, rushed and routine, but Thomas develops an admirably tight narrative, marshaling vast multiplicities of often competing theories into an elegant labyrinthine argument, all the while offering sharp and fresh accounts of the different positions in question. The book would make for a perfect introduction to readers new to Theory. * Recherche litteraire/Literary Research [on the 1st edition] * [A] wide-ranging, incisive and sometimes polemical tour through contemporary literary theory ... Any student or teacher of theory who has trouble giving a sympathetic audience to psychoanalytic concepts and approaches would benefit from the first half of Thomas's book. Thomas has a gift for not only making Lacanian psychoanalysis clear, but also for making these concepts seem virtually self-evident. ... Ten Lessons in Theory should be read widely. Thomas makes a passionate, compelling case for the work of theory, for the political purchase of a certain way of thinking and writing theoretically. He also does an exceptional job of making surprising connections across theoretical approaches and ideas. For the student who does not understand why virtually impenetrable texts are being assigned with such frequency, or why they are considered a necessary part of one's education, Thomas's book will not only help clear the conceptual ground, but will also give the student some sense of why grappling with complexity a density is worthwhile in the first place. * Chiasma [on the 1st edition] *