The Subversive Imagination: The Artist, Society and Social Responsiblity

New York and London: Routledge, 1994. xx, 256 pages, illustrations; 23 cm. Firm binding, with one spine crease. Clean inside copy. "In The Subversive Imagination, professional writers, artists and cultural critics from around the world offer their views on the issue of the artist's responsibility to society. The contributors look beyond censorship and free speech issues and instead emphasize the subject of freedom. More specifically, the contributors question the ethical, mutual responsibilities between artists and the societies in which they live. The original essays address an eclectic range of subjects: censorship, multiculturalism, the transition from communism to capitalism in Eastern Europe, postmodernism, Salman Rushdie, and young black filmmakers' responsibility to the black community." - Publisher. CONTENTS: PART ONE PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY AND POLITICAL CONTINGENCIES; Chapter 1. The Prehistory of Art, Page duBois; Chapter 2. A Plea for Irresponsibility, Ewa Kuryluk; Chapter 3. Dead Doll Prophecy, Kathy Acker; Chapter 4. The Heuristic Power of Art, Elizam Escobar; Chapter 5. Place, Position, Power, Politics, Martha Rosler; Chapter 6. The Velvet Revolution and Iron Necessity, Eva Hauser; Chapter 7. El Diario de Miranda/Miranda's Diary, Coco Fusco; PART TWO DECOLONIZING THE IMAGINATION; Chapter 8. Herbert Marcuse and the Subversive Potential of Art, Carol Becker; Chapter 9. East and West-The Twain do Meet A Tale of More than Two Worlds, Felipe Ehrenberg; Chapter 10. Defining South African Literature for a New Nation, Njabulo S. Ndebele; Chapter 11. The Politics of Black Masculinity and the Ghetto in Black Film, Michael Eric Dyson; Chapter 12. Adjusting to the World According to Salman Rushdie, Ahmad Sadri; PART THREE THEORIZING THE FUTURE; Chapter 13. Benetton's "World without Borders", Henry A. Giroux; Chapter 14. The Free Art Agreement/El Tratado de Libre Cultura, Guillermo Gomez-Pena; Chapter 15. Dissed and Disconnected, B. Ruby Rich.. Paperback. Very Good. 8vo.