Jean-Francois Lyotard

(Paperback)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

Jean-Francois Lyotard is one of the most important, and complex, French thinkers of the twentieth century. Best known in the English-speaking world for his book The Postmodern Condition, the multi-faceted nature of Lyotard's work has often been obscured by its sometimes problematic association with the postmodern. His life refuses to follow the clear trajectory common to academics in France: it stalls and hesitates, with Lyotard's first 'career' consisting of fifteen years of militant Marxist political engagement. Kiff Bamford traces this circuitous journey, unravelling the thrust of Lyotard's main philosophical arguments, his struggle with thinking and his confrontation with the task of writing and thinking philosophy in a different way.

Reviews

'A magisterial introduction to a complex but important thinker that elucidates and contextualises the writer in equal measure.' - Andy Stafford, Senior Lecturer in French Studies, University of Leeds, and author of Roland Barthes; 'An impressively detailed survey of Jean-Francois Lyotard's work and cultural milieu, that fills a real gap in Lyotard studies.' - Stuart Sim, Professor in Critical Theory at Northumbria University, Newcastle

Author Bio

Kiff Bamford is an artist and Senior Lecturer in the School of Art, Architecture and Design at Leeds Beckett University. He is the author of Lyotard and the 'Figural' in Performance, Art and Writing (2012).