French Philosophy Today: New Figures of the Human in Badiou, Meillassoux, Malabou, Serres and LaTour - Paperback

by Christopher Watkin (Author)

Alain Badiou, Quentin Meillassoux, Catherine Malabou, Michel Serres and Bruno Latour: this new generation of French philosophers is laying fresh claim to the human. Across a number of new strains of philosophy, they are rethinking humanity's relationships: to 'nature' and 'culture', to the objects that surround us, to the possibility of social and political change, to ecology and even to our own brains.

Christopher Watkin draws out both the promises and perils of these new philosophies. And he shows just how high the stakes are for our technologically advanced but socially atomised and ecologically vulnerable society.

Back Jacket

'In this important book Christopher Watkin shows us the transformations of the human in the work of five contemporary philosophers who exceed the limits of post-structuralism. His treatments of Badiou, Meillassoux, Malabou, Serres and Latour function as valuable resources on their work and an original thesis in his own terms.' Clayton Crockett, University of Central Arkansas A comparative critique of the human in French philosophy French philosophy today is laying fresh claim to the human. This is not to be mistaken for a return to previous ideas of the human, nor is it, strictly speaking, a posthuman turn. It is a series of independent, simultaneous initiatives, arising in the writing of diverse current French thinkers to transform and rework the figure of the human. Christopher Watkin draws out both the promises and perils inherent in these attempts to rethink humanity's relation to 'nature' and 'culture', to the objects that surround us, to the possibility of social and political change, to ecology and even to our own brains. This comparative assessment makes visible for the first time one of the most important trends in French thought today. Christopher Watkin is Senior Lecturer in French Studies at Monash University, Australia. Cover image: tbc Cover design: [EUP logo] edinburghuniversitypress.com ISBN 978-1-4744-1473-9 Barcode

Author Biography

Christopher Watkin is Senior Lecturer in French Studies at Monash University. His previous publications include Phenomenology or Deconstruction?, Difficult Atheism, and French Philosophy Today.