Books in the Continuum Studies in Continental Philosophy series

In 1950s and 60s Gilles Deleuze turned to Henri Bergson's theories of memory and instinct and to Carl Jung's theory of archetypes. In "Difference and Repetition (1968)" he conceived of a 'differential unconscious' based on Leibnizian principles. This book shows how these tendencies combine in Deleuze's work to engender an approach to unconscious.

Offers the first full-length interpretation of the thought of Martin Heidegger with respect to irony. This title attempts to show that the essence of this irony lies in uncertainty, and that the entire project of onto-heno-chronophenomenology, therefore needs to be called into question.

Offers an account of Richard Rorty's attempt to reconcile deconstruction with the American pragmatist and liberal traditions. This book argues that Rorty's powerful reading protocol is motivated by the necessity to contain the risks of Derrida's critique of Western philosophy and politics.

Merleau-Ponty's "Phenomenology" reconstructs Merleau-Ponty's treatment of the problem of ideal objects. The author describes Merleau-Ponty's early attempt to found ideal objects on pre-linguistic, perceptual experience and shows that Merleau-Ponty ultimately came to see the shortcomings of this initial view.

Bringing together three contemporary French philosophers, Alain Badiou, Etienne Balibar, and Jacques Ranciere, the author examines the political aspects of their work. He also identifies and explores problems in each of Badiou, Balibar and Ranciere's work, arguing that none offers a wholly convincing approach.

Published posthumously, "Contributions to Philosophy" casted Heidegger's philosophy in a new light against the opinion of "Being and Time". This book provides the reader with an overview of the significance of "Contributions", its genesis and production, as well as the interpretations and its position in the received body of work on Heidegger.

Offers an examination of the concept of life in Adorno's philosophy. This book relates Adorno's thought in this context to a number of key thinkers in the history of Continental philosophy, including Marx and provides an argument for the relevance and importance of Adorno's critical philosophy of life at the beginning of the 21st century.

Explores the ethical theory of Friedrich Nietzsche in light of work done in the philosophy of mind. This book examines issues of free will, communication, the way in which we construct the self, and the implications of these for ethics.

Foucault's philosophical relationship to Heidegger is the subject of academic debate. This book provides an approach to Foucault and Heidegger's relationship, based in an original approach to the problem itself. It also identifies a Heideggerian style of thinking in Foucault's work, which emerges in his early studies of madness and literature.

In "Being and Nothingness", Sartre picks up diverging threads in the phenomenological tradition, weaves them together with ideas from Gestalt and behaviourist psychology. This work describes Sartre's account of the transition from one's original apprehension of another consciousness to the perception of other persons.

Interprets the Aristotelian understanding of work in light of the philosophy of Martin Heidegger. This book elucidates Heidegger's philosophy of work, providing an interpretation of the Aristotelian understanding of work in relation to Heidegger's ontology and notion of thanking.

Focuses on how Wittgenstein and Gadamer treat language in their accounts of language as game and their major writings on the subject - "Philosophical Investigations" and "Truth and Method", respectively. This book brings the work of two major modern philosophers in to dialogue.

Derrida addressed political questions more and more explicitly in his writing, yet there is still confusion over the politics of deconstruction. This book evaluates and substantiates Derrida's provocative claim, assessing the importance of this controversial contemporary philosopher's work for political thought.

Presents the crucial work on politics by two giants of contemporary French philosophy, Jacques Derrida and Alain Badiou. This book shows how the political views of these two major thinkers diverse and converge, thus providing a comprehensive exposition of their respective political systems.

Gives an overview of the work of both figures, tracing the origins and development of their principal ideas, and identifying key similarities and differences. This book identifies and explores the key philosophical influences upon their work such as: Descartes; Kant; Nietzsche; Husserl; Freud; Marcel; and Jaspers.

Disinterest has been a major concept in Western philosophy since Descartes. This book looks at the treatment of disinterest in the work of two major Continental philosophers: Jacques Derrida and Emmanuel Levinas. It traces the history of disinterest in Western philosophy from Descartes to Derrida.

Shows that authenticity is an important civic virtue, relevant to the social and political institutions of the modern world. This book demonstrates the vitality of Jean-Paul Sartre's landmark essays 'What is Literature?' and 'Anti-Semite and Jew', and reveals the importance of the 'Notebooks for an Ethics', a manuscript.

Shows that, as much as it is an insightful critique of the assimilationist vein in psychoanalysis, "Anti-Oedipus" remains fully committed to Freud's most singular discovery of an unconscious that is procedural and dynamic.

Beginning with Heidegger's early dissertation on the doctrine of categories in Duns Scotus, this work shows how Heidegger's middle and later works develop a philosophical anti-theology or atheology that poses a serious threat to traditional metaphysics, natural theology, and philosophy of religion.

An interpretation of the work of Slavoj Zizek, one of the world's leading contemporary thinkers, through a study of his relationship with the work of Martin Heidegger. It argues that Zizek's oeuvre is largely a response to Heidegger's philosophy of finitude, an imminent critique of it which pulls it in the direction of revolutionary praxis.

Engages with the thinking of the French philosopher Paul Ricoeur (1913-2005) in order to propose innovative responses to 21st-century problems actively contributing to global conflict. This work presents an elucidation of the practical significance of Ricoeur's thinking and a contribution to resolving socio-political conflicts in the 21st century.

The idea of 'hope' has received significant attention in the political sphere. But is hope just wishful thinking, or can it be something more than a political catch-phrase? This book argues that hope can be understood existentially, or on the basis of what it means to be human.

A collection of essays exploring the relevance of Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari's work in contemporary aesthetics and political theory. It attempts to explore and extend the creative rupture that Deleuze and Guattari produce in the Capitalism and Schizophrenia project.

Constructs, problematizes and defends a Deleuzian philosophy of history. Drawing on Deleuze's philosophy of time, this title identifies key ideas and suggestions related to the philosophy of history from Deleuze and Guattari's major writings - including the seminal contemporary texts "Anti-Oedipus", "A Thousand Plateaux", and more.

Maurice Merleau-Ponty is widely known for his emphasis on embodied perceptual experience. This book emphasises the historical and intersubjective underpinnings of Merleau-Ponty's late accounts, in relation to rationality, institution and community, and examines its implications.

Maurice Merleau-Ponty is widely known for his emphasis on embodied perceptual experience. This monograph explores the theoretical status of Merleau-Ponty's contributions to epistemology and rationality in his account of phenomenology.

Focuses on intersubjectivity and empathy and addresses the related issues of validity, the degrees of evidence with which something can be experienced, and the different senses of 'objective' in Husserl's texts. This book shows that empathy, and thus other subjects, are related to one's knowledge on the view offered in each of Husserl's texts.

Presents an examination of the philosophy of Paul Ricoeur that focuses on his specific concept of interpretation. This book explores the philosophical resources provided by Paul Ricoeur's hermeneutics in dealing with the challenges of a world framed by globalization.