The last few years have seen a remarkable surge of popular interest in the topic of atheism. Books about atheism by writers like Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens have figured prominently in bestseller lists and have attracted widespread discussion in the media. The ubiquity of public debates about atheism, especially in conscious opposition to the perceived social threat posed by faith and religion, has been startling. However, as Gavin Hyman points out, despite their prevalence and popularity, what often characterises these debates is a lack of nuance and sophistication. They can be shrill, ignorant of the historical complexity of debates about belief, and tend to lapse into caricature. What is needed is a clear and well informed presentation of how atheistic ideas originated and developed, in order to illuminate their contemporary relevance and application. That task is what the author undertakes here. Exploring the rise of atheism as an explicit philosophical position (notably in the work of Denis Diderot), Hyman traces its development in the later ideas of Descartes, Locke and Berkeley. Drawing also on the work of contemporary scholars like Amos Funkenstein and Michael J Buckley, the author shows that, since in recent theology the concept of God which atheists negate is changing, the triumph of its advocates may not be quite as unequivocal as Hitchens and Dawkins would have us believe.
In recent philosophy, theology, and critical theory, postmodern thought has been much criticized on specifically ethical and political grounds. In particular, it has been argued that postmodernism has induced passivity and is impotent in the face of the challenges presented by the hegemonic global market. In response numerous thinkers have called for the ""return of the metanarrative"" or have insisted on the necessity of the domain of the ""universal."" In this book, Gavin Hyman accepts the diagnosis, while contesting the cure. Through detailed engagements with the work of Alain Badiou, Slavoj ?i?ek, and John Milbank--as well as discussions of the work of Simon Critchley, Michael Hardt, and Antonio Negri--Hyman argues that many contemporary thinkers merely invert the problems intrinsic to postmodernism and therefore do not effectively escape them. He argues that the ethical and political are best preserved and perpetuated through the negotiating of an ongoing tension between the domains of the universal, the particular, and the singular. To proceed thus would be to traverse the terrain of the middle--ethically, politically, and religiously.
Gavin Hyman explores in depth two antithetical schools of postmodern theology--the "radical orthodoxy" of John Milbank and the "nihilist textualism" of Don Cupitt. Hyman critiques Milbank's influential project from a postmodern perspective, and then points out the major difficulties with Cupitt's approach. Finally, he explores the work of Mark C. Taylor and Michael de Certeau to articulate a "third way" that leads beyond the responses of both Cupitt and Milbank.
At the beginning of a new millennium philosophical theology has become more contested than ever before. For over thirty years Don Cupitt has provoked theologians to consider the nature of their discipline. Taking inspiration from his work, some of the leading figures in theology address questions facing theology today.
Labour leader Harold Wilson was once asked how difficult he found being prime minister of the United Kingdom. ‘Not half as difficult as being Leader of the Opposition’, he replied. Sadly for the Labour Party, much of the last century has been spent in shadow government. But were these wasted years in the Party’s history? Or did they offer vital opportunities for creation and improvement? In Keeping the Red Flag Flying political historians Mark Garnett, Gavin Hyman and Richard Johnson offer the first in-depth account of Labour’s periods out of office since becoming the Official Opposition in 1922. They argue that, far from being barren periods in the Party’s history, Labour’s opposition years from MacDonald to Starmer have been undervalued and misunderstood. Across the book’s eight chapters they scrutinise Labour’s approach to reforming the party machinery, its development of policy proposals, its success in appealing to the wider electorate and its skill in opposing the government to identify the key hallmarks of successful opposition, as well as common mistakes. As the Labour Party prepares for a long-awaited return to government, this insightful book on Labour’s past has vital lessons for the Party’s future.
The last few years have seen a remarkable surge of popular interest in the topic of atheism. Books about atheism by writers like Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens have figured prominently in bestseller lists and have attracted widespread discussion in the media. The ubiquity of public debates about atheism, especially in conscious opposition to the perceived social threat posed by faith and religion, has been startling. However, as Gavin Hyman points out, despite their prevalence and popularity, what often characterises these debates is a lack of nuance and sophistication. They can be shrill, ignorant of the historical complexity of debates about belief, and tend to lapse into caricature. What is needed is a clear and well informed presentation of how atheistic ideas originated and developed, in order to illuminate their contemporary relevance and application. That task is what the author undertakes here. Exploring the rise of atheism as an explicit philosophical position (notably in the work of Denis Diderot), Hyman traces its development in the later ideas of Descartes, Locke and Berkeley. Drawing also on the work of contemporary scholars like Amos Funkenstein and Michael J Buckley, the author shows that, since in recent theology the concept of God which atheists negate is changing, the triumph of its advocates may not be quite as unequivocal as Hitchens and Dawkins would have us believe.
Labour leader Harold Wilson was once asked how difficult he found being prime minister of the United Kingdom. ‘Not half as difficult as being Leader of the Opposition’, he replied. Sadly for the Labour Party, much of the last century has been spent in shadow government. But were these wasted years in the Party’s history? Or did they offer vital opportunities for creation and improvement? In Keeping the Red Flag Flying political historians Mark Garnett, Gavin Hyman and Richard Johnson offer the first in-depth account of Labour’s periods out of office since becoming the Official Opposition in 1922. They argue that, far from being barren periods in the Party’s history, Labour’s opposition years from MacDonald to Starmer have been undervalued and misunderstood. Across the book’s eight chapters they scrutinise Labour’s approach to reforming the party machinery, its development of policy proposals, its success in appealing to the wider electorate and its skill in opposing the government to identify the key hallmarks of successful opposition, as well as common mistakes. As the Labour Party prepares for a long-awaited return to government, this insightful book on Labour’s past has vital lessons for the Party’s future.
This book provides a concise and accessible history of the relationship between the individual and capitalism in the United States. The text is devoted to tracking the historical development of important themes, whilst addressing key episodes in the progress of American capitalism within these, such as the Great Depression and New Deal. The book will introduce students to the key philosophical principles that have been the most influential in the history of free enterprise in the United States as well as exploring the ways in which these ideas have been popularly understood by Americans from the late eighteenth century to the present. Liberalism and Neoliberalism, entrepreneurialism, slavery and racial capitalism, and business and gender are all assessed. The material in this volume is complimented by a set of primary source documents that bring the subject to life. It will be of interest to students of American history, business and labor history.
At the time of its collapse in 2001, Enron was one of the largest companies in the world, boasting revenue of over $100 billion. During the 1990s economic boom, the Houston, Texas-based energy company had diversified into commodities and derivatives trading and many other ventures—some more legal than others. In the lead-up to Enron's demise, it was revealed that the company's financial success was sustained by a creatively planned and well-orchestrated accounting fraud. The story of Enron and its disastrous aftermath has since become a symbol of corporate excess and negligence, framed as an exceptional event in the annals of American business. With Risk and Ruin, Gavin Benke places Enron's fall within the larger history and culture of late twentieth-century American capitalism. In many ways, Benke argues, Enron was emblematic of the transitions that characterized the era. Like Enron, the American economy had shifted from old industry to the so-called knowledge economy, from goods to finance, and from national to global modes of production. Benke dives deep into the Enron archives, analyzing company newsletters, board meeting minutes, and courtroom transcriptions to chart several interconnected themes across Enron's history: the changing fortunes of Houston; the shifting attitudes toward business strategy, deregulation, and the function of the market among policy makers and business leaders; and the cultural context that accompanied and encouraged these broader political and economic changes. Considered against this backdrop, Enron takes on new significance as a potent reminder of the unaddressed issues still facing national and global economies. Published in cooperation with the William P. Clements Center for Southwest Studies at Southern Methodist University.
Restructuring in the Service Industries: Management Reform and Workplace Relations in the UK Service Sector. An examination of the complex process of transformation in work organization, technology and labour and product markets that has occurred. The analysis moves between a broad appreciation of structural developments within the economies of the advanced industrial nations, and an in-depth study of enterprise and workplace. It is divided into four parts. The first part reviews the theoretical issues and debates raised by the growth of service industries and employment in the advanced industrial countries. Parts Two and Three are case studies of two service sectors - financial services and the National Health Service. Part Four relates the evidence to a broader appreciation of developments in management/workforce relations occurring in the service sector.
Unusual coming from a leftist perspective, this book argues that those who care for social justice should seek more globalization and not try to prevent its development or roll it back.
Citizenships, Contingency and the Countryside defines citizenship in relation to the rural environment. The book expands and explores a widened conceptualization of citizenship and sets out a range of examples where citizenship, at different scales, has been expressed in and over the rural environment. Part of the analysis includes a review of the political construction and use of citizenship rhetoric over the past 20 years, alongside an historical and theoretical discussion of citizenship and rights in the British countryside. The text concludes with a call to recognise and incorporate the multiple voices and interests in decision-making, that all affect the British countryside.
Mega-events represent an important moment in the life of a city, providing a useful lens through which we may analyse their cultural, social, political and economic development. In the wake of the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC’s) concerns about ’gigantism’ and wider public concerns about rising costs, it was imperative in the C21st to demonstrate the long term benefits that arose for the city and nations from hosting premier sporting events. ’London 2012’ was the first to integrate the concept of legacy from the moment a bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games was being considered. London proposed an ambitious programme of urban renewal for East London. Subsequent host city bids have adopted the ’legacy narrative’ and, as this book demonstrates, aligned this to major schemes of urban development and renewal. Bringing together scholars, practitioners and policy makers, this book focuses upon the legacies sought by cities that host major sports events. It analyses how governments, the IOC and others define and measure ’legacy’. It also focuses upon the challenges and opportunities facing future host cities of mega-events, looking at their aspirations and the intended impact upon their domestic and international development. It questions what the global shift in geographical location of mega-events means for sports development and the business of sport, what the attractions are for cities seeking to harness the hosting of a mega-event, and whether there may be longer term consequences for the bidding and hosting major sporting events in the wake of the widespread social unrest that accompanied the preparations in Brazil for hosting the FIFA World Cup (2014) and the summer Olympics (2016) and in Turkey, where there was significant opposition to bid for the 2020 summer Olympiad.
Writing and America surveys the writing genres that have contributed to the American notions of America . Essays from scholars from both side of the Atlantic chart the range of responses to American nationhood from colonial times to the present and include dissenting responses from communities such as native American, black and feminist writers. Case studies from writers such as James Fenimore Cooper and William Carlos Williams provide a framework for discussions on topics such as colonial notions of America as the promised land, the discourses of nationhood in the republic, the sense of nationhood in American historiography, and the formation of the American Canon. Draws upon extracts from the American Bills of Rights and the Constitution as examples of different types of writing.
This authoritative collection is the first wide-ranging overview dedicated to traditional, complementary and integrative medicine (TCIM) and its scientific study. Compiled by an expert editorial team, it is an essential guide to the vast and ever-growing international literature on TCIM. Contributions come from practitioners and academics drawn from a diverse range of disciplines and professions across the globe. From perspectives on the significance of TCIM within public health policy to discourses on its influence in fields such as psychiatry and sociology, discrete chapters come together to provide an international map of the contemporary research, key debates and core issues which shape the field. Carefully structured to ensure easy navigation, the reader is divided into three parts: - Part A focuses on the consumption of TCIM, including chapters on its use through the life-cycle and within the context of disease and health management - Part B covers considerations for practitioners across the world, taking in issues over ethics, communication and education - Part C features chapters on the role of evidence, research and knowledge production in TCIM and looks at what lies ahead for the field With its thought-provoking insights and suggestions for further reading, this comprehensive resource provides guidance and inspiration for anyone embarking on study, practice or research within health, nursing or medicine.
Over the past two decades, sales of fair trade coffee have grown significantly and the fair trade network has emerged as an important international development project. Activists and commentators have been quick to celebrate this sales growth, which has allowed socially just trade, labour, and environmental standards and practices to be extended to hundreds of thousands of small farmers and poor rural workers throughout the Global South. While recent assessments of the fair trade network have focused on its impact on local poverty alleviation, however, the broader political-economic and historically rooted structures that frame it have been left largely unexamined. In this study, Gavin Fridell argues that while local level analysis is important, examination of the impacts of broader structures on fair trade coffee networks, and vice versa, are of equal if not greater significance in determining their long-term developmental potential. Using case studies from Mexico and Canada, Fridell examines the fair trade coffee movement at both the global and local level, assessing its effectiveness and locating it within political and development theory. In addition, Fridell provides in-depth historical analysis of fair trade coffee in the context of global trade, and compares it with a variety of postwar development projects within the coffee industry. Timely, meticulously researched, and engagingly written, this study challenges many commonly held assumptions about the long-term prospects and pitfalls of the fair trade network's market-driven strategy in the era of globalization.
I have been looking for a book which does this for ages! It provides a clear explanation of the different elements and concepts which underpin how the planning system works and which are fundamental to the operation of the UK system. It also provides good guidance on further reading. A real assett to anyone wanting to understand the nature of planning in the UK" - Dr Catherine Hammond, Architecture and Planning, Sheffield Hallam University Key Concepts in Planning forms part of an innovative set of companion texts for the human geography sub-disciplines. Organized around 19 short essays, the book provides a cutting edge introduction to the central concepts that define contemporary research in planning. Involving detailed and expansive discussions, the text includes: An introductory chapter providing a succinct overview of the recent developments in the field. 18 key concept entries with comprehensive explanations, definitions and evolutions of the subject. Detailed suggested further reading for each concept discussed. It is an ideal companion text for upper-level undergraduate and postgraduate students in planning, and covers the expected staples of the discipline in an accessible style.
This book highlights the importance of Ludwig Wittgenstein’s writings on psychology and psychological phenomena for the historical development of contemporary psychology. It presents an insightful assessment of the philosopher’s work, particularly his later writings, which draws on key interpretations that have informed our understanding of metapsychological and psychological issues. Wittgenstein’s Philosophy in Psychology engages with both critics and followers of the philosopher’s work to demonstrate its enduring relevance to psychology today. Sullivan presents a novel examination of Wittgenstein’s later writings by providing historical detail about the uptake, understanding and use of Wittgenstein’s remarks and method in psychology and related areas of social science, examining persistent sources of conceptual confusion and showing how to apply his insights in investigations of collectives, social life, emotions, subjectivity, and development. In doing so, he reveals the value for psychologists in adopting a philosophical method of conceptual investigation to work through and become more reflexive about prominent theories, methods, therapies and practices in their respective, multiple fields and thereby create a resource for future theoretical, empirical and applied psychologists. This work will be of particular relevance to students and academics engaged in the history of psychology and to practitioners interested in understanding the continued importance of Wittgenstein’s work within the practices of psychology.
Both the exponents and critics of neoliberalism assert the dominance of market forces in western nations. The Political Economy of State Intervention calls this into question. Through a re-examination of state intervention in the USA and Britain over the course of the "long depression" (1970-to date), this book argues that the state has performed an increasingly significant role in conserving capital, propping up an economic and social order that has lost its productive dynamism. The specific forms of capital’s dependency on the state may vary, however the underlying weaknesses of mature western economies have prompted new forms of state intervention narrowly aimed at conserving capital, especially in the wake of the financial crisis. The chapters consider factors which are usually posited as explanations for the long depression such as oil price shocks, domestic conditions and technological innovation. The work argues that the consensus view of neoliberalism has served to underplay the significance of the state’s role in failing to lift this long depression in several ways: it has lent a greater ideological coherence to the policies pursued by successive governments than they deserve; the state has been less subordinate to the market than is usually claimed and more often its maker; and there has been a significant growth in jobs located in the private sector that are funded by public money. The cumulative effect of this is a narrowing of the state’s purpose to conserving capital, a role which has contributed to its loss of authority as an institution that claims to represent society as a whole. It is theorised that this, in turn, has led to the insecurities of the existing political order and the rise of populism. This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of political economy, public policy, political theory, economics and sociology.
Understanding Culture offers an accessible and comprehensive overview of the field of cultural studies whilst also proposing a different way of `doing' cultural studies. It focuses on the ways in which cultural objects and practices serve as both a means of ordering people's lives and as markers of that ordering. The book reviews the state of the discipline of cultural studies and suggests a new theoretical and methodological orientation drawing on the work of: Foucault; scepticism, Wittgenstein; Harvey Sacks and John Law; uses insights from a variety of sources to examine the complex ways in which meanings are manufactured as lives are ordered in particular social settings: personal life, education, health, the city and law; and pre
Social workers and other professionals working in the area of mental health often face complex and difficult practice dilemmas shaped by increasingly demanding policy and legal contexts across the UK. Jim Campbell and Gavin Davidson focus on the post-qualifying role played by mental health social workers in this book. The authors draw on theoretical and research perspectives on the subject, before outlining how professionals can achieve best practice. Topics covered include: " Models of mental health and illness " Discrimination and social exclusion " Addressing service user needs " Carer perspectives " Working with individuals, families and communities The chapters are accompanied by exercises, which encourage readers to critically reflect on their own professional and personal experiences. Case studies are also included, so that students can reappraise the knowledge they have learned in the text. The book will be essential reading for social work practitioners taking postgraduate courses in mental health and for those training to become Approved Mental Health Professionals.
Purification of the soul is a principle that is central to understanding Islamic spirituality but despite this, relatively little has been written explicitly in the Islamic tradition regarding this discrete method of spiritual purification. This book examines the work of a scholar of this discipline, al-Hārith al-Muhāsibī, who lived and worked during the classical Islamic period under the Abbāsids. Although al-Muhāsibī was well known for his skills in many disciplines, including the Qur’ān, Prophetic narration and scholastic theology, it is his mastery in the field of Islamic spirituality and moral psychology for which he is best remembered. Assessing the extent to which the political, social and economic factors played a part in his life and work, Gavin Picken provides a comprehensive overview of his work and its great significance in the development of Islamic spirituality. Reconstructing his life in chronological order and providing the most comprehensive appraisal of his works to date, it explores a facet of al-Muhāsibī’s teaching which as yet has not been studied, namely his understanding, concept and methodology regarding the purification of the soul within the Islamic paradigm. As such, it will be of great interest not only to researchers and students of Sufism but also to scholars of comparative spirituality and mysticism.
Fully updated, the third edition of Grids for Graphic Designers explores this important tool which is part of every designer's practice- whether it involves digital or print-based media. With over 200 illustrations plus six new interviews with design practitioners such as Second Story, Brody Associates and Peter Dawson, the student is introduced to the creative use of grids in contemporary practice as well as the basic principles that underlie their effective use. Written and designed by best-selling authors Gavin Ambrose and Paul Harris, this clear and concise introduction to the use of grids in design covers all the basics and the expanded section of activities and exercises allows students to implement what they have learned.
Written by leading experts, 'Fast Facts: Clinical Trials in Oncology' will enhance the reader’s ability to critically evaluate published evidence. Assuming little or no prior knowledge, the book sets out clearly the fundamental features of clinical trials. The key attributes of Phase I–III trials of pharmaceutical products are described, as are trials of surgical procedures, radiation therapy and advanced therapies. The processes and documentation required to set up and conduct a trial are outlined, and the authors describe how trial data and real-world evidence are used to improve care. Although this concise colorful book focuses on oncology, the principles apply equally to interventions in other areas of practice. It will prove invaluable to medical, pharmaceutical and allied health professionals who want, or need, an overview of how contemporary clinical trials are designed and conducted. Contents: • Fundamental features of clinical trials • Phase I trials • Phase II trials • Phase III trials • Trials of non-drug interventions • Setting up and conducting trials • Publishing trial results, changing clinical practice, and supporting evidence
The relationship between literature and religion is one of the most groundbreaking and challenging areas of Romantic studies. Covering the entire field of Romanticism from its eighteenth-century origins in the writing of William Cowper and its proleptic stirrings in Paradise Lost to late-twentieth-century manifestations in the work of Wallace Stevens, the essays in this timely volume explore subjects such as Romantic attitudes towards creativity and its relation to suffering and religious apprehension; the allure of the 'veiled' and the figure of the monk in Gothic and Romantic writing; Miltonic light and inspiration in the work of Blake, Wordsworth, Shelley, and Keats; the relationship between Southey's and Coleridge's anti-Catholicism and definitions of religious faith in the Romantic period; the stammering of Romantic attempts to figure the ineffable; the emergence of a feminised Christianity and a gendered sublime; the development of Calvinism and its role in contemporary religious controversies. Its primary focus is the canonical Romantic poets, with a particular emphasis on Byron, whose work is most in need of critical re-evaluation given its engagement with the Christian and Islamic worlds and its critique of totalising religious and secular readings. The collection is an original and much-needed intervention in Romantic studies, bringing together the contextual awareness of recent historicist scholarship with the newly awakened interest in matters of form and an appreciation of the challenges of postmodern theory.
How do archaeologists make knowledge? Debates in the latter half of the twentieth century revolved around broad, abstract philosophies and theories such as positivism and hermeneutics which have all but vanished today. By contrast, in recent years there has been a great deal of attention given to more concrete, practice-based study, such as fieldwork. But where one was too abstract, the other has become too descriptive and commonly evades issues of epistemic judgement. Writing the Past attempts to reintroduce a normative dimension to knowledge practices in archaeology, especially in relation to archaeological practice further down the ‘assembly line’ in the production of published texts, where archaeological knowledge becomes most stabilized and is widely disseminated. By exploring the composition of texts in archaeology and the relation between their structural, performative characteristics and key epistemic virtues, this book aims to move debate in both knowledge and writing practices in a new direction. Although this book will be of particular interest to archaeologists, the argument offered has relevance for all academic disciplines concerned with how knowledge production and textual composition intertwine.
Criminological and Forensic Psychology is a brand-new theoretically rigorous, practically relevant, engaging and fun introduction to this broad and fascinating field. It covers both the conceptual basis within which psychology knowledge is applied in forensic contexts and the practical applications of psychology to the criminal civil justice systems. Key Features: Case studies, which include the James Bulger investigation in Chapter 5, are woven into every chapter to bring the topic to life and encourage the application of knowledge by placing you in the full context of a criminal case, showing you how psychological theories can be used to explain real-life crimes. In-depth exploration of the fascinating courtroom process including separate chapters on The Defendant’s Mind and The Jury. A dedicated chapter on research methods specific to forensic psychology to help you do your research project around this topic. A Companion Website available at www.sagepub.co.uk/gavinCFP is provided to support learning and includes chapter-by-chapter multiple choice questions to test understanding of the topic, additional case studies to reinforce learning, and links to further readings to continue your exploration of the subject.
Health Geographies: A Critical Introduction explores health and biomedical topics from a range of critical geographic perspectives. Building on the field’s past engagement with social theory it extends the focus of health geography into new areas of enquiry. Introduces key topics in health geography through clear and engaging examples and case studies drawn from around the world Incorporates multi-disciplinary perspectives and approaches applied in the field of health geography Identifies both health and biomedical issues as a central area of concern for critically oriented health geographers Features material that is alert to questions of global scale and difference, and sensitive to the political and economic as well sociocultural aspects of health Provides extensive pedagogic materials within the text and guidance for further study
This book provides a much-needed thematic and historical introduction to Hinduism, the religion of the majority of people in India. Dr Flood traces the development of Hindu traditions from their ancient origins, through the major deities of Visnu, Siva and the Goddess, to the modern world. Hinduism is discussed as both a global religion and a form of nationalism. Emphasis is given to the tantric traditions, which have been so influential; to Hindu ritual, which is more fundamental to the life of the religion than are specific beliefs or doctrines; and to Dravidian influences from south India. An Introduction to Hinduism examines the ideas of dharma, particularly in relation to the ideology of kingship, caste and world renunciation. Dr Flood also introduces some debates within contemporary scholarship about the nature of Hinduism. It is suitable both for the student and for the general reader.
Tantra is the Hindu-based religion which links ecstatic sexual practice with meditation and direct spiritual experience. It originated in India some 1200 years ago, when the great sacred erotic temples were built. In the West it is best known for its inspiration of tantric yoga, and its associated ritualistic forms of sex. But is tantra just about esoteric sex or does it amount to something more? This lively and original book contributes to a more complete understanding of tantra's mysteries. Without minimising its sexual dimensions, Gavid Flood argues that within tantra the body is more than just a sexual entity. It is a vehicle for the spirituality that is fundamental to people's minds. "The Tantric Body" makes an important and fascinating contribution to the study of South Asian religion, and will have strong appeal to students of South Asian cultures and societies as well as to those of comparative philosophy.
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