Marxism and the Task of the (Post)Humanities (Marxism and Education)

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In the wake of the "theory" revolution, the humanities have changed radically, but the most important transformation is in their interpretive logic, namely the assumptions, discourses, and reading strategies by which they made sense of cultural texts - from novels and poetry to films, videos, cultural events (e.g. sports) and social moments (e.g. Katrina,war).Understanding these changes is necessary because they have great significance in shaping the cultural consciousness and interpretive unconscious of people in their everyday lives. This volume argues that as a result of these changes, humanities have been reduced to teaching communication and the digital and affective skills which are necessary for the contemporary cyber workforce. Consequently the role of humanities, which is to produce critical understanding of cultural meanings and social values in a democratic society, has been diminished. The book proposes a new mode of teaching humanities based on critique and a materialist understanding of language.

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Teresa L. Ebert is the author of Ludic Feminism and After, The Task of Cultural Critique, and numerous essays in such journals as Cultural Critique, Rethinking Marxism, College English,Science and Society, as well as The Los Angeles Times. She is aProfessor ofEnglishat the University at Albany, State University of New York. Mas'ud Zavarzadeh has written several books, including Seeing Films Politically and The Mythopoeic Reality. He is a retired Professor of English at Syracuse University.Ebert andZavarzadehare also the co-authors of Class in Culture and co-editors of Marxism and Postmodernism.