Rethinking the Spectacle
Guy Debord, Radical Democracy, and the Digital Age
- Publisher
- UBC Press
- Initial publish date
- Jun 2019
- Subjects
- History & Theory, Social Theory, Media Studies
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eBook
- ISBN
- 9780774860536
- Publish Date
- Jun 2019
Library Ordering Options
Description
Spectacle is usually considered a superficial form of politics, which tries to distract and deceive a passive audience. It is difficult to see how this type of politics could be reconciled with the democratic requirement of active and informed agency. Rethinking the Spectacle re-examines the tension between spectacle and political agency using the ideas and practices of Guy Debord and the Situationist International as a point of departure. Drawing on radical democratic theory and examining case studies such as the 2011 Occupy movement, Devin Penner concludes that spectacle can and should be used to mobilize the public for egalitarian purposes.
About the author
Devin Penner is an assistant professor in the Department of Political Studies at Trent University.