Product Description
by Herman Paul (Editor), Adriaan Van Veldhuizen (Editor)
Postmodern, postcolonial, and post-truth are broadly used terms. But where do they come from? When and why did the habit of interpreting the world in post-terms emerge? And who exactly were the 'post boys' responsible for this? This book traces the emergence and popularity of post-concepts through a wide range of genres and fields.
Back Jacket
Postmodern, postcolonial, postfeminist, and now even post-truth - it seems as if 'post-concepts' are everywhere. This, however, has not always been the case. Some exceptions notwithstanding, the habit of interpreting the world in post-terms dates back no further than the 1950s, when a postwar generation tried to make sense of a world full of change.
Post-everything examines why post-Christian, post-industrial, and post-bourgeois were terms that resonated, not only among academics, but also in the popular press. It traces the historical roots of postmodern and poststructuralist, while also subjecting more recent post-constructions (posthumanist, postfeminist) to critical scrutiny. This volume is unique in approaching these concepts from a historical point of view. Instead of engaging theoretically with post-ideology or post-capitalism, the volume offers historical explanations for their emergence and popularity. It paints vivid portraits of intellectuals (the 'post boys', as they were initially called) who brought these concepts into circulation - from German theologians fighting the Nazi regime to literary theorists inviting Jacques Derrida to a conference in the US. In tracing post-terms through a broad variety of genres and fields, Post-everything illustrates the potential of a broadly conceived history of knowledge, while also contributing, more specifically, to a rapprochement between the history of the humanities and the history of the social sciences.Author Biography
Herman Paul is Professor of the History of the Humanities at Leiden University
Adriaan van Veldhuizen is a scientific researcher for the Dutch government
