Zizek and Politics A Critical Introduction

Slavoj Zizek was born in 1949 and is a Slovenian political philosopher, sociologist, and cultural critic best known for work with French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan. Zizek writes on many topics, including the Iraq War, political correctness, globalization, human rights, and multiculturalism. His thought has received mixed receptions, from celebratory to deeply critical, but his politics are the element that most needs critical reassessment. This book introduces Zizek's primary areas of interest and the fields in which he has made his most influential contributions: ideology and political subjectivity; political totalitarianism; and contemporary culture. It explores political topics about which Zizek's interventions have been called partial or flawed, including liberalism, capitalism, the politics of religion, and political decisionism. A final section assesses Zizek and politics today. Each chapter considers the debates in which Zizek has intervened, his position, his positive contribution, and the limits of his position.

Matthew Sharpe lectures in philosophy and psychoanalytic studies at Deakin University. He has published Slavoj Zizek: A Little Piece of the Real (2004) and is co-editor of Traversing the Fantasy: Critical Essays on Slavok Zizek (2005). Geoff Boucher lectures in literary studies and psychoanalytic studies at Deakin University. He has published articles on Zizek in Telos and is co-editor of Traversing the Fantasy: Critical Essays on Slavoj Zizek (2005). He has also written The Charmed Circle of Ideology (2008) on the post-Marxism of Butler, Zizek, Laclau and Mouffe.