In recent years Agamben's work has gained prominence for its incisive critique of the Western political tradition. Yet this has often resulted in a selective reading of his broad body of work, rather than one that addresses it as a complex whole. The Agamben Dictionary has brought together leading and emerging scholars from across the world to provide this essential overview of his work.

Giorgio Agamben is one of the most important and controversial figures in contemporary continental philosophy and critical theory. His work covers a broad array of topics from biblical criticism to Guantanamo bay and the ‘war on terror’. Alex Murray explains Agamben’s key ideas, including: an overview of his work from first publication to the present clear analysis of Agamben’s philosophy of language and life theories of ethics and ‘witnessing’ the relationship between Agamben’s political writing and his work on aesthetics and poetics. Investigating the relationship between politics, language, literature, aesthetics and ethics, this guide is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand the complex nature of modern political and cultural formations.

This is the first sustained exploration of Simondon's work to be published in English. The work of French philosopher Gilbert Simondon (1924-1989) has recently come to prominence in America and around the English-speaking world, having been of great importance in France for many years. Now available in paperback, this is the first collection of essays on this important thinker. They outline the central tenets of Simondon's thought, his influence on philosophy, philosophy of science, media studies, social theory and political philosophy, and his relationship to other thinkers such as Heidegger, Deleuze and Canguilhem. It includes a contextualising introduction and a glossary of technical terms.

Giorgio Agamben has emerged, in the past five years, as one of the most important continental philosophers. This burgeoning popularity of his work has largely been confined to a study of the homo sacer series. Yet these later 'political' works have their foundation in Agamben's earlier works on the philosophy of language, aesthetics and literature. From a philosophy of language and linguistics that leads to a broader theory of representation, Agamben develops a critical theory that attempts to explore the hiatuses and paradoxes that govern discursive practice across a broad range of disciplines. Gathering some of the most important established and emerging scholars to examine his body of work, this collection of essays seeks to explore Agamben's thought from these broader philosophical and literary concerns, underpinning its place within larger debates in continental philosophy. This volume will be a valuable addition to the understanding and reception of this major thinker. Including a contribution by Agamben himself makes it essential reading for anyone interested in his work. Features: * the first volume to focus on Agamben's early work on language and literature * includes established as well as up-and-coming scholars working in a variety of disciplines * includes a contribution by Agamben himself

Decadence, that flowering of a mannered literary style in France during the Second Empire, and in the last two decades of the nineteenth century in Britain, holds an endless fascination. Yet the ambiguity of the term 'decadence' and the challenges of identifying its practitioners make grasping its contours difficult. From the obsession with classical cultures, to the responses to the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 1980s and 1990s, this book offers one of the most comprehensive histories of literary Decadence. The essays here interrogate and expand the formal, geographical, and temporal frameworks for understanding Decadent literature, while offering a renewed focus on the role played by women writers. Featuring essays by leading scholars on sexuality, politics, science, translation, the New Woman, Russian and Spanish American Decadence, the influence of cinema on Decadence, and much more, it is essential reading for all those interested in the literature of the 1890s and Oscar Wilde.