(March 10, 2014)
[Please include your first and last names, and your city and state of residence. Thank you.] Guy Debord's The Society of the Spectacle (New Annotated Edition) To the Editor: Guy Debord was the most influential figure in the Situationist International, the notorious group that helped trigger the May 1968 revolt in France. His book The Society of the Spectacle, originally published in Paris in 1967, has been translated into more than twenty other languages and is arguably the most important radical book of the twentieth century. This is the first edition in any language to include extensive annotations, clarifying the historical allusions and revealing the sources of Debord's "détournements." Contrary to popular misconceptions, Debord's book is neither an ivory tower "philosophical" discourse nor a mere expression of "protest." It is a carefully considered effort to clarify the most fundamental tendencies and contradictions of the society in which we find ourselves. This makes it more of a challenge, but it is also why it remains so pertinent nearly half a century after its original publication while countless other social theories and intellectual fads have come and gone. It has, in fact, become even more pertinent than ever, because the spectacle has become more all-pervading than ever -- to the point that it is almost universally taken for granted. Most people today have scarcely any awareness of pre-spectacle history, let alone of anti-spectacle possibilities. As Debord noted in his follow-up work, "Comments on the Society of the Spectacle" (1988), "spectacular domination has succeeded in raising an entire generation molded to its laws." The book is now at the printer's. It will be available March 20. For further information, see http://www.bopsecrets.org/cat.htm Ken Knabb Bureau of Public Secrets, Berkeley, california, USA - February 26, 2014 "Making petrified conditions dance by singing them their own tune." ********** We appreciate and welcome your comments. Please, enter in the subject line of your e-mail "letter to the editor," and specify the article or the subject you are commenting on at the beginning of your e-mail. Also, ***PLEASE,*** sign your e-mail with your name ***AND*** add your city, state, country, address, and phone number. If we publish your opinion we will only include your name, city, state, and country. Send your comments to the Editor. (Letters may be shortened and edited.) |