Beyond Hyperreal

What does Baudrillard's theory of hyperreality look like when applied to today's age of technological codependency?

Jean Baudrillard is characterized as the “Last Prophet of Europe”: not just because he was a prominent thinker, French philosopher and author of more than 50 works and essays that examine modern consumer society in depth. Events and phenomena described by Baudrillard in his works 20-30 years ago are taking place today. By means of his writings he described his view of the world and explained why people and society are the way they are. He “encrypted” in his works a system that allows for making accurate prognosis. There was no book until this that could have demonstrated the integral system of Baudrillard’s philosophy. Baudrillard did not share it with anybody and did not describe it explicitly as a whole. Figuratively speaking, he deconstructed his system into “bricks” (his writings), then built a building out of them, numbered each brick, and dismantled the building and burned the schemes. In the book Baudrillard. Maestro. The Last Prophet of Europe, Oleg Maltsev thoroughly analyzes each brick and constructs Baudrillard’s system presenting to readers for the first time a complete model, the tools used by Baudrillard and his philosophy. Throughout the 16 chapters of this book, the author looks into all kinds of subjects raised by Baudrillard with practical examples, among which the “masses”, the “kingdom of the blind”, the “silent majority”, “perfect crime”, European mysticism, the “symbolic system” and many other phenomena are examined from the viewpoint of the scholar. The author also shares his research results based on the philosophy and sociology of Baudrillard. Dr. Maltsev then examines Jean Baudrillard’s works (some of which had been translated into Russian for the first time), his photographic pieces, and interviews people who personally knew Baudrillard, his critics and fellow researchers. This work is a practical book for modern people who want to have an objective view of the current state of affairs and take responsibility for their present and future. It provides an idea for the use of the philosophy, sociology, and radical anthropology of Baudrillard as the foundation of personal achievement, efficiency, and safety in such unstable and uncertain conditions of a constantly changing environment.

A companion to American Theatre Ensembles Volume 1, this volume charts the development and achievements of theatre companies working after 1995, bringing together the diffuse generation of ensembles working within a context of media saturation and epistemological and social fragmentation. Ensembles examined include Rude Mechs, The Builders Association, Pig Iron, Radiohole, The Civilians and 600 Highwaymen. Introductory chapters provide a sweeping overview of ensemble-based creation within the general historical and cultural contexts of the period, followed by a detailed study of the evolution of ensemble-based work. Contributors examine matters such as influence, funding, production and legacies, as well as the forms of collective devising and creation, while presenting close readings of the companies' most prominent works. The volume features detailed case studies of the 6 companies from the period and cover: * A history of development and methods * Key productions and projects * Critical reception * A chronology of significant productions US ensemble companies since 1995 have revolutionized the form and content of contemporary performance, influencing experimental as well as mainstream practice. This volume provides the first encompassing study of this vital development in contemporary American theatre by mapping its evolution and key developments.

Since the publication of White Teeth in 2000, Zadie Smith has become one of the most popular contemporary writers and also one of the mostly widely studied. Taking criticism of Smith's work beyond its traditional focus on postcolonialism and multicultural identity, Reading Zadie Smith brings together leading international scholars to open up new directions in criticism of Smith's work. Covering such key topics as posthumanism, 'hysterical realism', religion, identity and ethics, this book brings together a full range of current critical perspectives to explore not only Smith's novels but also her short stories, her criticism and her non-fiction writing.

Cityscapes of the Future: Urban Spaces in Science Fiction examines the central role played by urban spaces in science fictional narratives in diverse media from the literary to the ludic to cinematic.

Since their appearance in the late 19th century, the Cantor--Dedekind theory of real numbers and philosophy of the continuum have emerged as pillars of standard mathematical philosophy. On the other hand, this period also witnessed the emergence of a variety of alternative theories of real numbers and corresponding theories of continua, as well as non-Archimedean geometry, non-standard analysis, and a number of important generalizations of the system of real numbers, some of which have been described as arithmetic continua of one type or another. With the exception of E.W. Hobson's essay, which is concerned with the ideas of Cantor and Dedekind and their reception at the turn of the century, the papers in the present collection are either concerned with or are contributions to, the latter groups of studies. All the contributors are outstanding authorities in their respective fields, and the essays, which are directed to historians and philosophers of mathematics as well as to mathematicians who are concerned with the foundations of their subject, are preceded by a lengthy historical introduction.

‘Hyper-real religions’ are innovative religions and spirituality that mix elements of religious tradition with popular culture. Through various case studies, this book studies the on and off-line religious/spiritual consumption of these narratives through a social scientific approach.

The present book is an introduction to the philosophy of mathematics. It asks philosophical questions concerning fundamental concepts, constructions and methods - this is done from the standpoint of mathematical research and teaching. It looks for answers both in mathematics and in the philosophy of mathematics from their beginnings till today. The reference point of the considerations is the introducing of the reals in the 19th century that marked an epochal turn in the foundations of mathematics. In the book problems connected with the concept of a number, with the infinity, the continuum and the infinitely small, with the applicability of mathematics as well as with sets, logic, provability and truth and with the axiomatic approach to mathematics are considered. In Chapter 6 the meaning of infinitesimals to mathematics and to the elements of analysis is presented. The authors of the present book are mathematicians. Their aim is to introduce mathematicians and teachers of mathematics as well as students into the philosophy of mathematics. The book is suitable also for professional philosophers as well as for students of philosophy, just because it approaches philosophy from the side of mathematics. The knowledge of mathematics needed to understand the text is elementary. Reports on historical conceptions. Thinking about today‘s mathematical doing and thinking. Recent developments. Based on the third, revised German edition. For mathematicians - students, teachers, researchers and lecturers - and readersinterested in mathematics and philosophy. Contents On the way to the reals On the history of the philosophy of mathematics On fundamental questions of the philosophy of mathematics Sets and set theories Axiomatic approach and logic Thinking and calculating infinitesimally – First nonstandard steps Retrospection