Critical Times

This volume brings together new anthropological research on the Greek crisis. With a number of contributions from academics based in Greece, the book addresses a number of key issues such as the refugee crisis, far-right extremism and the psychological impact of increased poverty and unemployment. It provides much needed ethnographic contributions and critical anthropological perspectives at a key moment in Greece’s history, and will be of great interest to researchers interested in the social, political and economic developments in southern Europe. It is the first collection to explore the impact of this period of radical social change on anthropological understandings of Greece.

While no member of the public could have missed the Greek crisis, it has been represented only by the refraction in journalism of the views of politicians, economists and international bureaucrats. The voice of artists, “the antennae of the race”, has been so far unheard. In specially commissioned essays by major Greek writers and critics which appear for the first time in any language, the reader of this book will find new insights into the crisis, its causes and its wider ramifications. It will interest not only students of Greece, but anyone concerned with the highly topical and intertwined issues of nationalism, historical memory, otherness, migration, and xenophobia. By being simultaneously a reflection on and a reflection of a society in deep crisis, this book also offers a model for future studies.

We live in critical times. We face a global crisis in economics and finance, a global ecological crisis, and a constant barrage of international disputes. Perhaps most dishearteningly, there seems to be little faith in our ability to address such difficult problems. However, there is also a more positive sense in which these are critical times. The world's current state of flux gives us a unique window of opportunity for shaping a new international order that will allow us to cope with current and future global crises. In Critical Theory in Critical Times, eleven of the most distinguished critical theorists offer new perspectives on recent crises and transformations of the global political and economic order. Essays from Jürgen Habermas, Seyla Benhabib, Cristina Lafont, Rainer Forst, Wendy Brown, Christoph Menke, Nancy Fraser, Rahel Jaeggi, Amy Allen, Penelope Deutscher, and Charles Mills address pressing issues including international human rights and democratic sovereignty, global neoliberalism, novel approaches to the critique of capitalism, critical theory's Eurocentric heritage, and new directions offered by critical race theory and postcolonial studies. Sharpening the conceptual tools of critical theory, the contributors to Critical Theory in Critical Times reveal new ways of expanding the diverse traditions of the Frankfurt School in response to some of the most urgent and important challenges of our times.

Human societies live and breathe through their myths. A myth is not a simple story; it is the complex social reasoning of a people, a way of making sense of the world. Burton Mack calls this reasoning “social logic,” and as a master of ancient Rome and the rise of Christianity, he knows that the Western experience has been embedded in the Christian myth as its “big picture” narrative. But what happens when the big picture becomes fragmented and when an old myth loses its ability to function in a new world order? Mack is convinced that at the heart of contemporary political crises lies the need to create a new myth beyond the grand narratives and lingering fragments history has given us. Mack invites his reader to think historically about the present, and imaginatively about the future, in this important book about ourselves.

Whether aesthetically or politically inspired, graffiti is among the oldest forms of expression in human history, one that becomes especially significant during periods of social and political upheaval. With a particular focus on the demographic, ecological, and economic crises of today, this volume provides a wide-ranging exploration of urban space and visual protest. Assembling case studies that cover topics such as gentrification in Cyprus, the convulsions of post-independence East Timor, and opposition to Donald Trump in the American capital, it reveals the diverse ways in which street artists challenge existing social orders and reimagine urban landscapes.

This book is designed to be used at a master’s level for a degree in curriculum and instruction, teacher education or educational leadership. It could be used as a primary or a supplementary text. The book is divided into three parts: The first section focuses on the contributions of noted educators to the field of education: Florence Stratemeyer, (Haberman and Corrigan) Hilda Taba (Barbara Stern), Alice Miel (Jennifer Deets), Booker T. Washington (Karen Riley), Ralph Tyler (Gerald Ponder and Dixie Massey) and John Dewey (William Schubert and Heidi Schubert). The authors of these chapters focused on contributions that were “less: known, but particularly important in thinking about education. The second section of the book focuses on curriculum movements that were politically motivated and their impact on curriculum applications in the schools: Cold War/Sputnik (Peggy Moch), Civil Rights (William Ayers), Women’s Rights (Susan Brown), Bilingual/multicultural education (Gloria Contreras and Ron Wilhelm), and the growing economic divide (William Watkins). The last section of the book provides perspectives on factors that affected curriculum implementation as seen through the eyes of authors who have done considerable research in these areas: Social Justice (William Gaudelli and Dennis Urban), Integrated Curriculum (Lynne Bailey), The Comprehensive High School (Marcella Kysilka), Technology in the Curriculum (Gretchen Schwarz and Janet Dunlop) and Inclusive Curriculum (Allison Dickey) The book could be used in Alternative Certification Programs as well as the chapters focus on issues that are common in the public school sector. The chapters are short and meaty and provide a thorough understanding of the people, politics and perspectives of the times.

This book critically explores urgent questions that researchers, educators, and policy makers need to consider and address in order to better our understanding and capacity to transform education. Focusing on areas that underpin the empirical, theoretical, and strategic research of the Pedagogy, Education and Praxis (PEP) International Research Network, it discusses the following topics: the nature of educational praxis; research approaches that facilitate praxis and praxis development; changing cultural, social, political and material conditions affecting the educational practices of teachers; and how good professional practice in teaching, leading, and professional learning are understood and experienced. Presenting findings emerging from the Pedagogy, Education and Praxis research, the book raises new questions and offers new ways of thinking about the identified issues and themes in light of current educational concerns and the prevalence of neoliberal conditions being experienced in educational settings around the globe. It provides supporting evidence and illustrative examples to help readers understand important concepts, situations, and concerns, and brings together intellectual and cultural-historical traditions that, when considered in relation to each other, open up critical opportunities and ideas orienting readers towards future educational transformation.