[ecrea] new book: the symbolic, the sublime, and slavoj žižek's theory of film (palgrave macmillan)

NEW BOOK OUT *OCTOBER 30TH, 2012*:

http://us.macmillan.com/thesymbolicthesublimeandslavojzizekstheoryoffilm/MatthewFlisfeder

*THE SYMBOLIC, THE SUBLIME, AND SLAVOJ ŽIŽEK'S THEORY OF FILM*
*
*
*By MATTHEW FLISFEDER*

Slavoj Žižek is one of the world's most important contemporary public 
intellectuals. Much of his popularity stems from his constant and 
recurring references to popular culture and cinema, as well as his own 
appearances in films such as The Pervert's Guide to Cinema and Examined 
Life. Although Žižek refers to cinema in order to help explain difficult 
concepts in his theoretical writing, film scholars question whether 
Žižek has his own theory of film. This book argues that Žižek's writing 
on film radically reorients the scope of contemporary film studies. 
Returning to questions about ideology and subjectivity, Flisfeder argues 
that Slavoj Žižek's theory of film aims to re-politicize film studies 
and film theory, bringing cinema into the fold of twenty-first century 
politics.

"This is a wonderfully lucid and perceptive account of how the Žizekian 
approach to cinema provides the theoretical coordinates for our 
understanding of ideology. Via Žizek, Matthew Flisfeder makes a 
compelling case for a Lacanian reading of film which, once freed from 
old debates on spectatorship, has a chance to strike a formidable 
alliance with Marxism to invite us to rethink our world through the eyes 
of film." - Fabio Vighi, reader in Film and Critical Theory, Cardiff 
University

'Matthew Flisfeder's The Symbolic, The Sublime, and Slavoj Žižek's 
Theory of Film marks a decisive moment in film studies. It is the first 
book to take full account of Slavoj Žižek's significance for the 
analysis of film, and it does so in an exhaustive and insightful way. 
Though there now exist many recent books on Lacanian film theory and on 
Slavoj Žižek's thought, no books exist that explain Žižek's intervention 
in the domain of film studies. Not only does Flisfeder open new ground 
in this way, but he also creates a work that is accessible and 
theoretically sophisticated at the same time, much like Žižek's own 
thought. It will provide a point of entry into the implications of 
Žižek's philosophy on the analysis of cinema for all levels, from 
undergraduate students to professors of film studies. Flisfeder's book 
is a treasure for all.' - Todd McGowan, associate professor of Film 
Studies, University of Vermont

*TABLE OF CONTENTS*

Introduction

1 From Film Theory to Post-Theory

2 Sublime Objects of Cinema

3 Class Struggle in Film Studies

Interlude:  The Pervert and the Analyst

4 Cinema, Ideology, and Form

5 Enjoyment in the Cinema

Conclusion:  Theory as Realism Set in Drive

*MATTHEW FLISFEDER* is a media and cultural theorist. His work has 
appeared in the Canadian Journal of Film Studies, Cultural Politics, the 
International Journal of Žižek Studies, and cineACTION. He has held 
teaching positions at OCAD University, Wilfrid Laurier University, and 
Ryerson University.