Bargainin' for Salvation - Bob Dylan, a Zen Master? (Paperback)

This book argues that Dylan actually embraces two radically distinct world views at alternating periods. Throughout his various stages, Dylan's work reveals an affinity with the Zen world view, where enlightenment can be attained through meditation, self-contemplation and intuition rather than through faith and devotion. Forgoing Christianity and Western Views for Zen and Buddhism, "Bargainin' for Salvation" will capture your attention and direct it toward the East. One of the mysteries of Bob Dylan's incredible corpus is why he seems to veer and zigzag so drastically and dramatically from one extreme standpoint to another. Throughout his career, rapid, radical transitions in musical style and public persona have either inspired or shocked different sectors of his fans. Is Dylan's work complex and contradictory, or is there an underlying consistency and continuity? Steven Heine, Director of the Institute for Asian Studies at Florida International University, argues that Dylan actually embraces two radically distinct world views at alternating periods. One is prevalent in his Protest (early '60s), Country (late '60s), and Gospel (late '70s) phases; it finds Dylan expressing moral outrage in endorsing a single higher truth based on a right-versus-wrong philosophy. The second view appears during periods of Dylan's disillusionment in the mid '60s ("Desolation Row"), mid '70s ("Tangled Up in Blue"), and mid '80s ("Jokerman"), finding him disenchanted with one-sided proclamations of truth and wandering, seemingly aimless amid a relativistic world of masks and disguises where nothing is ever what it claims to be. Throughout his various stages, Dylan's work reveals an affinity with the Zen world view, where enlightenment can be attained through meditation, self-contemplation and intuition rather than through faith and devotion. Whatever his current beliefs are, though, one can go into reading this book knowing that there are no others like it. Forgoing Christianity and Western views for Zen and Buddhism, "Bargainin' for Salvation" will capture your attention and direct it toward the East.

General

Imprint:	Continuum International Publishing Group Ltd.
Country of origin:	United Kingdom
Release date:	May 2009
First published:	May 2009
Authors:	Steven Heine
Dimensions:	228 x 153 x 20mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback
Pages:	288
ISBN-13:	978-0-8264-2950-6
Languages:	English
Subtitles:	English
Categories:	Books > Arts & Architecture > Music > Contemporary popular music > Rock & pop > General Books > Humanities > Religion & beliefs > Non-Christian religions > Religions of Indic & Oriental origin > Oriental religions > General Books > Religion & Spirituality > Non-Christian religions > Religions of Indic & Oriental origin > Oriental religions > General Books > Music > Contemporary popular music > Rock & pop > General Promotions
LSN:	0-8264-2950-5
Barcode:	9780826429506

Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate? Let us know about it.

Does this product have an incorrect or missing image? Send us a new image.

Is this product missing categories? Add more categories.

Review This Product

No reviews yet - be the first to create one!