Since the election of a New Labour government, the cultural
domain has been politically charged like never before. Official
manifestos have been published and public projects have
proliferated, signalling a level of ideological attention to
culture unprecedented in democratic societies. This is an era of
'cultural capitalism', in which an extremely static conception of
culture is required to absorb or efface ideological conflict,
rather than give expression to it, or otherwise resolve it. Art and
design, film and architecture take on the roles of cementing
national identity, of staging the collapse of artistic into
economic value, of categorically separating political commitment
from individual experience.
"Cultural Capitalism" presents a series of differing inflections
of the relationship between politics and culture. Its contributors
include a veteran of the cultural studies wars in America, a
business consultant on cultural affairs in Europe, and scholars
working in the fields of politics and cultural theory. The first
half of the book examines the state of interdisciplinary studies,
critically assesssing their ability to grapple with the current
phase of capitalist expansion. The second half looks explicity at
the cultural politics of New Labour, including its relationship to
discourses of managerialism, its fascination with "grands projets,"
and its self- mythologising investment in the concept of spin.
This book resists the defeatist suggestion that politics is now
merely 'cultural politics', but also challenges those who find the
'contamination' of politics by culture unacceptable. It will be
indispensable to students and observers of the contemporary
political scene, to those curious about whatever happened to
cultural studies, and to everyone frustrated at the impoverishment
of art, culture and politics in the current climate.
General
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