11 responses to “Should the left declare a moratorium on theory? w/ Richard Rorty”
Talk about shooting yourself in the foot, more like aiming a fun at your head. Pragmatism has bothered me for a long time now. It’s emphasis on what “works” and the “cash-value” of a theory, as well as the inability to think past the subject/object dichotomy, has led to a short-term focus on practice and a disavawal of the aspects of theory that stimulate the imagination. Marxists are all too willing to pick up the slack and rehash its utopian images of fully communist or non-hierarchical societies, which most people understand lead to totalitarian command economies with the experience of communist societies in the twentieth century. I think there is reason to believe that this pragmatist bent has led to the “lesser evilism” in leftist politics.
When Postmodernism or Post-structural theory is invoked in many left circles, rarely does it get beyond “head in the cloud” images of academics disengaged from reality. And yet, look at the philosophy section in bookstores and you see these books populating the bookshelves. People are clamoring for these new directions in thought.
I think regardless of where you are on the left-right axis, theory can go away.
For sure, but the wanderings of thought are going to happen regardless of denouncings.
I agree that pragmatism is toothless, bound to serve the status quo. I also think paying leftwing academics to let ingroup rivalry and ambition mutate their discourse into something bound to alienate electorates assures that ‘theory’ primarily serves invested interest. Political theories are like toothbrushes; nobody wants to use anyone elses’, so the process of speciation and proliferation continues apace. Much the same can be said about ‘serious art.’
ACADEMIA is the fucking problem, here. They say ‘masses’, and the masses hear ‘rabble’ – and they’re right. Theory is mostly pious confectionary, an indulgence of aesthetes. Anyone genuinely interested in mobilizing for change is in the business of reaching out. All we do is suck on chocolates we can scarce taste, and congratulate ourselves for the moral courage of our keyboards. Small wonder we’re so popular with other cowards.
synthetic zerØ 
Talk about shooting yourself in the foot, more like aiming a fun at your head. Pragmatism has bothered me for a long time now. It’s emphasis on what “works” and the “cash-value” of a theory, as well as the inability to think past the subject/object dichotomy, has led to a short-term focus on practice and a disavawal of the aspects of theory that stimulate the imagination. Marxists are all too willing to pick up the slack and rehash its utopian images of fully communist or non-hierarchical societies, which most people understand lead to totalitarian command economies with the experience of communist societies in the twentieth century. I think there is reason to believe that this pragmatist bent has led to the “lesser evilism” in leftist politics.
When Postmodernism or Post-structural theory is invoked in many left circles, rarely does it get beyond “head in the cloud” images of academics disengaged from reality. And yet, look at the philosophy section in bookstores and you see these books populating the bookshelves. People are clamoring for these new directions in thought.
the market seems to share yer distaste;
I think regardless of where you are on the left-right axis, theory can go away.
For sure, but the wanderings of thought are going to happen regardless of denouncings.
I agree that pragmatism is toothless, bound to serve the status quo. I also think paying leftwing academics to let ingroup rivalry and ambition mutate their discourse into something bound to alienate electorates assures that ‘theory’ primarily serves invested interest. Political theories are like toothbrushes; nobody wants to use anyone elses’, so the process of speciation and proliferation continues apace. Much the same can be said about ‘serious art.’
ACADEMIA is the fucking problem, here. They say ‘masses’, and the masses hear ‘rabble’ – and they’re right. Theory is mostly pious confectionary, an indulgence of aesthetes. Anyone genuinely interested in mobilizing for change is in the business of reaching out. All we do is suck on chocolates we can scarce taste, and congratulate ourselves for the moral courage of our keyboards. Small wonder we’re so popular with other cowards.