The meaning of decadence varies with context, depending on what (or who) is understood to have declined, decayed, or degenerated. These negative meanings are familiar from history (the decline and fall of Rome), sociology (the decay of communities), morality (the degeneration of values), and more, including such popular conceptions of decadence as excess and corruption. At the same time, all of this negative decadence has found positive cultural expression, principally in literature, through the work of such celebrated nineteenth-century decadents as Charles Baudelaire, Oscar Wilde, and many others. This volume takes the study of decadence beyond these canonical literary works to explore the phenomenon in broader historical, geographical, and cultural contexts. In thirty-five chapters by esteemed scholars from a range of disciplines, the Oxford Handbook of Decadence addresses different critical periods, such as classical antiquity, various ages of empire, the interwar era in the twentieth century, and contemporary times, as well as key places--France, Belgium, Britain, Italy, Germany, the Nordic nations, Russia and Ukraine, the Ottoman Empire, and Japan--and such genres as the novel, the short story, drama, the essay, prose poetry, and film. The volume also considers decadence more broadly as a culture not limited to literature by tracing its manifestations in such material forms as book design, fashion, interior decoration, and architecture, as well as through the experiential register of the senses: decadent vision, sound, smell, taste, and touch are all reflected, respectively, in painting, music, perfume, cuisine, and feeling. Finally, the chapters explore the theoretical resonance of decadence in such fields as theology, science, ecology, politics, psychoanalysis, and philosophy. By illuminating the various ways decadence can be construed, the Handbook offers an in-depth and original exploration into the paradox of decadence: a culture that draws its creative energy from the idea of decline.
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Introduction: Decadence, Culture, and Society David Weir and Jane Desmarais Part I: Periods 1. Classical Antiquity: Unlikely Decadent Prototypes in Republican Rome Shushma Malik 2. Ages of Empire: Pinnacles of Decline Norman Vance 3. Fin de Siècle, Gilded Age, or Belle Époque: Different Endings to the Same Century Shearer West 4. The Interwar Period: Legacies of Decadence Melanie Hawthorne 5. Contemporary Contexts: Decadence Today and Tomorrow Alice Condé Part II: Places 6. France: The Rise of Modern Decadence Bénédicte Coste 7. Belgium: Decadent Land, Barbarian Language Clément Dessy 8. Britain and Ireland: Decadence beyond London Alex Murray 9. Italy: Decadent Dichotomies in a Disruptive Age Lara Raffaelli 10. Germany: Decadence from the Wilhelmine Empire to the Weimar Republic Katharina Herold 11. Nordic Cultures: From Wilderness to Metropolitan Decadence Pirjo LyytikÄinen 12. Eastern Europe: The "New People" of Decadence Sasha Dovzhyk 13. Turkey: Ottoman Tanzimat and the Decadence of Empire Özen Nergis Dolcerocca 14. Japan: Decadence and Japonisme Stefano Evangelista Part III: Genres 15. The Decadent Novel: Generic Inversions Kristin Mahoney 16. The Decadent Short Story: Forms of the Morbid Kostas Boyiopoulos 17. Decadent Theater: New Women and "The Eye of the Beholder" Sos Eltis 18. Essays: Defending and Describing Decadence Nick Freeman 19. Prose Poetry: All the Rest Is Literature Jane Desmarais and David Weir 20. Cinema: Adapting Decadence David Weir Part IV: Materialities 21. Book Arts: The Decadent Gesamtkunstwerk Kirsten MacLeod 22. Fashion: Decadent Stylings Catherine Spooner 23. Interior Decoration: Designing Decadence Jessica Gossling 24. Architecture: Constructing Decadence Lori Smithey Part V: Senses 25. Vision: Decadence in Symbolist Art of the Fin de Siècle Vivien Greene 26. Hearing: Bodies Resounding in Decadent Literature Fraser Riddell 27. Smell: Perfume and Olfaction Catherine Maxwell 28. Taste: Savoring Decadence David Weir and Jane Desmarais 29. Touch: Unfeeling Decadence Jane Desmarais Part VI: Theories 30. Theology: Decadent Aesthetics, Anglo-Catholicism, and Ritual Matthew Bradley 31. Science: Entropy, Degeneration, and Decadent Self-Destruction Jordan Kistler 32. Ecology: The Vital Forces of Decay Dennis Denisoff 33. Philosophy: Post-Kantian Narratives of Decadence Andrew Huddleston 34. Psychoanalysis: From Degeneration to Regeneration Jean-Michel Rabaté 35. Politics: Ideologies of Decadence Neville Morley
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Jane Desmarais is Professor of English and Director of the Decadence Research Centre at Goldsmiths, University of London. Her research is primarily focused on nineteenth-century literature and visual culture, specifically literary and visual decadence, and Anglo-French cultural relations at the fin de siècle. Her publications include Decadence and Literature, co-edited with David Weir (2019), Monsters Under Glass: A Cultural History of Hothouse Flowers from 1850 to the Present (2018), Arthur Symons: Selected Early Poems, co-edited with Chris Baldick (2017), and Decadence and the Senses, co-edited with Alice Condé (2017). David Weir is Professor Emeritus of Comparative Literature at Cooper Union in New York City. He is the author of ten books, including three on the topic of decadence: Decadence and the Making of Modernism (1995), Decadent Culture in the United States (2009), and Decadence: A Very Short Introduction (2018). He has also written the "Decadence" entry for the second edition of The Oxford Encyclopedia of Aesthetics (2014) and edited, with Jane Desmarais, Decadence and Literature (2019).
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Selling point: Offers the most thorough examination of decadence to date not only in literature, but also in visual and material culture Selling point: Covers different periods, from classical antiquity to contemporary times, and broadens the cultural geography of decadence to include regions outside the usual orbit of Britain and France, including the Ottoman Empire, Russia, Ukraine, Japan, and the Nordic nations Selling point: Argues for decadence as a culture in itself with broad theoretical application in major fields, such as theology, ecology, science, psychoanalysis, philosophy, and politics
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Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9780190066956
Publisert
2022
Utgiver
Vendor
Oxford University Press Inc
Vekt
1438 gr
Høyde
179 mm
Bredde
253 mm
Dybde
45 mm
Aldersnivå
P, 06
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Innbundet
Antall sider
742

Om bidragsyterne

Jane Desmarais is Professor of English and Director of the Decadence Research Centre at Goldsmiths, University of London. Her research is primarily focused on nineteenth-century literature and visual culture, specifically literary and visual decadence, and Anglo-French cultural relations at the fin de siècle. Her publications include Decadence and Literature, co-edited with David Weir (2019), Monsters Under Glass: A Cultural History of Hothouse Flowers from 1850 to the Present (2018), Arthur Symons: Selected Early Poems, co-edited with Chris Baldick (2017), and Decadence and the Senses, co-edited with Alice Condé (2017). David Weir is Professor Emeritus of Comparative Literature at Cooper Union in New York City. He is the author of ten books, including three on the topic of decadence: Decadence and the Making of Modernism (1995), Decadent Culture in the United States (2009), and Decadence: A Very Short Introduction (2018). He has also written the "Decadence" entry for the second edition of The Oxford Encyclopedia of Aesthetics (2014) and edited, with Jane Desmarais, Decadence and Literature (2019).