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Book SynopsisWhat if “the West” has not come to an end, but has entered a new phase of economic, political, and cultural domination?
Trade ReviewIn The End of the West and Other Cautionary Tales, Sean Meighoo raises a provocative challenge not merely to the conceits of continental philosophy's recent deconstruction of the ethnocentrism of Western metaphysics, but also to the assumptions of the postcolonial theory that has eagerly appropriated that counterdiscourse. In doing so, he urges us to recognize the ways in which the critique of the idea of a singular West has often been misconceived. This is a timely intervention with deep-reaching implications for rethinking the project of contemporary criticism. -- David Scott, author of Omens of Adversity: Tragedy, Time, Memory, Justice This groundbreaking book makes an important and crucial intervention into the literatures and debates on postcolonial theory, politics, and cultural studies. Meighoo skillfully and thoughtfully brings together Western and Eastern philosophies, pointing not only to their various differences and similarities but also, importantly, to their influences. The End of the West and Other Cautionary Tales moves across a wide philosophical terrain to provide readers with a profound sense of what might be at stake in terms of how Western philosophy and postcolonial theory speak to each other. -- Rinaldo Walcott, author of Black Like Who? Writing Black Canada
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction Part I: The End of the West 1. The Black Athena Debate Part II: From Teleology to Negative Teleology 2. The Phenomenological Turn 3. The Ethical Turn Part III: From Continental Philosophy to Postcolonial Theory 4. The Critique of Representation 5. The Defense of Difference Part IV: The Limits of Antiethnocentrism 6. The Beatles in India Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index
