From literature to revolution -- The nouveau roman and rebellion -- The Tel quel saga -- Julia Kristeva's invasion of Paris -- Kristeva's power-ideas : ideologeme and the zerologic subject -- Rebellion around Tel quel -- Sollerspierre, the revolutionary of the text -- "Sciences" of meaning, work, and the unconscious -- Désenchantement and disintegration -- Neo-surrealism : Breton and Mao -- The conservative revolution of Jacques Derrida -- The taming of French theory -- The power-idea of structure -- The bourgeois political order : a critique -- Constructing an academic sociology -- Epilogue: French theory as symbolic transgression and political rebellion
Summary
This ground-breaking book furthers the internal sociological analysis of ideas and styles of thought by showing that the defining but largely neglected feature of what has become 'French theory' is a collective mind and style, with an explosive but fragile mixture of scientific and political radicalism. This will be a key text for social theorists and those interested in popular media culture within France
