Alberto Toscano
Encyclopedia
Alberto Toscano is a cultural critic
, social theorist, philosopher and translator
best known to the English-speaking world for his translations of the work of Alain Badiou
, including Badiou’s The Century and Logics of Worlds. He served as both editor and translator of Badiou’s Theoretical Writings and On Beckett.
Alberto Toscano's own work has been described both as an investigation of the persistence of the idea of communism in contemporary thought and a genealogical inquiry into the concept of fanaticism. He is the author of The Theatre of Production (2006), and his book Fanaticism: The Uses of an Idea was published in 2010. Toscano has published numerous articles on contemporary philosophy, politics and social theory: a recent article being his treatment of the Tarnac 9 case, written for The Guardian
in December 2009.
A lecturer in sociology
at Goldsmiths, University of London, Toscano is a member of the editorial board of the journal Historical Materialism: Research in Critical Marxist Theory
. According to Alex Callinicos
this journal "has been one of the main drivers of the academic revival of Marxism
" since the mid-1990s.
Authored books
Articles in edited collections and books
Cultural critic
A cultural critic is a critic of a given culture, usually as a whole and typically on a radical basis. There is significant overlap with social and cultural theory.-Terminology:...
, social theorist, philosopher and translator
Translation
Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. Whereas interpreting undoubtedly antedates writing, translation began only after the appearance of written literature; there exist partial translations of the Sumerian Epic of...
best known to the English-speaking world for his translations of the work of Alain Badiou
Alain Badiou
Alain Badiou is a French philosopher, professor at European Graduate School, formerly chair of Philosophy at the École Normale Supérieure . Along with Giorgio Agamben and Slavoj Žižek, Badiou is a prominent figure in an anti-postmodern strand of continental philosophy...
, including Badiou’s The Century and Logics of Worlds. He served as both editor and translator of Badiou’s Theoretical Writings and On Beckett.
Alberto Toscano's own work has been described both as an investigation of the persistence of the idea of communism in contemporary thought and a genealogical inquiry into the concept of fanaticism. He is the author of The Theatre of Production (2006), and his book Fanaticism: The Uses of an Idea was published in 2010. Toscano has published numerous articles on contemporary philosophy, politics and social theory: a recent article being his treatment of the Tarnac 9 case, written for The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
in December 2009.
A lecturer in sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
at Goldsmiths, University of London, Toscano is a member of the editorial board of the journal Historical Materialism: Research in Critical Marxist Theory
Historical Materialism (journal)
Historical Materialism is an interdisciplinary academic journal published quarterly. It covers research on the critical and explanatory potential of Marxist theory...
. According to Alex Callinicos
Alex Callinicos
Alexander Theodore Callinicos is a Trotskyist political theorist, a member of the Central Committee of the Socialist Workers Party and its International Secretary, and is Director of the Centre for European Studies at King's College London...
this journal "has been one of the main drivers of the academic revival of Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
" since the mid-1990s.
Selected bibliography
Translated Books- Alain Badiou, Logics of Worlds, London: Continuum, 2009.
- Alain Badiou, The Century, London: Polity, 2007.
- (with M. Mandarini) Antonio Negri, Political Descartes: Reason, Ideology and the Bourgeois Project, London: Verso, 2007.
- Alain Badiou, Handbook of Inaesthetics, Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2004.
- (with Ray BrassierRay BrassierRay Brassier is a member of the Philosophy faculty at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon, known for his work in philosophical realism. He was formerly Research Fellow at the Centre for Research in Modern European Philosophy at Middlesex University, London, England.He is the author of Nihil...
), Alain Badiou, Theoretical Writings, London: Continuum, 2004. - (with E.R. Albert), Éric Alliez, The Signature of the World, Or, What is Deleuze and Guattari’s Philosophy?, London: Continuum, 2004.
- (with Nina PowerNina PowerNina Power is a British philosopher, writer, journalist and academic. She is a Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at Roehampton University. She is the co-editor of Alain Badiou's On Samuel Beckett and his Political Writings....
), Alain Badiou, On Beckett, London: Clinamen Press, 2003.
Authored books
- Theatre of Production: Philosophy and Individuation between Kant and Deleuze, Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2006.
- Fanaticism: The Uses of an Idea, New York: Verso, 2010. Le Fanatisme. Modes d'emploi, La fabrique, 2011 (FR).
Articles in edited collections and books
- "Technical Culture and the Limits of Interaction: A Note on Simondon," in Joke Brouwer & Arjen Mulder (eds.), Interact or Die! (Rotterdam: NAi, 2007): 198-205.
- (with Nina Power), "Politics". Badiou: Key Concepts. Ed. Justin ClemensJustin ClemensJustin Clemens is an Australian philosopher, translator, social critic, and poet. He is primarily known today for his work on Alain Badiou as an editor, translator, and scholar writing, speaking, and lecturing on the impact of Badiou's thought in this contemporary juncture.A former instructor in...
and A. J. Barlett. (London: Acumen, 2010).
External links
- Toscano's Faculty Homepage at Goldsmith's, University of London website
- Rethinking Marxism and Religion an essay Toscano published at the website: Bienvenue sur le site du séminaire Marx au XXIe siècle
- Toscano's Author Page at Institute for the Unstable Media
- Communist knowledge/Communist power transcript of Toscano's paper delivered on day two of the Birkbeck Communism conference in London, March 2009
- Dual Power Revisited: From Civil War to Biopolitical Islam essay which appeared in the journal Soft Target; this is the on-line version
- Chronicles of Insurrection - Tronti, Negri and the Subject of Antagonism an on-line reprint of an essay by Toscano first published in Cosmos and History 5.1 (2009)