Phelps, NA;
(2018)
Taking the absurd seriously.
Progress in Human Geography
, 42
(6)
pp. 830-846.
10.1177/0309132517721636.
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Abstract
A focus on the absurd reveals points of tangency between political economy and humanistic geographical approaches. I argue that capitalism’s contradictions have broadened and deepened absurd phenomenal experiences, the reflexive internalization of which – in processes of reification or self-alienation – has recursive effects on the constitution of societies. The paradoxes mobilized as part of dialectical reason provide a means of taking the absurd seriously in our emotional and intellectual responses to it. These arguments are illustrated with respect to the consumption of stuff. In conclusion, I note how the absurd poses unsettling questions for human geographical theory and praxis.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Taking the absurd seriously |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1177/0309132517721636 |
| Publisher version: | http://doi.org/10.1177/0309132517721636 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | the absurd, contradiction, humanistic geography, paradox, political economy |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment > The Bartlett School of Planning |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1570996 |
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