At a time when education is routinely – and problematically – translated into the discourse of learning and teaching to serve a series of instrumental imperatives, the question of what we mean by education is raised with renewed urgency. This book looks beyond present horizons to imagine education anew. It considers ways of theorising education that acknowledge the complexity of its genealogy, empirical practice, and imbrication within regimes of governance, in the light of education’s ori...

Theology and Human Flourishing is a forward-looking review of the life and work of a place with a gentle Christian ethos that has provided sanctuary and healing for many over the past 31 years under the leadership of Elizabeth Baxter. It consists of 18 essays, each written in their own distinctive style by experts from a range of relevant disciplines who are supporters of Holy Rood House.The essays cover the variety of provision at Holy Rood House and its theoretical and t...

Heather Walton’s highly imaginative approach to theological thinking has led to significant developments in the field of autoethnography, creative writing within theology and theology through creative practice. Her theological work is rooted in deep engagement with lived experience. Over her thirty years in the University of Glasgow she has been a leading figure in the fields of literature, theology and the arts, practical theology, and most recently theology through creative practice. The...

The question of our humanity has never been more pressing or uncertain. As human beings, is our nature simply biological? What is the place of philosophy and theology in determining our self-understanding? Are we dependent on our relationships with one another? Are we creatures created by God? Is our physical death an end of our being?All these questions are discussed in this book, which addresses the question of what it is to be human, made in the image of God. Its twelve essays c...

This book is concerned with re-imagining Religious Education (RE) as this is practiced in schools, colleges and universities throughout the UK and in a wide variety of international educational contexts.On the basis of a critical analysis of current theory and practice in RE the authors argue that this educational framing is no longer plausible in the light of new theoretical developments within the academy. A new educational approach to RE is outlined that challenges students to t...

What is literary theory? Is there a relationship between literature and culture? In fact, what is literature, and does it matter?These are some of questions addressed by Jonathan Culler in this Very Short Introduction to literary theory. Often a controversial subject, said to have transformed the study of culture and society in the past two decades, literary theory is accused of undermining respect for tradition and truth and encouraging suspicion about the political and psychological impl...

Jacques Derrida, the French philosopher, developed his critical technique known as 'deconstruction'. His work is associated with ideas surrounding both post-structuralism and post-modern philosophy, and he was known to have challenged some of the unquestioned assumptions of our philosophical tradition. In this Very Short Introduction, Simon Glendinning explores both the difficulty and significance of the work of Derrida. He presents Derrida's challenging ideas as making a significant contr...

Why is it so many of us lack contentment, despite all the wealth and freedoms we enjoy?The past two centuries delivered individual and political freedoms that promised unprecedented opportunities for personal fulfilment. Yet citizens of affluent countries are encouraged to pursue lives of consumerism, endless choice and the pleasures of the body.Clive Hamilton argues that the paradox of modern consumer life is that we are deprived of our inner freedom by our very pursuit of...

The modern university can trace its roots to Kant's call for enlightened self-determination, with education aiming to produce an informed and responsible body of citizens. As the university evolved, specialized areas of investigation emerged, enabling ever more precise research and increasingly nuanced arguments. In recent decades, however, challenges to the hegemony of disciplines have arisen, partly in response to a perceived need for the university to focus greater energy on its public ...

This short critical introduction to the sociology of Pierre Bourdieu is a model of clarity and insight. Where Bourdieu's original writings are often densely argued and ambiguous, Richard Jenkins is direct, concise and to the point. He emphasises Bourdieu's contirbutions to the theory and methodology while also dealing in detail with his substantive studies of education, social stratification and culture. His book provides the best short English-language introduction to Bourdieu's work.

Accessible and clearly written, Living Language: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology introduces readers to the study of language in real-life social contexts around the world through the contemporary theory and practice of linguistic anthropology.A highly accessible introduction to the study of language in real-life social contexts around the worldCombines classic studies on language and cutting-edge contemporary scholarship and assumes no prior know...

Popular Great Philosopher's Series.An accessible overview of the work of one of our most influential living philosophers, as part of the popular Great Philosophers series. Richard Rorty is often cited as the most prominent philosophical defender of postmodernism. Best known for his unusually readable books and articles on philosophy - most notably Philosophy and the Mirror of Nature (1979) and Contingency, Irony, and Solidarity (1989) - Rorty has for some years now...