Henri Lefebvre: A Critical Introduction

Description:
This book is a highly accessible critical introduction to French theorist Henri Lefebvre, who is recognized as one of the great social theorists on the topics of cities, space, revolution, and the state. Philosopher and sociologist, urban theorist and maverick bon vivant, Lefebvre's life and thought spanned almost the entire twentieth century, during which he authored over sixty books and hundreds of articles. He introduced the 'early Marx' to French audiences and patented the sociological sub-discipline of 'everyday life'. His legacy is a fascinating body of work that, over the past decade, has begun to receive the critical attention that it merits. Lefebvre frustrates and befuddles, bewilders and bedazzles with an oeuvre that defies categorization, and English-language assessments of his work have only begun to truly grapple with the ambiguities and contradictions of his thought. Merrifield's work combines biography and theory in a chronologically-rendered critical assessment of the dynamics of Lefebvre's character, thought, and times. Henri Lefebvre explores the sum of Lefebvre's thought and the philosophical roads that remain his legacy.

Review:
'A lively introduction to the work of the twentieth century's last great undiscovered philosopher.  Henri Lefebvre pioneered the theorization of everyday life and space, of the city and the festival, in innovative ways that are still unexplored and that might productively stimulate the multiple searches for a new politics under globalization which are in course everywhere today.' Fredric Jameson, author of Postmodernism, or the Cultural Logic of Late Capitalism   'Guy Debord and now Henri Lefebvre....Merrifield's talent for putting together the person, the life, the times, and the intellectual and political contributions is here displayed in all its splendor.  This brief but inspiring portrait of the astonishing range of Lefebvre's work is of intense relevance to our own times.' David Harvey, author of The Condition of Postmodernity   ?Andy Merrifield's masterful book engages with Lefebvre's legacy in a totally new way:  while sensitive to the many contexts in which Lefebvre lived, worked and wrote, Merrifield brilliantly repositions his ideas in the present conjuncture, demonstrating how they might illuminate the struggles and contradictions of our time.  Merrifield's text crackles with energy and excitement, charting a bold course through some of Lefebvre's most central theoretical contexts in a style that is at once uncompromisingly erudite and thoroughly accessible.? Neil Brenner, author of New State Spaces

Table of Contents:
Preface 1 The Crucified Sun 2 Surrealism, Hegel, and the Human Adventure 3 Young Marx in Everyday Life 4 'Preludes' on the Modern World 5 The Proclamation of the City 6 The Spaced-Out State and the End of History 7 Afterword: Lefebvre as 'Altermodialist?' Index

Author Biography:
Andy Merrifield previously taught Geography in the United States and UK, and is the author of Guy Debord, Dialectical Urbanism, and Metromarxism. He lives in the Haute-Loire, France.