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Glenn Shuck's New Book Examines Current Cultural Pessimism
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., March 19, 2008 -- Williams College professor Glenn Shuck is the author of "Escape into the Future: Cultural Pessimism and its Religious Dimension in Contemporary American Popular Culture," recently released by Baylor University Press. Written with John M. Stroup, the book explores the subtle pessimism that pervades the present-day American milieu, as expressed in popular culture and religious discourse.
Shuck and Stroup define cultural pessimism as "an outlook that sees various domains of contemporary life as linked, headed in a disastrous direction and capable of improvement only in the event of a striking and complete reversal of direction."
They examine this ethos through a multiplicity of documents from popular culture and spirituality -- ranging from "The X-Files" and "Fight "Club" to evangelical writings -- as well as contemporary scholarship.
"Escape into the Future" delves into 40 years of cultural "texts," seeking to isolate feelings of powerlessness, dissatisfaction, and fatalism.
Whether the growing uncertainty about individual agency in economic processes, the increasing significance of technology as a means of control and power, or any of the other numerous facets of this thesis, the authors examine the language of each cultural document to clarify and extrapolate the forms of underlying pessimism.
"Escape into the Future" also considers real-world analogues to the frameworks shaping the cultural documents, and engages with other academic works on cynicism.
Shuck's 2004 book, "Marks of the Beast," explored themes of dissatisfaction and apocalyptic thought in modern Christian movements -- borne from a disenchantment with the way the world is and the direction in which it is heading.
"The future, as always, is risky" the authors write in the epilogue, "And if we wish to survive itââ,¬Â¦ we must continue to play the variety of dubious games actually available. For as long as we play, we at least remain in the game. We know at the backs of our minds that the house almost always wins, but we play for the rare chance that it will not."
Shuck is assistant professor of religion at Williams College. He received his B.A. from Texas Lutheran University in 1994 and his Ph.D. in religious studies from Rice University in 2004.
Stroup is a professor of religious studies at Rice University.
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Founded in 1793, Williams College is the second oldest institution of higher learning in Massachusetts. The college's 2,000 students are taught by a faculty noted for the quality of their teaching and research, and the achievement of academic goals includes active participation of students with faculty in their research. Students' educational experience is enriched by the residential campus environment in Williamstown, Mass., which provides a host of opportunities for interaction with one another and with faculty beyond the classroom. Admission decisions are made regardless of a student's financial ability, and the college provides grants and other assistance to meet the demonstrated needs of all who are admitted.
To visit the college on the Internet:www.williams.edu
News: Yue-Yi
Shuck and Stroup define cultural pessimism as "an outlook that sees various domains of contemporary life as linked, headed in a disastrous direction and capable of improvement only in the event of a striking and complete reversal of direction."
They examine this ethos through a multiplicity of documents from popular culture and spirituality -- ranging from "The X-Files" and "Fight "Club" to evangelical writings -- as well as contemporary scholarship.
"Escape into the Future" delves into 40 years of cultural "texts," seeking to isolate feelings of powerlessness, dissatisfaction, and fatalism.
Whether the growing uncertainty about individual agency in economic processes, the increasing significance of technology as a means of control and power, or any of the other numerous facets of this thesis, the authors examine the language of each cultural document to clarify and extrapolate the forms of underlying pessimism.
"Escape into the Future" also considers real-world analogues to the frameworks shaping the cultural documents, and engages with other academic works on cynicism.
Shuck's 2004 book, "Marks of the Beast," explored themes of dissatisfaction and apocalyptic thought in modern Christian movements -- borne from a disenchantment with the way the world is and the direction in which it is heading.
"The future, as always, is risky" the authors write in the epilogue, "And if we wish to survive itââ,¬Â¦ we must continue to play the variety of dubious games actually available. For as long as we play, we at least remain in the game. We know at the backs of our minds that the house almost always wins, but we play for the rare chance that it will not."
Shuck is assistant professor of religion at Williams College. He received his B.A. from Texas Lutheran University in 1994 and his Ph.D. in religious studies from Rice University in 2004.
Stroup is a professor of religious studies at Rice University.
END
Founded in 1793, Williams College is the second oldest institution of higher learning in Massachusetts. The college's 2,000 students are taught by a faculty noted for the quality of their teaching and research, and the achievement of academic goals includes active participation of students with faculty in their research. Students' educational experience is enriched by the residential campus environment in Williamstown, Mass., which provides a host of opportunities for interaction with one another and with faculty beyond the classroom. Admission decisions are made regardless of a student's financial ability, and the college provides grants and other assistance to meet the demonstrated needs of all who are admitted.
To visit the college on the Internet:www.williams.edu
News: Yue-Yi
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