Bodies of Meaning Studies on Language, Labor and Liberation

by David McNally

Bodies of Meaning presents a vigorous challenge to postmodernist theories of language and politics which detach language from human bodies and their material practices. Beginning with the 'historical bodies' theorized by Marx, Darwin, and Freud, McNally develops an alternative account of language which draws on the work of Mikhail Bakhtin and Walter Benjamin and recent contributions to materialist feminism. In bringing the body back into language, this book makes a major contribution to current debates in social and political theory.

Genres: Philosophy

277 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2000

About the author

David McNally is the Cullen Distinguished Professor of History and Business at the University of Houston and director of the Center for the Study of Capitalism. McNally is the author of seven books and has won a number of awards, including the Paul Sweezy Award from the American Sociological Associaton for his book Global Slump and the Deutscher Memorial Award for Monsters of the Market.

Reviews

[Derek · Rating 5 out of 5]

A timely intervention, especially in the age of Covid-19. McNally reminds us of the social and biological origins of language, and of its import in how we conceive the body, how we think about political practice.

McNally writes lucidly on Nietzsche, Saussure, Deridda, Bahktin, Volosinov, Benjamin and more, perfoming a much-needed critical analysis on linguistics and offering suggestions for how to wield language to help create a more just world.