Critical Theory of Creativity

Richard Howells is Professor of Cultural Sociology at King's College London, UK, where he specialises in visual and popular culture, together with cultural and critical theory. He studied at Harvard and Cambridge universities and lives in London and West Sussex with his wife, the designer Sarah Howson.

• Introduction 1. Visions -and Derisions- of Utopia 2. Ernst Bloch and Utopian Critical Theory 3. Homo Aestheticus 4. Case Study: Navajo Design, Culture and Theology 5. Archetypes, the Unconscious and Psychoanalysis 6. Roger Fry and the Language of Form 7. From Genesis to Job 8. Homo Absconditus 9. Conclusion: The Republic of Heaven

"A brilliant and magisterial overview of Bloch's continued importance for today's dystopian world. Howells combines breadth and depth in his analysis to show that whilst two or three are gathered in the name of critical thought, there is indeed hope for the future of us all ..." - Slavoj i ek, International Director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities, UK "In a time when critical and open debate about the role of religion and culture in society has declined to one of name-calling and insult, what Richard Howells has done with this excellent book is to point out that the intangible activities of the human animal are still both supremely important and up for grabs. What comes across here is the supreme importance of keeping lines of communication and development open so that we can continue to develop and progress as a species and not descend into generalised commodity production in which everything has a price but no value beyond that of exchange. The examples given in this book demonstrate, however, that as long as the human being exists there will be a human spirit." - Peter Thompson, Director of The Centre for Ernst Bloch Studies, University of Sheffield, UK