Praxis. An Exercise in Engaging Cultural Studies

Overview & Synopsis

The book is designed as a methodological exercise in cultural studies described as "engaging", which refers to a specific research approach requiring cooperation and the inclusion of individuals and communities in the research process, using a rich repertoire of humanistic traditions as a tool of social criticism. The key is to treat cultural studies as a workshop in which the researcher changes from a distant observer into a practical person – a public intellectual and craftsman at the same time. The turn from “engaged” to “engaging” research methodologies described in the book is strongly rooted in the tradition of the philosophy of praxis and the theory of social practices, from Aristotle, through Marxist theories, to contemporary participatory action research. Today, however, the practical approach in the humanities takes on particular importance in the context of the so-called ontological turn. The book tries to answer the question whether cultural studies based on the category of practice has a chance to be a new form of critical thinking under the conditions of post-anthropocentric humanities.