How Mumbo-Jumbo Conquered the World: A Short History of Modern DelusionsPublicAffairs, 06.07.2005 - 416 Seiten What characterizes our era? Cults, quacks, gurus, irrational panics, moral confusion and an epidemic of mumbo-jumbo, that's what. In How Mumbo-Jumbo Conquered the World, Francis Wheen brilliantly laments the extraordinary rise of superstition, relativism and emotional hysteria. From Middle Eastern fundamentalism to the rise of lotteries, astrology to mysticism, poststructuralism to the Third Way, Wheen shows that there has been a pervasive erosion of Enlightenment values, which have been displaced by nonsense. And no country has a more vivid parade of the bogus and bizarre than the one founded to embody Enlightenment values: the USA. In turn comic, indignant, outraged, and just plain baffled by the idiocy of it all, How Mumbo-Jumbo Conquered the World is a masterful depiction of the absurdity of our times and a plea that we might just think a little more and believe a little less. |
Inhalt
1 | |
9 | |
2 Old SnakeOil New Bottles | 39 |
3 Its the End of the World as We Know It | 62 |
4 The Demolition Merchants of Reality | 75 |
5 The Catastrophists | 113 |
6 With God on Our Side | 153 |
7 Us and Them | 161 |
8 The New Romantics | 178 |
9 Forward to the Past | 206 |
10 Voodoo Revisited | 238 |
Notes | 289 |
306 | |
Andere Ausgaben - Alle anzeigen
How Mumbo-Jumbo Conquered the World: A Short History of Modern Delusions Francis Wheen Eingeschränkte Leseprobe - 2005 |
How Mumbo-Jumbo Conquered the World: A Short History of Modern Delusions Francis Wheen Eingeschränkte Leseprobe - 2005 |
How Mumbo-Jumbo Conquered the World: A Short History of Modern Delusions Francis Wheen Eingeschränkte Leseprobe - 2012 |
Häufige Begriffe und Wortgruppen
Al Gore Alan Sokal alien American Anthony Robbins appeared argued astrologers believe bestseller Bible Code Britain British pounds Bush capital century Chopra Christian civilization Clinton conservative crash critics cultural decades Deepak Chopra defense democracy democratic described Diana earth economic Economist Enlightenment Enron fact Francis Wheen Friedman Fukuyama George global God’s Gore Griffith Observatory Guardian guru H. L. Mencken human Huntington idea industry intellectual Islamic John Journal later leader liberal live London magazine man’s Margaret Thatcher ment million British pounds modern moral Muslim Newsweek percent philosopher political politicians post-modernists President prime minister Princess Professor published reality reason religious reported right-wing Ronald Reagan seemed September social Sokal Soviet theory tion told Tony Blair trade traditional truth United University Wall Street Washington Post week Western wrote X-Files York