C.L.R. James and the Study of Culture

Written by Andrew Smith. Published by Palgrave Macmillan 2010

“In this welcome book Andrew Smith provides a holistic approach to understanding CLR James, one that links his sports and cultural commentary succinctly and successfully with his broader ideological and intellectual agendas. Smith raises the understanding of James to a new level and allows for a more insightful application of the Jamesian ideas to all areas of contemporary cultural analysis” Professor Brian Stoddart

Alongside his many pioneering historical and political interventions, James was a penetrating commentator on cultural matters, writing with flair and insight about a vast range of topics from Shakespeare to Joe Louis, calypso to Herman Melville, Jackson Pollock to Greek tragedy.

This book provides the first full-length study of this aspect of James’s work. Written in a lively, accessible style, it draws out the central -and often provocative- claims of his cultural analysis, and places these in their historical and political context, arguing that James should be considered key reading for anyone interested in making sense of contemporary culture and its political ramifications.

Andrew Smith is Lecturer in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Applied Social Sciences, University of Glasgow, UK and a former Director of the Centre for Research on Racism, Ethnicity and Nationalism. His research focuses on the politics of culture, particularly in the context of the British Empire and its aftermath.

Reviews:

‘In this welcome book Andrew Smith provides a holistic approach to understanding C.L.R. James, one that links his sports and cultural commentary succinctly and successfully with his broader ideological and intellectual agendas.Smith raises the understanding of James to a new level, and allows for more insightful application of the Jamesian ideas to all areas of contemporary cultural analysis.’ – Professor Brian Stoddart, Formerly Vice Chancellor, La Trobe University Australia

‘Smith’s work achieves its admirable aim of providing ‘a clear account of James’s approach to the various practices and products of human creativity’, and so will doubtless be appreciated by both those new to James and ‘James-scholars’ alike.’ – Interventions: International Journal of Postcolonial Studies

Contents:

Introduction
1 Forms
2 Contexts
3 Crowds
4 Players
5 Uses
Conclusion

The book may be purchased here.