In my recent piece on Fredric Jameson’s The Political Unconscious I recounted the experience of reading Jameson at 20 back when I was totally green. Reading Jameson back then made me hungry to master the immense range of theoretical traditions that he compresses into his work. The strange thing about reading Jameson is that his prose is actually quite relatable and readable. What throws you off are the range of references from within the history of philosophy, Marxism and literature that he brings to bear. Jameson’s erudition and range is immense, and it is by no means an exaggeration to say that he is likely the most prodigious Marxist scholar America has ever seen. His work compels me to read him at his level, however difficult, if not impossible, that may be.
In this podcast—shared above in audio format and below in video—I am joined by one of Jameson’s former students, Robert T. Tally. Robert and I explore the main ideas and major works of Jameson and we define his main concepts, from cognitive mapping, postmodernism to the poetics of social forms.
Robert T. Tally Jr. is a professor of English at Texas State University. His research and teaching focuses on the relations among space, narrative, and representation, particularly in U.S. and comparative literature. Order his new book The Future of Totality: Fredric Jameson and the Prospects of Critical Theory.
