Stuart Hall, Conjunctural Analysis and Cultural Criminology: A Missed Moment (Palgrave Pioneers in Criminology)

"An incisive and perceptive reminder of Stuart Hall's towering intellectual legacy and of the urgent need to resuscitate conjunctural analysis. The benefits of applying it to issues and movements such as Brexit, Black Lives Matter and Trumpism could hardly be more evident or more topical." --David Brown, Emeritus Professor, University of New South Wales "This is a book which... is steeped in a knowledge of cultural studies... The intellectual scope of the book makes it a really original, enlightening and accessible read... for all those interested in any aspect of social and cultural research." --Rosalind Brunt, Visiting Research Fellow, Media Studies, Sheffield Hallam University "There is nothing more important right now than to understand the current conjuncture, and Jefferson, whose psychosocial work in cultural studies and criminology remains groundbreaking, is just the person to illuminate the ways race, class, and heteronormativity are yoked together currently and expressed in the Brexit movement and in Trumpism." --Lynne Layton, Harvard Medical School This book discusses Stuart Hall's unique contribution to Criminology. It suggests that this is captured best in Hall's commitment to understanding a given historical moment, or conjuncture, in its full complexity, and his continuous deployment of an appropriate methodology, conjunctural analysis, to do so. This provides a running thread linking Hall's early work on youth subcultures, the media, the state and hegemony to his later work on racial identities, racism and the politics of difference. This is contrasted with more theoretically-driven work in cultural criminology. Its failure to adopt a conjunctural approach constitutes, for the author, something of a missed moment. To demonstrate the continuing relevance of this form of analysis, the book provides a conjunctural analysis of Brexit, including its psychosocial dimension, and concludes with a brief analysis of Trump's failure to get re-elected. The book is intended for students of criminology and cultural studies. Tony Jefferson is Emeritus Professor in Criminology at Keele University, UK. He worked with Stuart Hall and others to produce Resistance through Rituals (1976/2006) and Policing the Crisis (1978/2013) Preface Acknowledgements Praise for Stuart Hall, Conjunctural Analysis and Cultural Criminology Contents About the Author Abbreviations 1 Introduction and Overview Chapter by Chapter Overview References Part I Stuart Hall and Conjunctural Analysis 2 Conjunctural Analysis Part One: From Early Political Writings to Resistance Through Rituals What Is a Conjuncture? What Is Conjunctural Analysis? RTR and PTC: Different Sides of the Same Conjunctural Coin References 3 Conjunctural Analysis Part Two: The Case of Policing the Crisis A Short Detour via Marx PTC Part I: From Particular ‘Mugging’ Trials to the Determinations of an Over-Reaction Part II: From the Reception of Media Messages to the Determinations of Ideologies of Crime and Punishment Part III: From Moral Panics to the Determinations of a Crisis of Hegemony Part IV: From the Lives of Black Youths to the Determinations of the Politics of Mugging Conclusion References Part II Cultural Criminology, Theorising and Stuart Hall 4 Cultural Criminology Part One: The Problems with a Theory-Driven Methodology An Overview of the Cultural Criminology Project City Limits and the Limitations of Theory ‘Merton with Energy, Katz with Structure’: An Imaginary Synthesis Summary and Conclusion References 5 Cultural Criminology Part Two: Ethnography, Carnival and the Need for Critique A Tale of Two Ethnographies A Traditional Ethnography: Carl Nightingale’s On the Edge A Cultural Criminology Ethnography: Jeff Ferrell’s Tearing Down the Streets Comparing the Ethnographies in Their Own Terms The Question of Attentiveness Data and Theory Comparing Ethnographies in Terms of their Relationship to Conjunctural Analysis Comparing a Conjunctural and a Cultural Criminological Approach to Carnival A Conjunctural Approach to Carnival: Stallybrass and White’s The Politics and Poetics of Transgression A Cultural Criminological Approach to Carnival: Mike Presdee’s Cultural Criminology and the Carnival of Crime Summarising the Differences Between the Two Approaches Cultural Criminology and Conjunctural Analysis: A Summary Conclusion References 6 Hall’s Theorising: The Importance of a Principled Eclecticism Principle 1: A Historically Materialist Starting Point and Problematic Principle 2: A Dialogic Approach to Critique Principle 3: A Complex Understanding of Social Relations Relative Autonomy and the Effectivity of the Superstructures The Role of Language and the Discursive Turn Identity and Articulation Summary and Conclusion References Part III Conjunctural Analysis Today: Brexit, Trump and the Politics of Difference 7 Race, Immigration and the Politics of Difference New Ethnicities, New Identities The Multicultural Question and the Politics of Difference References 8 The Brexit Conjuncture Part One: The Referendum Result and How We Got to 9/11 The 2016 Referendum Results Critiquing a Common Sense Understanding of Brexit Building a Better Analysis: Getting Started The Media and Expertise The Geography and Demography of the Leave Vote From Phenomenon to Explanation: Beginning the Analysis Deepening the Analysis: How We Got There References 9 The Brexit Conjuncture Part Two: From 9/11 to the 2016 Referendum But How Has It Been for the Middle Classes? From New Labour to the Coalition Government, 2010 From the Coalition Government to 2016 Immigration, Racism and Xenophobia The Brexit Conjuncture: What Kind of ‘Moment’? References 10 Conclusion: From Policing the Crisis to Trump, and Beyond The Politics of Populism: Is a Left Populism Possible? Authoritarian Populism and the Authoritarian State: Complementary Poles Ideal Types or Conjunctural Analysis: The Importance of Contradictions After Trump: Climate Change, the Refugee Crisis, Black Lives Matter and the Covid Pandemic Coming to an End, for the Moment References Part IV Coda 11 Hall, Psychoanalysis and the Problem of Populist Anger Why Is It Difficult to Think About Anger in Relation to the Conjuncture? Why Did Hall Find Psychoanalysis and the Psychosocial Difficult to Work with? Why Have Psychoanalytic Attempts at a General Theory Been ‘Largely Unsuccessful’? Barry Richards’ Psychosocial Approach to Populist Anger How Might Psychoanalysis Focusing ‘on Its Own Object’ Provide a Way Forward? Melanie Klein, Object Relations and Anxiety Jessica Benjamin, the Oedipal Complex and Masculinity So, Where Does All This Leave Us, Politically? References Index "This book discusses Stuart Hall's unique contribution to criminology. It suggests that this is captured best in Hall's commitment to understanding a given historical moment, or conjuncture, in its full complexity, and his continuous deployment of an appropriate methodology, conjunctural analysis, to do so. This provides a running thread linking Hall's early work on youth subcultures, the media, the state and hegemony to his later work on racial identities, racism and the politics of difference. This is contrasted with more theoretically-driven work in cultural criminology. Its failure to adopt a conjunctural approach constitutes, for the author, something of a missed moment. To demonstrate the continuing relevance of this form of analysis, the book provides a conjunctural analysis of Brexit, including its psychosocial dimension and concludes with a brief analysis of Trump's failure to get re-elected. The book is intended for students of criminology and cultural studies"-- retailer's webpage