Each month this reading group selects a key text or problematic from Fredric Jameson’s work and reads about 100 pages together. We meet in a large Zoom meeting to hear from a scholar, writer, or thinker for whom Jameson has been a key influence. These guest speakers are not asked to lecture, per se, but to be in conversation about their own reading of the text, highlighting key moments, explicating subtleties, and suggesting questions for further dialogue in advance of small group discussion. The Jameson Reading Group is a free program, open to all, coordinated in partnership with Verso, Public Books, and the Aydelotte Foundation at Swarthmore College. It is volunteer-run by Dennis Hogan, Charlotte Rosen, Matthew Ellis, Tim Thomas, Mia Schatz, and Andy Hines.
Over the last several months, hundreds of us from around the world have met together to read Jameson’s work, hear from scholars, and offer our thoughts in conversation. Our first meeting explored A Singular Modernity with Anna Kornbluh and Kirk Boyle, and our latest session looked at The Political Unconscious with Sarah Brouillette and Mathias Nilges. An edited recording of our first meeting is available here.
Our next session is set to take place on Sunday, January 26th at 2PM ET. We will be reading from An American Utopia (pages 1-97), as well as Archaeologies of the Future (pages xi – 10). Free PDF copies are available for those who RSVP.
While this list is subject to change, here is our current outline for future readings:
February: Postmodernity – Postmodernism, Periodizing the Sixties
March: Totality and Conspiracy – Geopolitical Aesthetic, Cognitive Mapping
April: Literature and Form – Antinomies of Realism
May: Allegory – Allegory and Ideology
June: Conclusion – Years of Theory
This page will be updated with video recordings and reading assignments as they become available. If you would like to be added to the group listserv, please send your name and email address to tim@versobooks.com.
