Cynical Theories

BOOK OF THE YEAR in The Times, the Sunday Times and the Financial TimesHave you heard that language is violence and that science is sexist? Or been told that being obese is healthy, that there is no such thing as biological sex, or that only white people can be racist? Are you confused by these ideas, and do you wonder how they have managed so quickly to challenge the very logic of Western society?Helen Pluckrose and James Lindsay document the evolution of the dogma behind these ideas, from its origins in French postmodernism to its refinement within activist academic fields. Today this dogma is recognisable as much by its effects, such as cancel culture and social-media pile-ons, as by its assertions, which are all too often taken as read: knowledge is a social construct; science and reason are tools of oppression; all human interactions are sites of oppressive power play; and language is dangerous. As they warn, the unchecked proliferation of these beliefs present a threat to liberal democracy.While acknowledging the need to challenge the complacency of those who think a just society has been fully achieved, Pluckrose and Lindsay break down how often-radical activist scholarship does far more harm than good, not least to those marginalised communities it claims to champion.

Politics & Social Sciences

Pluckrose Helen; Li

Social Sciences

Swift Press

BOOK OF THE YEAR in The Times, the Sunday Times and the Financial Times 
‘This book exposes the surprisingly shallow intellectual roots of the movements that appear to be engulfing our culture’ Steven Pinker 
Cynical Theories argues that struggles for social justice are strongest when they are founded on respect for evidence, reason, and free and open debate. It deplores the harm that closed-minded Social Justice ideologues, cancel culture and social media pile-ons are doing to the cause of social justice and liberal democracy itself. 
Pluckrose and Lindsay demonstrate that only through proper understanding of the evolution of these ideas can we challenge this harmful orthodoxy, and offer practical strategies to combat it.

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Books by Pluckrose Helen; Li

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Pluckrose Helen; Li. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Cynical Theories

Cynical Theories