Prompted by the 2011 Egyptian uprising, this book-length essay on the cultural politics of sleep takes Tawfiq al-Hakim’s 1933 play The People of the Cave as its starting point in an exploration of the speculative, revolutionary potential of sleep.

Not Dead But Sleeping

Politics & Social Sciences

Subin, Anna Della

Philosophy

Triple Canopy

NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY IRISH TIMES AND TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT A provocative history of men who were worshipped as gods that illuminates the connection between power and religion and the role of divinity in a secular age Ever since 1492, when Christopher Columbus made landfall in the New World and was hailed as a heavenly being, the accidental god has haunted the modern age. From Haile Selassie, acclaimed as the Living God in Jamaica, to Britain's Prince Philip, who became the unlikely center of a new religion on a South Pacific island, men made divine--always men--have appeared on every continent. And because these deifications always emerge at moments of turbulence--civil wars, imperial conquest, revolutions--they have much to teach us. In a revelatory history spanning five centuries, a cast of surprising deities helps to shed light on the thorny questions of how our modern concept of "religion" was invented; why religion and politics are perpetually entangled in our supposedly secular age; and how the power to call someone divine has been used and abused by both oppressors and the oppressed. From nationalist uprisings in India to Nigerien spirit possession cults, Anna Della Subin explores how deification has been a means of defiance for colonized peoples. Conversely, we see how Columbus, Cortés, and other white explorers amplified stories of their godhood to justify their dominion over native peoples, setting into motion the currents of racism and exclusion that have plagued the New World ever since they touched its shores. At once deeply learned and delightfully antic, Accidental Gods offers an unusual keyhole through which to observe the creation of our modern world. It is that rare thing: a lyrical, entertaining work of ideas, one that marks the debut of a remarkable literary career.

Accidental Gods: On Men Unwittingly Turned Divine

History

World

Metropolitan Books

About the Author Anna Della Subin is a writer, critic, and independent scholar born in New York. Her essays have appeared in the New York Review of Books, Harper's, the New York Times, and the London Review of Books. A senior editor at Bidoun, she studied the history of religion at Harvard Divinity School. Accidental Gods is her first book. Product Description NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY ESQUIRE, THE IRISH TIMES AND THE TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENTA provocative history of men who were worshipped as gods that illuminates the connection between power and religion and the role of divinity in a secular ageEver since 1492, when Christopher Columbus made landfall in the New World and was hailed as a heavenly being, the accidental god has haunted the modern age. From Haile Selassie, acclaimed as the Living God in Jamaica, to Britain’s Prince Philip, who became the unlikely center of a new religion on a South Pacific island, men made divine―always men―have appeared on every continent. And because these deifications always emerge at moments of turbulence―civil wars, imperial conquest, revolutions―they have much to teach us.In a revelatory history spanning five centuries, a cast of surprising deities helps to shed light on the thorny questions of how our modern concept of “religion” was invented; why religion and politics are perpetually entangled in our supposedly secular age; and how the power to call someone divine has been used and abused by both oppressors and the oppressed. From nationalist uprisings in India to Nigerien spirit possession cults, Anna Della Subin explores how deification has been a means of defiance for colonized peoples. Conversely, we see how Columbus, Cortés, and other white explorers amplified stories of their godhood to justify their dominion over native peoples, setting into motion the currents of racism and exclusion that have plagued the New World ever since they touched its shores.At once deeply learned and delightfully antic, Accidental Gods offers an unusual keyhole through which to observe the creation of our modern world. It is that rare thing: a lyrical, entertaining work of ideas, one that marks the debut of a remarkable literary career. Review “An irreverent bible in its own right, a sort of celestial thought experiment . . . On the one hand, Subin says, deification has been used to subjugate, to colonize, to oppress . . . But Subin also draws attention to deification’s emancipatory potential . . . A roving and ambitious book.” ―Jennifer Szalai, The New York Times Book Review “Who can make a god is as fascinating a question as who can kill one . . . Anna Della Subin writes beautifully of the spiritual life of marginalized people, taking their devotions seriously and revealing the subversive purpose and power of the beliefs and practices that their oppressors so often misunderstood . . . convincing . . . compassionate . . . compelling.” ―The New Yorker “With a stylish, playful, at times almost biblical authorial voice, as well as a keen eye for history’s most revealing paradoxes and charming cul-de-sacs, Subin restores to view . . . this dazzling pantheon of inadvertent deities.” ―The New Republic “Riveting . . . The book is replete with astonishing details . . . Subin, who combines fierce analytic intelligence with powerful storytelling, has synthesized vast amounts of information [and] deftly places [apotheosis] in the broader context of imperialism.” ―Claire Messud, Harper's Magazine “Bracingly original . . . brilliant . . . irresistible . . . Though Accidental Gods wears its learning lightly and is tremendous fun to read, it also includes a series of lyrical and thought-provoking meditations on the largest of themes . . . As Subin’s rich, captivating book shows, religion is a symbolic act: though we cannot control the circumstances, we all make our own gods, for our own reasons, all the time.” ―New York Review of Books “Anna Della Subin has lit upon a startling strand

Accidental Gods: On Race, Empire, and Men Unwittingly Turned Divine

Spanning the globe and five centuries, Accidental Gods introduces us to a new pantheon: of man-gods, deified politicians and imperialists, militants, mystics and explorers. From the conquistadors setting foot in the New World to Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, elevated by a National Geographic article from emperor to messiah for the Rastafari faith, to the unlikely officers hailed as gods during the British Raj, this endlessly curious and revelatory account chronicles an impulse towards deification that persists even in a secular age, as show of defiance or assertion of power.\nIn her bravura final part, Subin traces the colonial desire for divinity through to the creation of 'race' and the white power movement today, and argues that it is time we rid ourselves of the white gods among us.

Granta Books

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

Books by Subin, Anna Della

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

Not Dead But Sleeping

Accidental Gods: On Men Unwittingly Turned Divine

Accidental Gods: On Race, Empire, and Men Unwittingly Turned Divine

Accidental Gods: On Men Unwittingly Turned Divine