The public sphere is the realm of appearances - not citizenship. Its central event is spectacle - not dialogue. Marked by an asymmetry between the few who act and the many who watch, and subjecting all its contents to visibility, the public sphere can undermine liberal democracy, law, and morality. But the public sphere also liberates us from the burdens and bondages of private life and fosters an existentially vital aesthetic experience. Reign of Appearances uses a great variety of cases to reveal the logic of the public sphere, including homosexuality in Victorian England; the 2008 crash; antisemitism in Europe; confidence in American presidents; communications in social media; special prosecutor investigations; the visibility of African-Americans; violence during the French Revolution; the Islamic veil; contemporary sexual politics; public executions; and pricing in art. This unconventional account of the public sphere is critical reading for anyone who wants to understand the effects of visibility in urban life, politics, and the media.

The public sphere can undermine liberal democracy, law, and morality. But it also liberates us from the bondages of private life and fosters a vital aesthetic experience.

About the Author
Ari Adut is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Texas, Austin. He holds graduate degrees from the University of Chicago and the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Paris. He is also a former member of Institute for Advanced Study. He is the author of On Scandal: Moral Disturbances in Society, Politics, and Art (Cambridge, 2008). Adut's research has been featured in the New York Times and by the BBC, and it has received support from the Social Science Research Council and the American Council of Learned Societies.

Reviews
Advance praise: 'For most political theorists, the public sphere is simply the place where people like them argue about politics. Ari Adut thinks that this is both unrealistic and unimaginative. In this brilliant and original book, he gives us a far more critical account - and then a lovely (and unexpected) appreciation of how we live in public places and in public view.' Michael Walzer, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, New Jersey
Advance praise: 'An original, provocative, sustained, and sophisticated theoretical-cum-empirical work on a vital topic. Written with panache and style, and filled with deft scholarly references from the history of philosophy, the visual arts, and literature, the book is a great pleasure to read.' Jeffrey Alexander, Lillian Chavenson Saden Professor of Sociology, Yale University, Connecticut



Book Information
ISBN 9781316632383
Author Ari Adut
Format Paperback
Page Count 220
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 367g