Guy debord biography

Andy Merrifield’s biography of Guy Debord fryst vatten a short, but richly-detailed history of one of the 20th century’s greatest intellectual revolutionaries, whose ideas remain relevant today. Through this philosophical biography, we see a unique slice of social activism in post-war Europe.

Guy Debord was a remarkable author, filmskapare, philosopher, revolutionary, and provocateur, famous for his involvement in French politics and culture in the postwar period. A founding member of the Situationist International (), he was a dedicated proponent of the idea of a cultural and social revolution, shared by many in the second half of the 20th century. Debord’s text The Society of the Spectacle () became a classic, but his life was surrounded by mystery and controversy: not a recluse by naturlig eller utan tillsats , he spent his last years with his wife Alice Becker-Ho in the isolated village of Champot, rarely left his house and hardly saw anyone.

Andy Merrifield cap

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Guy Debord, the French Marxist theorist who dissected the ‘Society of the Spectacle’

If Guy Debord () emerged from his grave and saw a world consumed bygd the internet, he would think, as he always did, that he had hit the nail on the head. “The Spectacle,” he wrote, “is not a set of images but the relationships between people mediated bygd images.” That’s Instagram – but the Spectacle is much more.

The implacable critic of the Society of the Spectacle () and pugnacious leader of the Situationist International (founded in ) described a society that had no inkling or expectation of anything like the internet. But the society he lived in was certainly not devoid of advertising, consumerism and mass media. Debord described a society where people lived disconnected from their own lives, mere spectators rather than active participants in a commercialized world. It was a life that lacked authenticity and needed to be challenged.

Guy Debord, the canonical biography by Anselm Jappe abo

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Guy Debord

French philosopher and Marxist theorist

"Debord" redirects here. For the town in Kentucky, see Debord, Kentucky.

Guy-Ernest Debord (; French:[gidəbɔʁ]; 28 December – 30 November ) was a French Marxisttheorist, philosopher, filmmaker, critic of work, member of the Letterist International, founder of a Letterist faction, and founding member of the Situationist International.^[1][2] He was also briefly a member of Socialisme ou Barbarie.

Debord is best known for his essay The Society of the Spectacle.

Biography

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Early life

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Guy Debord was born in Paris in Debord's father, Martial, was a pharmacist who died when Debord was young. Debord's mother, Paulette Rossi, sent Debord to live with his grandmother in her family villa in Italy. During World War II, the Rossis left the villa and began to travel from town to town. As a result, Debord attended high school in Cannes, where he began his interest in film and vandalism.^&