Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection (European Perspectives Series) [Paperback]

Julia Kristeva (Author), Leon S. Roudiez (Translator)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Kristeva is one of the leading voices in contemporary French criticism, on a par with such names as Genette, Foucault, Greimas and others. . . . [Powers of Horror] is an excellent introduction to an aspect of contemporary French literature which has been allowed to become somewhat neglected in the current emphasis on paraphilosophical modes of discourse. -- Paul de Man

Review

Kristeva is one of the leading voices in contemporary French criticism, on a par with such names as Genette, Foucault, Greimas and others...[ Powers of Horror is] an excellent introduction to an aspect of contemporary French literature which has been allowed to become somewhat neglected in the current emphasis on para-philosophical modes of discourse. The sections on Céline, for example, are indispensable reading for those interested in this writer and place him within a context that is both illuminating and of general interest.

(Paul de Man )

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Product Details

• Paperback: 219 pages
• Publisher: Columbia University Press (April 15, 1982)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0231053479
• ISBN-13: 978-0231053471
• Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 0.6 x 8.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #250,303 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Are You Subject to Abjection? January 18, 2008

By texasamazon

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Excellent resource for the Lacanian scholar, if you are looking specifically at abjection. If you are looking at Subjectivity theory overall, however, this is too specific. Luckily, my focus is abjection, and this book really did wonders for the article I'm working on!

11 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Difficult but worthwhile, ohmy! March 10, 2005

By B. P. Tankersley

Format:Paperback

Don't be abjected even further than you already are, read this book and allow Kristeva's language to take you on a hallucinatory journey to the limits of symbolization. The act of reading this book can be, at times, an excersize in facing/coping with abjection. If you're patient, go slow, and finally understand thirty percent of this book, you'll be leagues ahead of most intellectuals out there.

10 of 39 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars abject waste of time February 3, 2009

By Jill B.

Format:Paperback

This book is unintelligible and I truly doubt that one would be "way ahead" of the intellectuals to understand 30% of it. Kristeva needs to tone down the effusive gibberish. The only parts I found interesting and accessible were her literary analyses. But, indeed, I would call this work pseudo-philosophy.