Reimagination of the World: A Critique of the New Age, Science, and Popular Culture [Paperback]

David Spangler (Author), William Irwin Thompson (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This book records the talks and writings of Spangler and Thompson stemming from two seminars conducted at the Chinook Learning Center near Seattle during 1988-89. Spangler coined the term "New Age" in the early 1970s. Here, with Thompson, he discusses the definitions and problems of this young movement. Along with a thorough analysis of New Age, the authors study the role of imagination in the transformation of culture. The improvisational nature of the talks mixed with dialogs with seminar participants causes some redundancy. The style is scholarly, yet this work should prove useful in defining and balancing New Age collections.
- L. Kriz, Sioux City P.L., Ia.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 218 pages
• Publisher: Bear & Company (August 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0939680920
• ISBN-13: 978-0939680924
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #715,637 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clarity At Last: "Reimagining" the New Age, February 14, 2002

By 

Thomas T. Hite (Rialto, California, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Reimagination of the World: A Critique of the New Age, Science, and Popular Culture (Paperback)

David Spangler and William Irwin Thompson "reimagine" the New-Age in this clear, sometimes shocking discussion. Based around the forums of two major New-Age conventions in 1988 and 1989, their visons and interpretations of countless aspects of what is commonly referred to as the "New Age" are the kind of candid, honest appeal to humanity that is so rare in this oftentimes overly-metaphysical genre. While the numinous aspects of reality are not spared (they fully discuss astral projection, channelling, and the like of modern "crystal worshippers"), what is refreshing is the humor and human-ness which accompany their insight. Being a reader who was raised with the concepts of past-life regression and karma as a moral and spiritual guidepost, I have often struggled with the paradoxical nature of the new-age movement. Seeming inacessible, lofty, and pretentious, this emotionally indulgent attempt at enlightmennt sent me searching Christianity for answers. Needless to say, I arrived at the discovery that both crystals and Christ can be limiting. Thus, my finding Spangler's and Thompson's exegesis on their comprehensive experience as both founders and dissentors of the new-age movement was fortunate; their ideas will engender a synthesis of thought both full of enlightenment and common sense - a combination rare in the often-megalomaniacal realm of spirituality and religion.