casparb's review
4.0
I'm not so interested in becoming one of the Žižek absolutists we see here and there, but all the same this was an impressive, broad text. Žižek takes an Adam Curtis-esque survey of world economic powers, sprinkles in the expected digressions concerning Hegel and Lacan, and tackles some cultural issues too.
I think the broad prescriptive conclusions he draws are correct, if a little nonspecific. But perhaps that is a strength. Overall the book wasn't exactly a cure to pessimism - but that's not what Žižek is aiming for. I'm not certain how to approach that really. It lives up to the hopelessness of the title, only I'm undecided on where exactly that leaves me: I think what I'm trying to say is that it was a depressing read, but this is no fault of the author - if anything it attests to his effectiveness.
I think the broad prescriptive conclusions he draws are correct, if a little nonspecific. But perhaps that is a strength. Overall the book wasn't exactly a cure to pessimism - but that's not what Žižek is aiming for. I'm not certain how to approach that really. It lives up to the hopelessness of the title, only I'm undecided on where exactly that leaves me: I think what I'm trying to say is that it was a depressing read, but this is no fault of the author - if anything it attests to his effectiveness.
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