New Books In Communications

Figures of Freedom: Representations of Agency in a Time of Crisis takes on the idea and terminology of freedom, examining our understanding of this concept and our relationship to the word itself as well as what it means to society, culture, and politics. Randy Laist and Brian A. Dixon, two scholars who often explore popular culture to better understand the society and politics all around us, have brought their admirable skills to Figures of Freedom, where they have assembled a broad array of contributors exploring freedom in a host of different venues and artifacts. The thrust of the book is to examine representations of freedom in the early 21st century, and the authors look at this evolving nature of freedom in popular culture 21st century texts, where they trace this shifting discourse across time and geography. Broad questions are at the heart of Figures of Freedom: who gets to be free? What is freedom? How does freedom work or play out in different situations and settings? Is freedom itself an archaic i