The Wiley: Semiotic Self (Paper) - Softcover

WILEY

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0226898164 ISBN 13: 9780226898162

Publisher: University of Chicago Press, 1995

Synopsis

In this book, Norbert Wiley offers a new interpretation of the nature of the self in society. Current theories of the self tend to either assimilate the self to a community or larger collective, or reduce the self to body. In distinct opposition to these theories, Wiley makes the case for an autonomous self, a human being who is a repository of rights, a free and equal agent in a democracy consisting of other selves.

Drawing on a fresh synthesis of the writings of Charles Sanders Peirce, George Herbert Mead, and others, Wiley argues that the self can be seen as an internal conversation, or a "trialogue" in which the present self ("I") talks to the future self ("you") about the past self ("me"). A distinctive feature of Wiley's view is that there is a mutually supportive relation between the self and democracy, and he traces this view through American history. In finding a way to decenter the self without eliminating it, Wiley supplies an alternative to current theories of postmodernism, a much-needed closure to classical pragmatism, and a new direction to neo-pragmatism.

About this title

Review

"Wiley has entered a very important and controversial debate, in the politics of identity, with an extremely interesting and provocative theory ... [He] has encouraged the development of social theory in innovative directions. This latest publication promises more of the same. For those who take the social constitution of self as a central problematic, Wiley′s book is the first major contribution in a long time." American Journal of Sociology

"Highly stimulating and illuminating work." Contemporary Sociology

"No brief review can do justice to the profundity and scope of this work ... Wiley displays impressive erudition and an exceptional ability to make fine distinctions ... Above all, I found this work a refreshing effort to rethink one of the givens of symbolic interactionism." Symbolic Interaction

"An unusual and challenging assessment." Social Forces

From the Back Cover

This work offers a novel and challenging interpretation of the nature of the self. In opposition to currently fashionable theories, Wiley argues that the self is an integral and autonomous entity. The self is interpreted as a semiotic structure and on this basis the author presents an original analysis of the origins of self–identity. The book draws particularly upon two philosophical sources: the writings of Charles Sanders Peirce and George Herbert Mead. The result is a "trialogical" model in which the present self ("I") talks to the future self ("you") about the past self ("me"). A distinctive feature of Wiley′s view is that there is a mutually–supportive relation between the self and democracy, a view which he traces through American history.

Providing as it does a means of interpreting the politics of identity in relation to such issues as class, gender, ethnicity, religion and sexual orientation, this book will stimulate wide interest.

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Publication date: 1995
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0226898164
• ISBN 13: 9780226898162
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 264