Special issue ‘The Spectre of Europe’ in EJCS is out

A special issue of the European Journal of Cultural Studies on knowledge, cultural studies and the ‘rise of Asia’ is out. The issue is edited by Yiu Fai Chow and me, and has contributions by Rey Chow, Koichi Iwabuchi, Kwai Cheung Lo, Giselinde Kuipers and myself. We start the issue with an exploration of the ambiguity of the idea of Europe. In particular, two tropes – Europe-as-theory and Europe-as-power – continue to haunt knowledge production and cultural studies in Asia. How to proceed? What should cultural studies do if it is to embrace this historical conjuncture of shifting modes of knowledge and power production, how to deal with its Anglocentrism and Eurocentrism? While this special issue allies itself with attempts to unsettle Eurocentrism in knowledge production, it is not making any plea for regionally- rooted practices or theories. It argues for better understanding, dialogue and cross- fertilisation between cultural studies and area studies. The former needs the latter’s sensibility to spatial and cultural context as much as the latter needs the former’s theorisations.

Here you can find the introduction

Here you can find my article titled ‘Europe as Facade’

Here is the link to the journal