Spinoza Beyond Philosophy

Features 10 engaging and original essays reveals that Spinoza is the interdisciplinary thinker for our times. What did Spinoza ever do for us? Discover how Spinoza's theory of bodies transforms our understanding of music, and how it grounds 'collective subjectivity' in contemporary politics. Learn how Spinoza's idea of freedom was instrumental to the Haitian revolution of 1791, and how it inspired Samuel Taylor Coleridge's prose and George Eliot's novels. Find out how contemporary architecture, ecological activism and the concept of human nature can be rethought through Spinoza's theory of affectivity. These 10 new essays reveal Spinoza's connection to literature, politics, the environment and beyond. Takes Spinoza beyond the philosophy classroom and shows how his thought is deeply connected to a variety of fields of study: ecology, architecture, politics, literature, history and music and presents Spinoza in a new light: as a thinker whose ideas have always been relevant for problem solving across disciplinary boundaries.