Bloomsbury On Consumer Culture, Identity, The Church and the Rhetorics of Delight (Reading Augustine)

Product Description The Reading Augustine series presents short, engaging books offering personal readings of St. Augustine of Hippo's contributions to western philosophical, literary, and religious life. Mark Clavier draws on Augustine of Hippo to provide a philosophical explanation for the success of marketing and consumer culture. Augustines thought, rooted in rhetorical theory, presented a brilliant understanding of the experiences of damnation and salvation that took seriously the often hidden psychology of human motivation. His keen insight into the power of delight over personal notions of freedom and self-identity can be used to shed light on how the constant lure of promised happiness shapes the identities of consumers. From Augustines perspective, it is only by addressing the sources of delight within consumerism and by rediscovering the wellsprings of spiritual thought that we can effectively challenge consumer culture. To an age awash with commercial rhetoric, the fifth-century Bishop of Hippo offers a theological rhetoric that is surprisingly contemporary and insightful. Review "Clavier's work is highly readable, avoids technical jargon, and is practical ... This is not just a book to understand culture. It will not leave any reader's own relationship to consumerism unexamined, an inescapable fate, thankfully." - Reading Religion "[A] noteworthy exploration of Augustine in relation to contemporary realities and a significant contribution to Christian approaches to consumer culture." - Augustinian Studies "Clavier's work provides an insightful assessment of a media-embedded culture through the eyes of Saint Augustine. This work would be welcome in any theological library or any institutions with a faith and learning integration component." - Catholic Library World "Mark Clavier's book is a significant piece of work, I hope it is widely read, and that he will continue to work on this." - Education Priest About the Author Mark Clavier is Vice-Principal and Charles Marriott Director of Pastoral Studies at St Stephens House, Oxford and an Associate Member of the Faculty of Theology and Religion at the University of Oxford, UK. Originally from the United States, he has lived in the UK since 2008 and served in parishes for more than fifteen years in both countries. His past publications include Rescuing the Church from Consumerism (2013) and Eloquent Wisdom: Rhetoric, Cosmology, and Delight in the Theology of Augustine of Hippo (2014).