Book edited by fifth-year philosophy of architecture lecturer to be released in September

David Bowie and Philosophy: Rebel, Rebel – edited by Theodore “Ted” G. Ammon, Ph.D. – is currently available for pre-order on Amazon. The book will go on sale Sept. 6.

Jackson-native Ammon, an associate professor of philosophy at Millsaps College, teaches the philosophy of architecture course at the Mississippi State University School of Architecture’s Jackson Center.

The associate professor has also edited Conversations with William H. Gass as well as authored Imagine U.

“As one can see, the quality of the adjunct faculty teaching in our Jackson Center fifth-year program is stellar,” said Director and F.L. Crane Professor Michael Berk. “We are so fortunate to have a nationally-recognized philosopher engaging with our students in their final year of study.” 

About the book – via amazon.com:

“The philosophically rich David Bowie is an artist of wide and continuing influence. The theatrical antics of Bowie ushered in a new rock aesthetic, but there is much more to Bowie than mere spectacle. The visual belies the increasing depths of his concerns, even at his lowest personal moments. We never know what lies in store in a Bowie song, for there is no point in his nearly 30 albums at which one can say, “That’s typical Bowie!” Who else has combined techno and hard rock, switched to R&B love songs (with accompanying gospel) to funk to jazz-rock fusion and back again?

Among the topics explored in David Bowie and Philosophy are the nature of Bowie as an institution and a cult; Bowie’s work in many platforms, including movies and TV; Bowie’s spanning of low and high art; his relation to Andy Warhol; the influence of Buddhism and Kabuki theater; the recurring theme of Bowie as a space alien; the dystopian element in Bowie’s thinking; the role of fashion in Bowie’s creativity; the aesthetics of theatrical rock and glam rock; and Bowie’s public identification with bisexuality and his influence within the LGBTQ community.”

See the announcement in MSU’s Maroon Memo.