Arguing that Brechtâs aesthetic theories are still highly relevant today and that an appreciation of his theory and theatre is essential to an understanding of modern critical theory this book examines the influence of Brechtâs aesthetic on the pre-eminent materialist critics of the twentieth century: Louis Althusser Walter Benjamin Roland Barthes Frederic Jameson Theodor W. Adorno and Raymond Williams. Re-reading Brecht through the lens of post-structuralism Sean Carney asserts that there is a Lacanian Brecht and a Derridean Brecht: the result of which is a new Brecht whose vital importance for the present is located in decentred theories of subjectivity. Brecht and Critical Theory maps the many ways in which Brechtian thinking pervades critical thought today informing the critical tools and stances that make up the contemporary study of aesthetics. . Language: English