4 Stars
In 1996, New York University physicist Alan Sokal wrote a paper, "Transgressing the Boundaries: Toward a Transformative Hermeneutics of Quantum Gravity", discussing how theories of quantum gravity prove that physical 'reality' is merely a social construction and exploring the resulting progressive political implications and the need for a new "liberatory postmodern science" and mathematics. On the day it was published by the journal Social Text, Sokal revealed that it was nonsense: nothing more than "a melange of truths, half-truths, quarter-truths, falsehoods, non sequiturs, and syntactically correct sentences that have no meaning whatsoever", along with a large number of (regrettably accurate) fawning quotations of the editors of Social Text and other postmodern luminaries (268-269). How shocking.
Fashionable Nonsense, coauthored by Sokal and Belgian physicist Jean Bricmont (originally published in French as Impostures Intellectuelles in 1997) is another product of the same research that prompted Sokal to perpetrate his hoax. Troubled in the mid-90s by reports of 'postmodern' intellectuals abusing scientific concepts in their work, Sokal did some research and found plenty of examples. A few were incorporated into his hoax, but there was not room for many of them there. To complement "Transgressing the Boundaries", Sokal and Bricmont compiled many of the most flagrant cases of scientific abuse into this volume, accompanied by clear explanations of what is wrong with the examples considered and how they are abusive.
The postmodern luminaries Sokal and Bricmont consider are Jacques Lacan, Julia Kristeva, Luce Irigaray, Bruno Latour, Jean Baudrillard, Gilles Deleuze, Felix Guattari and Paul Virilio. All are represented through lengthy extracts from their offending works. Many reviewers of this volume have claimed to find the nonsense spouted by these individuals inadvertently hilarious. I personally found it more depressing (and often painful) to read their twisted prose with at least a partially open mind. I couldn't bring myself to enjoy the book, though I recognize the service it does in battling obscurantism and abuse of scientific terminology. In addition there are three 'intermezzos': one on epistemic relativism in the philosophy of science that didn't overly impress me, as well as two more entertaining chapters on abuse and confusion related to chaos theory and Godel's theorem. Finally, Fashionable Nonsense includes Sokal's "Transgressing the Boundaries" and some related material in appendices.
As a second edition, Sokal and Bricmont have a valuable opportunity to clear up ambiguities and misunderstandings as well as address criticism of the original French Impostures Intellectuelles. For instance, they are able to emphasize (repeatedly) that their purpose isn't to challenge postmodern philosophy as such, only "to denounce intellectual posturing and dishonesty" (16) as related to scientific concepts. In addition, they note that 'postmodernism' is not a strictly accurate term and is used in part "for convenience" (14) and refute accusations of being right-wing reactionary American intellectual imperialists (Sokal's leftist credentials include a pilgrimage to Nicaragua in the '80s to teach mathematics under the Sandinistas).
While the mid-90s furor over the 'science wars' seems to have died down, Fashionable Nonsense still performs a valuable service in exposing and debunking abuse of science, expanding the critique introduced by Sokal's hoax. Though I didn't find the book enjoyable reading, it effectively delivers an important message and constructive critique.
(6 February 2006)
