{"product_id":"9781517919344-spectropolis","title":"Spectropolis","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Enchantment of Capital in Singapore\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eHow economic transformation and the spirit world collide in hypermodern Singapore\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e   \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e In Singapore, the financial center of Southeast Asia, hyperurbanization and commercial development exist alongside enduring belief in the economic power of ghosts: in their ability to control the flows of money and value and to determine the outcome of investments and wagers. \u003ci\u003eSpectropolis\u003c\/i\u003e explores the unlikely collusion of these two systems, demonstrating both the productive role of popular beliefs in the modern world and the surprising correlations between “late” capitalism and the workings of the spirit realm. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e   \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e Detailing the logic and practices of Singapore’s ghost economy-from performing exorcisms on real estate development sites to offering money and commodities to the dead as a hedge against precarious real-world transactions-Joshua Comaroff shows how speculative finance, largely governed by chance and volatility, is understood via its inherently spectral qualities. Through the influence of Chinese Buddhist-Taoist thought, the movement of capital is placed under the sway of cosmology and geomancy, resulting in a built environment that is both technologically advanced and quite literally enchanted. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e   \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e Based on detailed case studies and years of extensive fieldwork, \u003ci\u003eSpectropolis\u003c\/i\u003e argues for the power of popular belief systems to theorize contemporary socioeconomic conditions and to give form to collective affect as well as shared aspirations and anxieties. As Comaroff demonstrates, the uniquely all-consuming nature of Singapore’s tightly compressed urban economy is such that it may subsume even that which lies beyond the threshold of life itself. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e   \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e   \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eRetail e-book files for this title are screen-reader friendly with images accompanied by short alt text and\/or extended descriptions.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56581630198134,"sku":"9781517919344","price":20.71,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/orig_37684791.jpg?v=1762395804","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9781517919344-spectropolis","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}