Rational Ritual

Michael Suk-Young Chwe, a professor of political science at UCLA and the author of Jane Austen, Game Theorist, tackles important, even crucial, questions regarding the modern knowledge-based economy and how societies work. Stated in abstract terms, some questions can sound pretty philosophical, such as “How can you know what I know?” But, Chwe grounds these abstractions in concrete examples, like antiwar protests, advertising and the Super Bowl. For an academic book, his brief exploration is quite clearly written. However, it is still an academic text, and can be slow going at times. Still, getAbstract recommends Chwe’s intelligent explorations to anyone interested in theories of knowledge, culture, community creation or meaning.