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Immediacy, or The Style of Too Late Capitalism

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Immediacy, or The Style of Too Late Capitalism
Book cover image for this book
Book jacket for "Immediacy"
AuthorAnna Kornbluh
Audio read bySara Sheckells
LanguageEnglish
SubjectCritical theory, Pop culture
GenreNonfiction
Set inEurope and the United States
Published2024
PublisherVerso Books
Media typePrint, E-book, Audio
Pages240
ISBN9781804291344 9781804291368
OCLC1463467886
700.1
WebsiteOfficial website

Immediacy, or The Style of Too Late Capitalism is a nonfiction book by Anna Kornbluh. It was published in 2024 by Verso Books. In this book, Kornbluh shows how western societies' obsession with the immediate present shapes every part of today's culture, from modern novels and streaming apps to psychoanalysis. This is the author's fourth book, and the first published with a non-academic press.[1][2][3][4][5]

Synopsis

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According to Kornbluh, her central theme of "Immediacy" is a cultural style that removes middlemen and barriers.[6] It highly values speed, transparency, directness, and personal authenticity. This trend centers entirely on the individual self and its direct experience with culture, promoting the ego above all else. This has resulted in a shift in capitalism. In other words, modern capitalism, referred to as "too late capitalism" or neoliberalism, has shifted its focus [6] Instead of producing new things, it focuses on rapidly circulating and rearranging existing things as in goods, information, people. Technology and deregulation have created a flat, fast-paced world where everything must be instantly available and constantly flowing. [6][7][8][9]

The author points to evidence of this style across society, including:[8]

  • The rise of first-person writing and autobiographical fiction.
  • Instant digital communications like emojis and clicks.
  • Endless scrolling and sharing on social media.
  • "Immersive" art exhibits and video streaming.

Instant engagement

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This has resulted in a rejection of the critical mediation occurring between art and observer. Culture has moved away from the a style of reflection, irony, and artistic distance. Instead, it favors direct, flat, and instant engagement where that which is described as authenticity is treated as a brand. Such things result in a negative impact. In other words, the constant flow and demand for instant gratification harm society by discouraging deep critical thinking. It prevents people from properly analyzing the world or imagining different social and political futures. So, the author’s goal is rather than critiquing traditional economic production, Kornbluh demonstrably critiques popular modern culture, arguing that the demand for "immediacy" is the defining thread of twenty-first-century life.[6][7][8][9]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Fogarasi, Christina (January 31, 2024). "Premium Content: On Anna Kornbluh's "Immediacy"". L.A. Review of Books (LARB). Retrieved May 25, 2026.
  2. ^ Robbins, Bruce (February 16, 2024). "Everything Everywhere All at Once All of the Time". Baffler. Retrieved May 25, 2026.
  3. ^ Suther, Jensen (December 12, 2024). "The Theory of Immediacy or the Immediacy of Theory?". Nonsite.org. Retrieved May 25, 2026.
  4. ^ Schlarb, Damien (2026). "Reviewed work: Immediacy, or, the Style of Too Late Capitalism, Anna Kornbluh". Amerikastudien / American Studies. 71 (1): 145–148. doi:10.33675/AMST/2026/1/12. JSTOR 48875041.
  5. ^ Inglis, David (2026). "Book Review: Immediacy: Or, the Style of Too Late Capitalism , by Kornbluh, Anna; Immediacy: Or, the Style of Too Late Capitalism, by AnnaKornbluhLondon and New York: Verso, 2024, 240 pp". Political Theory. 54 (3): 492–496. doi:10.1177/00905917251351569.
  6. ^ a b c d Bagherli, Omar (January 2024). "Anna Kornbluh, Immediacy, or, The Style of Too Late Capitalism". Chicago Review. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  7. ^ a b Niven, Alex (May 17, 2024). "What Comes After Late Capitalism?". Art Review. Retrieved May 25, 2026.
  8. ^ a b c Byron, Grace (January 31, 2024). "Antitheory: On Anna Kornbluh's "Immediacy"". Los Angeles Review of Books (LARB). Retrieved May 25, 2026.
  9. ^ a b Tally, Robert T. (2025). "Immediacy, or, the Style of Too Late Capitalism". Genre. 58: 179–184. doi:10.1215/00166928-11684106.
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Further reading

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