Genes and the Bioimaginary

"In Genes and the Bioimaginary, Deborah Lynn Steinberg, professor of Gender, Culture and Media Studies at the University of Warwick, UK, has carried out a masterful, far-ranging analysis of how the gene has come to dominate Western discourses of identity, justice, psychology, and medicine, and the ways in which projections about how genes shape our agency, wellbeing, and social worth have seduced us into placing more belief into the power of genetic science than is warranted and have thus granted it a good deal of sway in our lives... [It] is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the ways in which contemporary genetics has covertly and overtly revived old notions of racial science and eugenics."— Gina Maranto, University of Miami, Biopolitical Times

"Deborah Lynn Steinberg’s account of the ideologies underlying modern genetics is by far the very best critical reading of the subject. Taking the science seriously, she unravels many of the unstated social and cultural presuppositions that are masked by the claims of genetics as an objective science. An intelligent, readable book for everyone with a genome."—Sander L. Gilman, Emory University, USA

"In Genes and the Bioimaginary, Steinberg calls us to acknowledge our collective authorship of the reproductive/transformative agencies of science. Through a well-chosen set of cases, her incisive and eloquent analytic voice offers us a passionately critical exposition of the gene, and guides us to a deeper understanding of the inseparability of scientific and cultural imaginaries."—Lucy Suchman, Lancaster University, UK

"Through the powerful notion, Bio-imaginary, Steinberg communicates a deep understanding of the intricate dispersals of knowledge, power and bodily sensibilities found in modern day genetics. This extraordinary book is contemporary, fascinating and a challenging intellectual intervention, jam-packed with illuminating case studies. Steinberg is dazzling when pushing theoretical boundaries. Scholars from many disciplines will be compelled to read her brilliance."—Elizabeth Ettorre, University of Liverpool, UK

"Steinberg not only questions the impacts of scientific research but the social conditions and cultural context that make it persuasive. In doing so she opens up fascinating discussions about not just the politics of science, but the purpose of it as a field. It is for this reason this book is worth reading."—Simon Copland, The Guardian