>have _The System of Objects_ (1968) and _Consumer Society_ (1970) - his
>attempts to extend marxist critique beyond mode of production - ever been
>fully translated into English?...
Yes, according to Amazon, the first from Verso and the second from Sage. I was reading the excerpts in Mark Poster's collection. I don't believe I've ever read the editor of a collection write something like this in the intro: "Baudrillard's writing is open to several criticisms. He fails to define his major terms, such as the code; his writing style is hyperbolic and declarative, often lacking sustained, systematic analysis when it is appropriate; he totalizes [gasp!] his insights, refusing to qualify or delimit his claims. He writes about particular experiences, television images, as if nothing else in society mattered, extrapolating a bleak view of the world from that limited base. He ignores contradictory evidence such as the many benefits afforded by the new media, for example, by providing vital information to the populace (the Vietnam War) and counteracting parochialism with humanizing images of foreigners. The instant, worldwide availability of informaiton has changed the human society forever, probably for the good." There's also a translation note before the intro saying "Baudrillard rarely provides full citations in his own notes. The editor and the translators have attempted to complete the citation, but in some cases this has proven impossible. At times Baudrillard cites French translations of English or American works which are unavailable in the United States. At other times, Baudrillard's quotations have not been located anywhere in the text he cites."
In the excerpt from Consumer Society in the collection, B attributes this remark to J.K. Galbraith: "Man has become the object of science for man only since automobiles have become harder to sell than to manufacture." The footnote says: "The translator and editor are unable to locate this wonderful reference from Galbraith." I asked JK's son Jamie Galbraith if he recognized the quote and he said he didn't.
Doug