- Hardcover: 330 pages
- Publisher: Harvard University Press (20 Jun 2008)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0674028376
- ISBN-13: 978-0674028371
- Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 16.3 x 3.3 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,333,363 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
Benjamin's -abilities
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Review
It is...typical of Weber's work, which often teases out complexities and infelicities in English translations of seminal German texts
--Times Literary Supplement, 14 November 2008
--Times Literary Supplement, 14 November 2008
Product Description
"There is no world of thought that is not a world of language," Walter Benjamin remarked, "and one only sees in the world what is preconditioned by language." In this book, Samuel Weber, a leading theorist on literature and media, reveals a new and productive aspect of Benjamin's thought by focusing on a little-discussed stylistic trait in his formulation of concepts.Weber's focus is the critical suffix "-ability" that Benjamin so tellingly deploys in his work. The "-ability" (-barkeit, in German) of concepts and literary forms traverses the whole of Benjamin's oeuvre, from "impartibility" and "criticizability" through the well-known formulations of "citability," "translatability," and, most famously, the "reproducibility" of "The Work of Art in the Age of Its Technological Reproducibility." Nouns formed with this suffix, Weber points out, refer to a possibility or potentiality, to a capacity rather than an existing reality. This insight allows for a consistent and enlightening reading of Benjamin's writings.Weber first situates Benjamin's engagement with the "-ability" of various concepts in the context of his entire corpus and in relation to the philosophical tradition, from Kant to Derrida. Subsequent chapters deepen the implications of the use of this suffix in a wide variety of contexts, including Benjamin's "Trauerspiel" book, his relation to Carl Schmitt, and a reading of Wagner's "Ring". The result is an illuminating perspective on Benjamin's thought by way of his language - and one of the most penetrating and comprehensive accounts of Benjamin's work ever written.
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3 of 5 people found the following review helpful
seagull-ability
10 Sep 2008
Format:Hardcover
Samuel Weber mentions at the end of this stirring engagement with the writing and thought of Walter Benjamin that this work had a gestation of about forty years. Given the patient teasing of German words and suffixes throughout, of their etymological and allegorical valences, it does not surprise that this book represents a lifetime of work and thought. The book is divided into two main parts: the first explores key forms, stylistic tics and themes in Benjamin's writing, as on media, translation and history. Weber inaugurates the second section, largely readings of Benjamin's readings or readings of others with Benjamin, with a soaring journey through The Origin of German Tragic Drama (1924). The final chapter on "Seagulls" glides the reader to a gently rocking conclusion, allowing one to lean back to better focus on the horizon of one's thoughts. This book is peppered with engagements with other philosophers such as Aristotle, Kant, Deleuze, Schmitt, and Derrida. One chapter possesses the subtitle: "Agamben Reading Benjamin Reading Kafka Reading Cervantes...", perhaps revealing Weber's predilection for provocative synchronic passages. This book revealed a new Benjamin to me and I am grateful for the guiding thoughtfulness of its author.
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