Language and Death

Language and Death | Giorgio AgambenUniversity of Minnesota Press | English | ISBN: 0816649235 | 136 pages | RAR | 3.73 Mb

Explores the symbiosis of philosophy and literature in understanding negativity.

A formidable and influential work, Language and Death sheds a highly original light on issues central to Continental philosophy, literary theory, deconstruction, hermeneutics, and speech-act theory. Focusing especially on the incompatible philosophical systems of Hegel and Heidegger within the space of negativity, Giorgio Agamben offers a rigorous reading of numerous philosophical and poetic works to examine how these issues have been traditionally explored. Agamben argues that the human being is not just “speaking” and “mortal” but irreducibly “social” and “ethical.”

“Makes a remarkable contribution. Language and Death combines erudition with analytical rigor and is most provocative. Giorgio Agamben deploys an impressive knowledge of the history of Western thought in his analysis of the place of negativity in philosophical discourse.” —Robert Harrison, Stanford University