Benjamin's concept of magic is one of the most significant notions which is often misunderstood by many readers. There is no doubt that the concept is easily used to enhance the mysterious aura of Benjamin's philosophy.
However, Benjamin's concept of magic is nothing less than the way in which he articulates the theory of Darstellung, the embodiment of the real, against Hegelian formulation of Vorstellung; his concept is designed to work out the "reflection without mediation."
More significantly, Benjamin adapts the Romantic idea of reflection, and transforms it into the idea that reflection is equivalent to thinking, or, better still, the systemic effect of language. In this way Benjamin's concept of magic anticipates the linguistic turn whereby Western philosophy revolutionary changes its own fundamental framework.
Tuesday, May 25, 2004
Monday, May 24, 2004
Reading Benjamin
Reading Benjamin is to understand how the new idea of something comes out of the old one. Benjamin calls this as the construction of tradition.
Tradition is not only the conventional system repressing the "newness", but also the host of the novelty. Actually, Benjamin's theoretical methodology is well observed in the modern fashion system. Is this irony or not?
Yes. This is nothing less than the ironic mechanism whereby the reactionary politics gives rise to the revolutionary acitivity, let alone the new comes out of the old. Benjamin witnesses the paradoxical tendency as the aspect of modernity.
As is well known, Benjamin's style is the embodiment of this contradictory modernity. Reading Benjamin means the ironic work to understand the complex reality of modernity in a way that the partial reality is reflected in the fragmental figuration, the place of poetic imagination. This is the very form which Benjamin's idea of the aesthetic takes.
Tradition is not only the conventional system repressing the "newness", but also the host of the novelty. Actually, Benjamin's theoretical methodology is well observed in the modern fashion system. Is this irony or not?
Yes. This is nothing less than the ironic mechanism whereby the reactionary politics gives rise to the revolutionary acitivity, let alone the new comes out of the old. Benjamin witnesses the paradoxical tendency as the aspect of modernity.
As is well known, Benjamin's style is the embodiment of this contradictory modernity. Reading Benjamin means the ironic work to understand the complex reality of modernity in a way that the partial reality is reflected in the fragmental figuration, the place of poetic imagination. This is the very form which Benjamin's idea of the aesthetic takes.
As it begins
Today, I open this talking-machine, talking to another myself or other-selves. I don't know what will be shown here -- everything is not mystery, but something real coming out of my immanence. There is no criterion for the way in which my talking-machine works. Talking-machine is just a machine, but not using my mouth-machine. Is this weird? No. Thinking is a source of energy operating the machine. This is the way to entertain myself properly.
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