In this Book
- Saints Of The Impossible: Bataille, Weil, And The Politics Of The Sacred
- Book
- 2002
- Published by: University of Minnesota Press
summary
The transgressive writing of Georges Bataille (1897-1962) and the rigorous ethical philosophy of social activist and Christian mystic Simone Weil (1909-1943) seem to belong to different worlds. Yet in the political ferment of 1930s Paris, Bataille and Weil were intellectual adversaries who exerted a powerful fascination on each other. Saints of the Impossible provides the first in-depth comparison of Bataille’s and Weil’s thought, showing how an exploration of their relationship reveals new facets of the achievements of two of the twentieth century’s leading intellectual figures, and raises far-reaching questions about literary practice, politics, and religion. Considering the seeming antithesis between Weil’s heroic political engagement and Bataille’s antipolitical aestheticism, Saints of the Impossible brings out the insufficiently recognized performative dimension of Weil’s politics, while revealing the political reach of Bataille’s mystical writings. As it opens a new perspective on both Weil and Bataille, the book also points to a new way of understanding the uses and abuses of sacred power and the performative in an era of philosophical disorientation, social chaos, and war.
Table of Contents
Download Full Book
- Title Page, Copyright
- pp. i-iv
- Acknowledgments
- pp. vii-viii
- Abbreviations
- pp. ix-x
- Works Cited
- pp. 245-252
- About the Author
- p. 259
Additional Information
ISBN
9780816693429
Related ISBN(s)
9780816639038
MARC Record
OCLC
180702219
Pages
288
Launched on MUSE
2015-01-01
Language
English
Open Access
No