A Finite Thinking (Cultural Memory in the Present) [Hardcover]

Jean-Luc Nancy (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0804739005 | ISBN-13: 978-0804739009 | Publication Date: October 6, 2003 | Edition: 1

This book is a rich collection of philosophical essays radically interrogating key notions and preoccupations of the phenomenological tradition. While using Heidegger’s Being and Time as its permanent point of reference and dispute, this collection also confronts other important philosophers, such as Kant, Nietzsche, and Derrida. The projects of these pivotal thinkers of finitude are relentlessly pushed to their extreme, with respect both to their unexpected horizons and to their as yet unexplored analytical potential. A Finite Thinking shows that, paradoxically, where the thought of finitude comes into its own it frees itself, not only to reaffirm a certain transformed and transformative presence, but also for a non-religious reconsideration and reaffirmation of certain theologemes, as well as of the body, heart, and love. This book shows the literary dimension of philosophical discourse, providing important enabling ideas for scholars of literature, cultural theory, and philosophy.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“This book is a splendid demonstration of the many joys of thinking about thought itself. The finitude highlighted in the title applies to the concepts of thinking that Nancy expertly and adroitly elucidates: sense, sacrifice, existence, presence, love, the body. Nancy shows us that thinking is not a chess game of large, ungainly abstract pieces; it is a dance of specificity much akin to poetry and art themselves.” —Henry Sussman,State University of New York at Buffalo

From the Inside Flap

This book is a rich collection of philosophical essays radically interrogating key notions and preoccupations of the phenomenological tradition. While using Heidegger’s Being and Time as its permanent point of reference and dispute, this collection also confronts other important philosophers, such as Kant, Nietzsche, and Derrida. The projects of these pivotal thinkers of finitude are relentlessly pushed to their extreme, with respect both to their unexpected horizons and to their as yet unexplored analytical potential. A Finite Thinking shows that, paradoxically, where the thought of finitude comes into its own it frees itself, not only to reaffirm a certain transformed and transformative presence, but also for a non-religious reconsideration and reaffirmation of certain theologemes, as well as of the body, heart, and love. This book shows the literary dimension of philosophical discourse, providing important enabling ideas for scholars of literature, cultural theory, and philosophy.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 360 pages
• Publisher: Stanford University Press; 1 edition (October 6, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804739005
• ISBN-13: 978-0804739009
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,823,413 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best philosophy book since..., February 27, 2006

By 

Pen Name? "fluxus" - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Finite Thinking (Cultural Memory in the Present) (Paperback)

since Difference and Repetition. Sure it's not a single masterwork, but rather many many essays, but it's amazing and complex and revealing... Now, none of it will likely make sense unless you're relatively deep into continental philosophy already, but for those who are readers in the field, if you haven't spent time on Nancy, you're just spinning your wheels. Yup. Oh, and this will put Being and Time into perspective for you too, and should be read alongside your Levinas, too.