Manifesto for Philosophy: Followed by Two Essays: "the (Re)Turn of Philosophy Itself" and "Definition of Philosophy" (Suny Series, Intersections, Philosophy and Critical Theory) [Paperback]

Alain Badiou (Author), Norman Madarasz (Translator)

Book Description

Series: Suny Series, Intersections: Philosophy and Critical Theory | Publication Date: June 24, 1999

An excellent introduction to the work of one of the most important philosophers writing today, Manifesto for Philosophy will undoubtedly quicken the discourse that has become too comfortable with its own death" - Joan Copjec, author of Read My Desire: Lacan against the Historicists

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Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Alain Badiou is Professor of Philosophy at Universite Paris 8--"Vincennes at Saint-Denis," Saint-Denis, France. He is also Conference Director at the Colle~ge International de Philosophie in Paris. He has published extensively and his books include Theorie du sujet, Peut-on penser la politique? and Casser en duex l'histoire du monde? among others.

Product Details

• Paperback: 190 pages
• Publisher: State University of New York Press (June 24, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0791442209
• ISBN-13: 978-0791442203
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #731,346 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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29 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Philosophy or Sophistry?, January 2, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Manifesto for Philosophy: Followed by Two Essays: "the (Re)Turn of Philosophy Itself" and "Definition of Philosophy" (Suny Series, Intersections, Philosophy and Critical Theory) (Paperback)

If anything, Badiou's book poses a serious challenge to the dominance of Heidegger in continental philosophy today. Philosophy can never announce its own end, the end of philosophy. Neither can philosophy pretend to lose itself in the linguistic turn, in the shift from logic and reason to poetry. Philosophy, Badiou argues, must be distinguished from sophistry. Just as Plato founded philosophy from the thralls of sophism of his age, we too must recapture the 'Platonism' of philosophy in an age of anti-Platonism. Badiou's middle course between Plato, on one hand, and the likes of Heidegger and Deleuze, on the other hand, proposes the ideal of philosophy that is not-yet and, more importantly, not reducible to extreme conclusions, i.e., the rejection of philosophy as a dead endeavor. Philosophy is not the antithesis of sophism, and in this the true opposed to the false, but Badiou contends that sophism is a necessary partner of philosophy. In this schema, philosophy must be distinguished from sophism; that is, we must uphold a conception of truth, or rather, of truths. Philosophy seeks the truth in the plural, truth as multiple but which is nevertheless truth and not relative 'truth.'

In 'Manifesto,' Badiou engages with the dominant currents of philosophy today in order to reimagine the possibility of philosophy despite the skeptics. In the anglo-american vs. continental split in contemporary philosophy, one is often left to choose two impossible alternatives: logic or poetry. In 'Manifesto' Badiou opens up another way, a way that is a return to that which has always been with us all along.