The Benjamin Files

The Benjamin Files provides a new reading of Benjamin's major works, exploring his anti-philosophical and anti-systematic thinking influenced by his vocation as a writer. It reveals a coexistence of language fields and thematic codes, highlighting the tension between his mystical and political inclinations. The book emphasizes the priority of language and representation over philosophical unity and highlights Benjamin's political motivations through the omnipresence of History in his writing. It encourages the reader to translate literary issues into political ones of another era.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 272 pages
Publication date: 22 March 2022
Publisher: Verso Books

The Benjamin Files presents a comprehensive and in-depth exploration of all of Benjamin's major works, as well as a substantial collection of his shorter book reviews, notes, and letters. The central premise of this work is that Benjamin was an anti-philosophical and anti-systematic thinker whose conceptual interests were deeply influenced by his vocation as a writer. As a result, a complex and multifaceted linguistic and thematic landscape emerged, where different language fields and thematic codes overlapped and sometimes appeared to contradict each other. This perspective offers valuable insights into the much-debated tension between Benjamin's mystical or theological inclinations and his political or historical leanings.

Furthermore, The Benjamin Files sheds light on the three-way tug of war over Benjamin's heritage among adherents of his friends Scholem, Adorno, and Brecht. By adopting a Brechtian standpoint, this work provides a more nuanced understanding of Benjamin's ideas than most influential academic studies. Benjamin's corpus is remarkable for its prioritization of language and representation over philosophical or conceptual unity. His political motivations are further clarified by examining the omnipresent presence of History throughout his writing, from his shortest articles to his most ambitious projects.

One of Benjamin's explicit goals was to transfer the crisis into the heart of language or, in other words, to detect class struggle at work in the most minute literary phenomena. This program necessitated the reader to translate the linguistic or representational literary issues that concerned Benjamin back into the broader, often implicitly political ones. However, these latter issues belong to a different era, which we must strive to access and understand in order to fully appreciate Benjamin's work.

In conclusion, The Benjamin Files provides a fresh and insightful perspective on the life and work of Benjamin, challenging traditional interpretations and offering a deeper understanding of his complex and multifaceted ideas. Through its comprehensive analysis of Benjamin's major works, shorter writings, and political motivations, this work offers valuable insights into the enduring relevance of his thought in contemporary discourse.

Weight: 248g
Dimension: 139 x 209 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781839765575