Benjamin's Arcades: An Unguided Tour (encounters: Cultural Histories)

The Arcades Project, Walter Benjamin's unfinished masterpiece, is a brilliant but maddening book. This book looks for the method behind the madness, carefully reconstructing the intellectual and political context of the work and unpacking its numerous analogies, metaphors and conceptual gambits. Written by three literary scholars and one historian, this text is both a reading companion and a vigorous interpretation of one of the most important humanistic texts of the twentieth century. The Arcades Project, Walter Benjamins unfinished masterpiece, is a brilliant but maddening book. Benjamins an unGuided Tour looks for the method behind the madness, carefully reconstructing the intellectual and political context of the work and unpacking its numerous analogies, metaphors and conceptual gambits. Written by three literary scholars and one historian, this text is both a reading companion and a vigorous interpretation of one of the most important humanistic texts of the twentieth century. Benjamins Arcades is composed of 16 entries and a specially designed 'convoluted' index. Some of the entries confront Benjamin with a different reading of his own historical sources (Blanqui, Marx, Giedion), others look intensively at key themes, obsessions, and images (the gambler, commodity fetishism, the Angel of History, magic). Throughout there is discussion of the relationship of Benjamins work to current and past debate on topics such as modernity, Judaism, fascism, and psychoanalysis. Benjamins Arcades opens up Benjamins texts to a variety of interdisciplinary perspectives and will be an essential text for those seeking to better understand this extraordinary work. 'benjamin's Arcades' Is An Innovative Text For Students And Specialists On The Intellectual And Political Context Of Walter Benjamin's Unfinished Masterpiece, 'the Arcades Project'. It Includes A Special 'convoluted Index' To Aid The Reader In Discovering Recurrent Themes And Ideas, Both In The Book Itself And Benjamin's Methods. Encounters: Introductory Notes And Historical Perspectives -- Arcades -- Method -- Judaism -- Modernity/modernism -- Magic -- Empathy/einfühlung -- Insurrection -- The Angel Of History -- Awakening -- Advertising -- Nations -- Jeux/joie/jouissance -- Idleness -- Night -- Nazis -- Ending. Peter Buse ... [et Al.]. Includes Index. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 187-198) And Index. Contents 6 Preface: beginnings 8 Acknowledgements 11 References and abbreviations 12 Encounters Introductory notes and historical perspectives 14 Arcades 26 Method 43 Judaism 54 Modernity/modernism 61 Magic 72 Empathy/ Einfuhlung 84 Insurrection 96 The Angel of History 108 Awakening 118 Advertising 126 Nations 138 Jeux/joie/jouissance 149 Idleness 161 Night 171 Nazis 186 Ending 197 Bibliography 200 Index 212 An innovative and valuable text for students and specialists on the intellectual and political context of Walter Benjamin's unfinished masterpiece, The Arcades Project Authored by three literary scholars and one historian, all of whom are highly regarded in their respective fields Includes a special 'convoluted index', designed to.