Meaning and Melancholy in the Thought of Emmanuel Levinas (Research in Contemporary Religion, 18)

This book is an elaborated version of my doctoral dissertation, and I first want to express my deep gratitude to my advisor Trygve E. Wyller for his continuous support and constructive supervision over several years. He has always been very generous, and his sensitivity to what really matters as well as his encouragement to go my own way has been very valuable. I am further thankful to several other scholars who were willing to read and discuss some of my sketches along the way. First of all Jean Greisch and Catherine Chalier in Paris, but also Rudolf Bernet, Roger Burggraeve and Rudi Visker in Leuven. I have also received valuable help from Henning Peucker and Nicolas de Warren in the initial phase of the project. My thanks also go to colleagues and former colleagues at the Faculty of Theology, University of Oslo, for valuable discussions and feedback: Øystein Although considered as one of the 20th century most central ethical thinkers, Emmanuel Levinas claimed that his task was not to construct an ethics, but to seek the meaning of the ethical. In this study Stine Holte examines the problem of ethical meaning in Levinas' thinking and shows how the articulation of the ethical implies notions like trauma, melancholy, and shame, and hence a questioning of what we normally regard as meaningful. -- Publisher's description

Although considered as one of the 20th century most central ethical thinkers, Emmanuel Levinas claimed that his task was not to construct an ethics, but to seek the meaning of the ethical. In this study Stine Holte examines the problem of ethical meaning in Levinas' thinking and shows how the articulation of the ethical implies notions like trauma, melancholy, and shame, and hence a questioning of what we normally regard as meaningful.

Biographical note: Stine Holte is a postdoc at the Faculty of Theology, University of Oslo.; Biographical note: Stine Holte is a postdoc at the Faculty of Theology, University of Oslo