The intoxication of destruction in theory, culture and media : a philosophy of expenditure after Georges Bataille

This book examines the desire for, and intoxication with destruction as it appears in cultural objects and representation, arguing that all cultural and aesthetic value is fundamentally predicated on its own fragility, as well as the living transience of those who make and encounter it. Beginning with a philosophy of expenditure after Georges Bataille, each chapter maps different operations of destruction in media and culture. These operations are expressed and located in representations of human extinction and explosive architecture, in execution and in eroticism, and in media and digital archives, which constitute a further destabilization of the notion of destruction in the dynamic between aspirational immortality and material volatility embedded in the archival systems of digital cultures. This Book Examines The Desire For, And Intoxication With, Destruction As It Appears In Cultural Objects And Representation, Arguing That All Cultural And Aesthetic Value Is Fundamentally Predicated On Its Own Fragility, As Well As The Living Transience Of Those Who Make And Encounter It. Beginning With A Philosophy Of Expenditure After Georges Bataille, Each Chapter Maps Different Operations Of Destruction In Media And Culture. These Operations Are Expressed And Located In Representations Of Human Extinction And Explosive Architecture, In The Body And In Sexuality, And In Media And Digital Archives, Which Constitute A Further Destabilisation Of The Notion Of Destruction In The Dynamic Between Aspirational Immortality And Material Volatility Embedded In The Archival Systems Of Digital Cultures. Preface: The Intoxication Of Destruction -- Introduction: Destruction And Immortality -- Destruction 1: Energy -- Part 1: The General Economy -- Part 2: Sovereignty And Heterogeneity -- Destruction 2: World -- Part 1: Exploding Monuments (the Destruction Of Architecture) -- Part 2: Extinction (the Destruction Of Everyone Else) -- Destruction 3: Body -- Part 1: Spectacular Expenditure (from Sacrifice To Execution) -- Part 2: Eroticism (the Destruction Of Sexuality) -- Destruction 4: Matter -- Part 1: Accelerating Destruction (the Material Of Media) -- Part 2: The Material Of The Digital (computational Immortality) -- Conclusion: The Destroyers. Erin K. Stapleton. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Cover -- Table Of Contents -- Acknowledgements -- Preface: The Intoxication Of Destruction -- Introduction: Destruction And Immortality -- The Origins Of Destruction, Immortality -- Expenditure And Destruction In Media Cultures -- Works Cited -- Destruction I: Energy -- Part 1: The General Economy -- Part 2: Sovereignty And Heterogeneity -- Works Cited -- Destruction Ii: World -- Part 1: Exploding Monuments (the Destruction Of Architecture) -- Part 2: Extinction (the Destruction Of Everyone Else) -- Works Cited -- Destruction Iii: Body Part 1: Spectacular Expenditure (from Sacrifice To Execution) -- Part 2: Eroticism (the Destruction Of Sexuality) -- Works Cited -- Destruction Iv: Matter -- Part 1: Accelerating Destruction (the Material Of Media) -- Part 2: The Material Of The Digital (computational Immortality) -- Works Cited -- Conclusion: The Destroyers -- Works Cited -- Bibliography -- Index Electronic Reproduction. Baltimore, Md Available Via World Wide Web. This book examines the desire for, and intoxication with, destruction as it appears in cultural objects and representation, arguing that all cultural and aesthetic value is fundamentally predicated on its own fragility, as well as the living transience of those who make and encounter it. Beginning with a philosophy of expenditure after Georges Bataille, each chapter maps different operations of destruction in media and culture. These operations are expressed and located in representations of human extinction and explosive architecture, in the body and in sexuality, and in media and digital archives, which constitute a further destabilisation of the notion of destruction in the dynamic between aspirational immortality and material volatility embedded in the archival systems of digital cultures.-- Provided by publisher This introduction provides an overview of the book’s approach to the creation, reproduction and destruction in and of theory, culture and media. Beginning with the prehistorical establishment of sedentary communities and tracing some relevant cultural undercurrents, it provides a meta-analytical genealogy of the concept of expenditure after Georges Bataille. The destruction of energy in excess of need is shown to be an underlying principle that ensures the paradoxical tension between the desire for immortality and destruction as it is expressed in human culture. The chapter also provides the contextual and theoretical basis for the book, as the intoxication of destruction, and describes the destructive tension-relation at the heart of each subsequent chapter.