The Truth of the Technological World : Essays on the Genealogy of Presence

Friedrich Kittler (1943-2011) combined the study of literature, cinema, technology, and philosophy in a manner sufficiently novel to be recognized as a new field of academic endeavor in his native Germany. "Media studies," as Kittler conceived it, meant reflecting on how books operate as films, poetry as computer science, and music as military equipment. This volume collects writings from all stages of the author's prolific career. Exemplary essays illustrate how matters of form and inscription make heterogeneous source material (e.g., literary classics and computer design) interchangeable on the level of function--with far-reaching consequences for our understanding of the humanities and the "hard sciences." Rich in counterintuitive propositions, sly humor, and vast erudition, Kittler's work both challenges the assumptions of positivistic cultural history and exposes the over-abstraction and language games of philosophers such as Heidegger and Derrida. The twenty-three pieces gathered here document the intellectual itinerary of one of the most original thinkers in recent times--sometimes baffling, often controversial, and always stimulating. Philosopher, cultural historian, and literary critic Friedrich Kittler had appointments at several German and American universities over the course of his academic career, concluding with his tenure as Chair of Aesthetics and Media History at the Humboldt University of Berlin. Publisher's note Poet, Mother, Child : On The Romantic Invention Of Sexuality -- Nietzsche (1844-1900) -- Lullaby Of Birdland -- The God Of The Ears -- Flechsig/schreber/freud : An Information-network At The Turn Of The Century -- Romanticism, Psychoanalysis, Film : A Story Of Doubles -- Media And Drugs In Pynchon's Second World War -- Heinrich Von Ofterdingen As Data-feed -- World-breath : On Wagner's Media Technology -- The City Is A Medium -- Rock Music, A Misuse Of Military Equipment -- Signal-to-noise Ratio -- The Artificial Intelligence Of World War : Alan Turing -- Unconditional Surrender -- Protected Mode -- There Is No Software -- Il Fiore Delle Truppe Scelte -- Eros And Aphrodite -- Homer And Writing -- The Alphabet Of The Greeks : On The Archeology Of Writing -- In The Wake Of The Odyssey -- Martin Heidegger, Media, And The Gods Of Greece : De-severance Heralds The Approach Of The Gods -- Pathos And Ethos : An Aristotelian Observation -- Media History As The Event Of Truth : On The Singularity Of Friedrich A. Kittler's Works / Hans Ulrich Gumbrecht. Friedrich A. Kittler ; [edited And] With An Afterword By Hans Ulrich Gumbrecht ; Translated By Erik Butler. Originally Published In German In 2013 Under The Title Die Wahrheit Der Technischen Welt. A Collection Of Twenty-three Essays Which Appeared Between 1978 And 2010. Includes Bibliographical References. Twenty-three essays that document the intellectual itinerary of the philosopher and cultural historian, one of the most original thinkers in recent times. Friedrich Kittler (1943–2011) combined the study of literature, cinema, technology, and philosophy in a manner sufficiently novel to be recognized as a new field of academic endeavor in his native Germany. “Media studies,” as Kittler conceived it, meant reflecting on how books operate as films, poetry as computer science, and music as military equipment. This volume collects writings from all stages of the author’s prolific career. Exemplary essays illustrate how matters of form and inscription make heterogeneous source material (e.g., literary classics and computer design) interchangeable on the level of function—with far-reaching consequences for our understanding of the humanities and the “hard sciences.” Rich in counterintuitive propositions, sly humor, and vast erudition, Kittler’s work both challenges the assumptions of positivistic cultural history and exposes the over-abstraction and language games of philosophers such as Heidegger and Derrida.