On the Brinks of Language: Benjamin’s Approach to a Tragic Dialogue

The aim of this article is to explore the potential tension that according to Walter Benjamin is at stake in the opposition between the bourgeois conception of language and an inquiry into the essence of language, taking into account important texts written in 1916, in order to shed light on languag...

Full description

Saved in:  
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Religions
Main Author: Hansen, Bjarke Mørkøre Stigel (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Drawer...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Published: MDPI 2024
In: Religions
Year: 2024, Volume: 15, Issue: 1
Further subjects:B Silence
B Language
B tragic
B Benjamin
B Communication
Online Access: Volltext (kostenfrei)
Volltext (kostenfrei)
Description
Summary:The aim of this article is to explore the potential tension that according to Walter Benjamin is at stake in the opposition between the bourgeois conception of language and an inquiry into the essence of language, taking into account important texts written in 1916, in order to shed light on language that moves in the direction of a dialogical situation premised on a tragic approach. More specifically, beginning with an outline of Benjamin’s notion of the relationship between language and action, with particular attention to his 1916 letter to Martin Buber and the role of language, it then goes on to discuss the structure of language in the 1916 essay on language, at the end of which Benjamin asserts that there is a “tragic relationship between the languages of human speakers”. Drawing on a posthumously published essay from 1916, entitled The Role of Language in Tragedy and Trauerspiel, it finally seeks to show how this tragic relationship is essential to a dialogical situation.
ISSN:2077-1444
Contains:Enthalten in: Religions
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.3390/rel15010076