Nudités

by Giorgio Agamben

Encompassing a wide range of subjects, the ten masterful essays gathered here may at first appear unrelated to one another. In truth, Giorgio Agamben's latest book is a mosaic of his most pressing concerns. Take a step backward after reading it from cover to cover, and a world of secret affinities between the chapters slowly comes into focus. Take another step back, and it becomes another indispensable piece of the finely nuanced philosophy that Agamben has been patiently constructing over four decades of sustained research.If nudity is unconcealment, or the absence of all veils, then Nudities is a series of apertures onto truth. A guiding thread of this collectionis inoperativity, or the cessation of work. The term should not be understood as laziness or inertia, but rather as the paradigm of human action in the politics to come. Itself the result of inoperativity, Nudities shuttles between philosophy and poetry, philological erudition and unexpected digression, metaphysical treatise and critique of modern life. And whether the subject at hand is personal identity or the biometric apparatus, the slanderer or the land surveyor, Kafka or Kleist, every page bears the singular imprint of one of the most astute philosophers of our time.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Italian Literature, Social Science, Essays

169 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Giorgio Agamben is one of the leading figures in Italian and contemporary continental philosophy. He is the author of Homo Sacer: Sovereign Power and Bare Life; Remnants of Auschwitz: The Witness and the Archive; Profanations; The Signature of All Things: On Method, and other books. Through the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s he treated a wide range of topics, including aesthetics, literature, language, ontology, nihilism, and radical political thought.

In recent years, his work has had a deep impact on contemporary scholarship in a number of disciplines in the Anglo-American intellectual world. Born in Rome in 1942, Agamben completed studies in Law and Philosophy with a doctoral thesis on the political thought of Simone Weil, and participated in Martin Heidegger’s seminars on Hegel and Heraclitus as a postdoctoral scholar.

He rose to international prominence after the publication of Homo Sacer in 1995. Translated into English in 1998, the book’s analyses of law, life, and state power appeared uncannily prescient after the attacks on New York City and Washington, DC in September 2001, and the resultant shifts in the geopolitical landscape. Provoking a wave of scholarly interest in the philosopher’s work, the book also marked the beginning of a 20-year research project, which represents Agamben’s most important contribution to political philosophy.

Reviews

[Virga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Trumpi skyriukai, skirti visokiems posthumanizmo klausimams, kartais labai gerai pakreiptiems. Nuogybė, silpnumas arba anti-visagalybė, kaukės (tos platesne prasme), kūnas - visą tą trumpai ir tiksliai aiškina senas įgududęs Agambenas. Beveik nebemoksliškai, bet meistriškai visom prasmėm.

[Melania 🍒 · Rating 1 out of 5]

1/5 Nothing here for me...
Nu știam de tema preponderent religioasă a eseurilor . La asta s-a adăugat modul opac al eseistului de-a tratat majoritatea subiectelor plus unele teme sau întrebări care m-au lăsat de-a dreptul fără cuvinte. Adică, de ce, de ce, de ce te-ar interesa dacă Isus avea scaun ( si nu, nu la cap) sau ce o sa se întâmple cu trupurile copiilor canibalilor după inviere?
In fine, a avut 150 de pagini , deci n-am pierdut asa mult timp . Am luat-o de la reduceri, deci n-am pierdut asa mulți bani .

[Jacob Wren]

Giorgio Agamben writes:

The ones who can call themselves contemporary are only those who do not allow themselves to be blinded by the lights of the century and so manage to get a glimpse of the shadows in those lights, of their intimate obscurity. Having said this much, we have nevertheless still not addressed our question. Why should we be at all interested in perceiving the obscurity that emanates from the epoch? Is darkness not precisely an anonymous experience that is by definition impenetrable, something that is not directed at us and thus cannot concern us? On the contrary, the contemporary is the person who perceives the darkness of his time as something that concerns him, as something that never ceases to engage him. Darkness is something that – more than any light – turns directly and singularly toward him. The contemporary is the one whose eyes are struck by the beam of darkness that comes from his own time.

[Federico Sosa Machó · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leer a Agamben no es sencillo, por momentos resulta arduo, pero no obstante la escritura es seductora por lo interesante de los enfoques que realiza sobre diferentes temas. En este caso los asuntos son diversos, y me resultaron particularmente interesantes los referidos a las fiestas o a los cuerpos y la desnudez. Un fondo de religiosidad hace que el autor establezca siempre un diálogo con la tradición judeo-cristiana y en particular con textos bíblicos, por lo que los abordajes cobran una densidad conceptual desafiante para un lector actual no necesariamente familiarizado con las tradiciones religiosas. Cuesta, pero vale la pena.

[Manuel Fontana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es un libro para leer subrayando, porque posteriormente se van a hacer consultas precisas con frecuencia. Me gustaron casi todas las conferencias reunidas aquí, y las que no me gustaron fueron perfectamente trabajadas y analizadas, solo que el tema no fue de mi interés. Como en todo trabajo de Agamben, me surgieron preguntas en lugares donde siempre hubo verdad absoluta, por ejemplo, obviamente en el tema de la desnudez. El capítulo de la identidad no personal fue el que más me impactó. En fin, lo recomiendo enormemente.

[León Álamos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Agamben luciendo como un aval ilustrado y libertario en este título que desentraña y fabula sobre el uso y desuso de cuerpos corruptos y cuerpos gloriosos.
Agamben está vivo, y dan ganas de correr a abrazarlo.

[Miloš · Rating 5 out of 5]

-Ćovek je životinja koja može sopstvenu nemogućnost. (64)

-Danas, moć koja se ironično definiše kao "demokratska", preferira da deluje na ovo drugo, mračnije lice mogućnosti. Ona odvaja ljude ne samo i ne toliko od onoga što mogu da čine, nego pre svega i uglavnom od onoga što mogu da ne učine. Današnji čovek, odvojen od svoje nemogućnosti, lišen iskustva onoga što može da ne učini, veruje da je za sve sposoban i poletno ponavlja svoje "nema problema" i svoje neodgovorno "to se može", baš kada bi, naprotiv, trebalo da bude svetan kako je, u neverovatnoj meri, prepušten snagama i procesima nad kojima je izgubio svaku kontrolu. Nije postao slep za svoje sposobnosti, nego za svoje nesposobnosti, ne za ono što može da učini, nego za ono što može da ne učini. (64-65)

[Sofia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Posted on my book blog.

I first heard of Giorgio Agamben during an art criticism class. We were discussing the definition of contemporary art, and the essay in this book come up, which piqued my interest about it.

I was pleasantly surprised with this book. It's a collection of essays on varied topics, from nudity (which gives the book its title), to Kafka, to identification methods and their influence in people. All of them were very interesting and mentioned facts and thoughts that I hadn't heard of or considered before.

Highly recommended as a thought provoking book.

[Peter Aronson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the philosopher for me, I think. There's interesting stuff in here, and even a touch of humor (The Glorious Body is very amusing in places), but Agamben is obscure when I would want him to be clear, and oblique when I would want him to be straightforward, and too backwards looking for my taste. Still, he says some important things in What We Can Not Do and his analysis of Kafka is very insightful.

[yarrow · Rating 3 out of 5]

most of the worthwhile aspects of this book are plagiarized and watered down concepts from Benjamin

[Corbin · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were some really good discussions in this book, but the early chapters didn't really seem to fit with the theme and issues addressed later in the book. As a result, I have a hard time even recalling what the earlier chapters were about: prophecy, temporality, something else... But the emergence of "inoperativity" as a means for revitalizing potentiality and freedom was engaging and insightful. Rendering "inoperative" is distinguished from mere uselessness or breaking down, thus emphasizing the versatility of material means for multiple projects, aims, and uses. That one might not use something (including our bodies) in a particular (normatively mandated) way reveals to us its ability to be used in many ways, even if in the end one uses it in a typical way. In other words, recognition of the possibility of not using something, not pursuing a particular goal or task, brings to light the multiplicity of options we have, and if we choose to continue in the typical way, it is not mere inertia. And alternatives emerge as legitimate options. The way that Agamben ties this into the theological (particularly Judeo-Christian) attitudes towards human flesh and the body is both creative and thought-provoking, and it leads to interesting sociological insights, as well.

[pintereska · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eseje Agambena napisane w 2009 roku i wydane nakładem WAB w 2010 szturchają tematy współczesności, naszego przyzwolenia na sprowadzenie naszej osoby do biometrycznego kodu rozpoznawanego przez komputer w celu naszej identyfikacji. Rozmyślania włoskiego filozofa czytane w 2023 roku nie budzą zdumienia ani nie są zbytnio ożywcze. Są dobrze napisane, ale 14 lat po publikacji oryginału refleksje w nim poruszone zostały wielokrotnie wzbogacone i pogłębione przez osoby, które swoje myśli przedstawiają choćby w youtube'owych wideoesejach.

[laurentiu]

0

[Lo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Premise interesante, continut dominat de teologie, dezvoltare defectuoasa si insuficient de atragatoare a ideilor. Asta, din pacate, nu e reteta mea favorita, insa am reusit sa ma amuz pe alocuri.

[Thắng Trịnh]

good

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bellísimo

[Osman Tümay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Analitik zekâ, birikim ve yaratıcılığın zarif ve hınzır ürünü. Bitmemesi için yavaş okunan kitaplardan...

[Mauro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Agamben considera che la nudità non è uno stato, bensì un evento. Nudità è ciò che "appare" a conseguenza dello svelamento, e togliere il velo rivela il momento propizio per la conoscenza (kairós). Non la conoscenza vera e propria, però, ma la possibilità della conoscenza, perchè la nudità è come una tabula rasa, dove ogni cosa è latente, pronta per essere messa in luce, e quindi conosciuta.

[xDEAD ENDx · Rating 4 out of 5]

The essay on Kafka was amazing. A few of the other pieces were also exceptional, and while the rest were thought-provoking, I feel like they sort of fell short. The idea of inoperativity that runs throughout these essays is something I want to think more about, especially alongside Agamben's talk on destituent power.

[Kristen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of essays by Agamben is a meditation on what it means to be contemporary. An often used term, especially in art, that is possibly one of the most difficult to define and describe. Agamben's short but thoughtful essays are extremely powerful and full of clear insight.

[Paola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Agamben at his best!

[Laroy Viviane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Petit livre facile d'accès composé de petits textes en crescendo sur non pas la nudité mais la théologie du vêtement.

[Anca · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful read. The essay on what contemporanity means is exemplary, while K. just offers a whole new perspective on Kafka and not only.

[Sabrina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Muy interesante e informativo pero tal vez un poco confuso en su redacción.

[Keith · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Kafka essay alone is worth the price of admission...

[Marta Sampaio Soares · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good