'Life does not live' : experience and life in the philosophies of Theodor W. Adorno and Giorgio Agamben
This thesis provides a critical examination of the concepts of experience and life in the work of Theodor W. Adorno and Giorgio Agamben. The shared context of their thought consists in an examination of damaged life which reaches its apotheosis in ~Auschwitz~, an account of the destruction of experience in modernity, and an emphasis that the path to a form of life beyond damaged life can only be constructed immanently, through damaged life itself. The philosophical problem that this thesis addresses is the question of the possibility of a life beyond damaged life. Given the destruction of experience encapsulated in an idea of a life that does not live, how can a critical subjectivity found the possibility of a path beyond such a reified context ? Both Agamben and Adorno delineate such a path through a dissolution of subjectivity which can open itself to the possibility of a different experience of life. It is argued that Adorno's concept of negative dialectics gives the grounding for the possibility of a critical subjectivity that can found itself within its own dissolution through an experience of possibility produced by a deepening of the contradictions of damaged life. The first two chapters critically
Morgan, Alastair
'Life does not live' : experience and life in the philosophies of Theodor W. Adorno and Giorgio Agamben. This thesis provides a critical examination of the concepts of experience and life in the work of Theodor W. Adorno and Giorgio Agamben. The shared context of their thought consists in an examination of damaged life which reaches its apotheosis in ~Auschwitz~, an account of the destruction of experience in modernity, and an emphasis that the path to a form of life beyond damaged life can only be constructed immanently, through damaged life itself. The philosophical problem that this thesis addresses is the question of the possibility of a life beyond damaged life. Given the destruction of experience encapsulated in an idea of a life that does not live, how can a critical subjectivity found the possibility of a path beyond such a reified context ? Both Agamben and Adorno delineate such a path through a dissolution of subjectivity which can open itself to the possibility of a different experience of life. It is argued that Adorno's concept of negative dialectics gives the grounding for the possibility of a critical subjectivity that can found itself within its own dissolution through an experience of possibility produced by a deepening of the contradictions of damaged life. The first two chapters critically
life live_experience life philosophy adorno giorgio_agamben provide_critical examination concept experience life_work adorno giorgio_agamben share context thought consist examination damage life reach account destruction experience modernity emphasis path form life_beyond damage life construct damage life itself philosophical_problem address_question possibility life_beyond damage life given destruction experience encapsulate idea life live critical subjectivity find possibility path beyond reify context adorno delineate path dissolution subjectivity open_possibility different experience life argue adorno concept negative dialectic give ground possibility critical subjectivity find_within dissolution experience possibility produce deepen contradiction damage life first_two critically