1.

ansIatcdby LavidKishil
andStclan IcdatclIa
Stan/rd
/nticr:tp
1rc::
Stan/rd
Cal/rta
2J
NUDITIES
Giorgio Agamben
Stanford University Press
Stanford, Califoria
English translation 2011 by the Boatd of Trustees
of the Leland Stanford Junior University. All rights reserved.
vd/!/c:was originally published in Italian under the title
1t/u 2009 Nottetempo SRI,.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by
any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording,
or in any information storage or retrieval system without the priot written
permission of Stanford University Press.
Printed in the United States of America on acid-free, archival-quality paper
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Agamben, Giorgio, 1942-
[Nudita. English]
Nudides IGiorgio Agamben ; translated by
David Kishik and Stefan Pedatella.
p. cm. (Meridian, crossing aesthetics)
"OriginaUy published in Italian under the tide vd|/u.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-0-8047-6949-5 (cloth: alk. papce)
ISBN 978-0-8047-6950-r (pbk: alk. paper)
. Kishik, David. II. PedateUa, Stefan, 1976-
III. Title. IV Series: Meridian (Stanford, Calif.)
B36n.A43N8313 2010
195-dc22
2010022808
s
I
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2
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s :
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s IO
Contents
7rao/tor:'Aotc
CicaiionandSavaiion
hai!sihcConicmpoiaiy`
K
Cnihc!scsandIisadvaniagcsoIiving
amongSpccicis
Cnhaic CanlocIo
IdcniiiywiihouiihcIcrson
ludiiy
JhcCoiiousIody
IungcioIanCx
JhcasiChapiciinihcIisioiyoIihcoid
Aote:
Crcdtt:
7
O
2O
}`
q}
q
:'
9
IOq
I}
T)
121
Translators' Note
Lnglish translations olsecondar,sources have been silentl,
modihedinordertotakeintoaccountboththeoriginaltextsand
Agamben

sovnItaliantranslationsolthesesources.
Mandelstam'spoemonpagesIz-I}vastranslatedlromtheRus-
sian b,]aneMikkelson.
VevouldliketothankMatteoBattistiniandR.Anthon,Ieda-
tella lor their insights into some dillcultpassages. Ve are ver,
gratelul to KevinAttell and CiorgioAgamben, vhosegenerous
anddetailedsuggestionsgreatl,improvedourtranslation.

1
Creation and Salvation
). Irophets disappear earl,on inVestern histor,. llit is true
that]udaismcannotbeunderstoodwithoutthehgureolthena/i,
ilthepropheticbooks occup,,inever,sense,acentralplace inthe
Bible, itisjustastruethatearl,ontlerearealread,lorcesatwork
within|udaism thattendtolimitthepracticeandthetime lrame
olprophetism. Jherabbinicaltradition thereloretendstoconhne
prophetismtoan idealizedpastthatconcludes withthedestruc-
tionoltheFirstJemplein;8; BC Ptherabbisteach, "Alterthe
deatholthelastprophetsHaggai,Zechariah,andMalachithe
hol,spirit departed lrom Israel, though heavenl,messages con-
tinue to reach them through the /at ko/ ,literall,, "thevoice`s
daughter," that is, theoraltradition, as well as the commentar,
on,andinterpretationol,theJorah). 'lnthesamewa,, Christian-
it,recognizestheessentiallunctionolprophec,and,indeed,con-
structstherelationship between theldandewJestaments in
propheticterms. But inasmuchastheMessiahappeared onearth
andlulhlledthepromise, theprophetnolongerhasan,reasonto
exist,andsoIaul, Ieter, andtheircompanionspresentthemselves
as apostles ,thatis, "those who aresent lorth'),neveras prophets.
For this reason, withintheChristiantradition, those who claim
tobeprophetscannotbutbelookeduponb,theorthodox,with
suspicion. ln this vein, those who wish to somehowlinkthem-
selvestoprophec,candosoonl,throughtheinterpretationolthe
1
z
CrcattonandSalvatton
Sctiptutes,byteadiugthemiuauewway, ottestotiugtheitlost
otigiualmeauiug.Iu|udaismasiuChtistiauity, hetmeueuticshas
teplacedptophetism, ouecauptacticeptophecyoulyiutheform
of iutetptetatiou.
Natutally, the pophet has uot altogethetdisappeated ftom
Westetucultute.Hecoutiuueshislabotdisctetely, uudetvatious
guises, pethaps even outside thehetmeueutical sphete ptopetly
uudetstoodAudsoAbyWatbutgclassinedNietischeaud|acob
8utckhatdt astwoopposiugtypes ofna/t. thefotmetditected
towatdthefutute, :helattettowatd thepast Similatly, Michel
Foucault,iuhislectuteftomFebtuatyt, t,|,attheCollgede
Ftauce,distiuguishedbetweeu foutngutesofttuth-telletsiuthe
aucieutwotld. theptophet,thesage, theexpett, audthepatthe-
siast

Iuthesubsequeutlectutehesoughttotettacetheitdesceu-
dautsiu the histoty ofmodetu philosophy 8ut itstill temaius
thecasethat,geuetallyspealuug,uoouewouldfeel immediately
comfottabletodayclaimiugthepositiouofptophet
z. ItiswellkuowuthatiuIslam theptophetpetfotmspossi-
blyaueveu moteesseutialfuuctiou Notoulytheusual biblical
ptophets,butalsoAbtaham,Moses,aud|esusatedenuediuIslam
asptophets

Nevettheless,eveuiuthisttaditiou,Muhammad,the
ptophetpatexcelleuce, iscousidetedthe"seal ofptophecy," he
who hasdenuitivelyclosedwithhisbookthe histotyofptophe-
tim,whichcoutiuuessectedyeveuhetethtoughcommeutatyou,
audiutetptetatiouof,theKotau)

Itissiguincaut,howevet,thattheIslamicttaditiouiuextticably
liuks the ngute aud fuuctiou ofthe ptophet to oue ofthe two
wotksotactiousofGod
Accotdiugto this docttiuetheteatetwo
diffeteutkiudsofwotk ot ptaxis ,:unnah). the wotk ofcteatiou
aud thewotk ofsalvatiou ,ot the Commaud) ltophets cotte-
spoud to the lattet, theyfuuctiouas mediatotsfot eschatologi-
calsalvatiou.Augelscottespoudto thefotmet; theytepteseutthe
wotkofcteatiou ,ofwhichIblis-theaugelwhohadbeeuotigi-
uallyeuttustedwith tleeatthlykiugdombefotetefusiugtowot-
shipAdam-is the ciphet)

"God,"Shahtastuwtites, "hastwo
Crcatton
and
Sal:atton
}
.
hastodowithhiscteatiou,theothet
f
kot
ptaxis.oue
'
h
f
kiudsO
wot
d
ltophets fuuctiouasmediatotsw L -
wim
his
Comm
h

cmmaud,while
augelsfuuctiouasmedta-
6tm
ue
wotk
'
h
kofcteatiou.Audsiucethe
Commaud is
h
mt
mt ewoi
h h
t
ots
w O a

c totoftheCom
maud t atis,t e
b|
thau
cteattou,tem ta
. ::_
uo
et
.
h uthemediatotofcteatiou.
pt
oph
et i

s
uoblett
oo thetwo
works,
uuited iu
God,ateas-
Iu
Ch
tstiauthe
g,
h
' theTtiuity:the
Fathetaudthe
d
diffeteut
gutes
d
sigu
e totwo
.
tcteatotaudthetedeemet,iuto
whom Go
h
omm
poteu
d

h
Sou,t e
Wh
decisiveiuthe
Islamic
tta toou,
ow-

dh'
fotce
atis
f
em
ptie
is
'
f d mptiou
ptecedes thestatusL cte-

h tthestatusL te e

evet, is t a

wisactuallyautetiot
Savauouis

h
whatseemstoro L
h h
atiou,t at
d h Fallofcteatedbeiugsbuttathetthatw ic
me ,
ott e

F
h'
uotaie
h
bl
what givesititsseuse.
ott is
compte eusi e,
makescteatiou
h ' h fthe
ptophetis
couside
ted thentst
` Islam
t e tg
t o
f h
teasou, iu

h ] `ishttaditioutheuameL ! e
b ,justas1 t e ew

amouga
etngs
h

f thewotld audiuChns-
h
dbefotet ecteat:onL
:

Messta
wascteate
hb
t|eFathet-iscousubstautial

'
theSou
-thoug ourtom
k
tia
d
uity

`thhim)
NothiugexptessestheptiotityoftheV

ot
au
coe

a wi
cteatioubettet thau
thefactthat sava-
ofsalvatiou
ovetthatof

d
dfottepatatiou, oue that
.

t dasauexigeut emau
d tou is pteseue
f
u-doiugiuthecteatedwotl .
ptecedestheappeatauceO a,
,
to

hadtth
"theytaised
theit
"
Wheu
GodcteatedtheaugeS, tecitesa
,
h?'Hete-
udasked
'
'Lotd,
whoateyouwit
'
headstowatdheaveua
l
'

sofiujustice
uutiltheit
d d'I amwiththoseV+O atevictim
'
spou e .
7
,
tightsatetestoted
d h
' ofthetwowotks of
}
Scholats have examtt.e t e meaug
K ,
' .
ethetiuoulyouevetseofthe
otau O
God,whichappeattog
d h C
maud"
_;.,|)
Accotdiug
Him
belougthecteatto
h
.au t e
.
t
o
s
m
theiutimate
couttadictiou

tets t evetse ttea

to some tttetpte
,
d ' h

Godium
ouotheisticte-
Go
wit asatot
t

topp
,
o

u
a

audMatcioui

evetsious,whichacceu
l
t
d
ua
'
e
igtots L_
.
Demiu: e cteatotofthewot
, iu
theoppositiou,a malcious

g
l

otld audftom
whom

h Godwho isateutot.ew ,
couttastwit a

d ) Whatevettheotigiuofthe
ptoceedstedem
ptiouau savattou.
(
CrcattonandSa/iatton
twowotksmaybe,it iscettain that notonlyin Islamdocteation
andsalvationestablishthetwopolesofdivineaction. Andifitis
ttuethatGodistheplacewhetehumansthinkthtouh theitdeci-
siveptoblems,thentheseatealsothetwopolesofhu

manaction.
All the moteintetesting, then, isthe telationshipthatties the
twowotks togethet. theyate distinctand even oppose one an-
othet, buttheyatenevettheless inextticable,
Thosewhoactand
ptoducemustalsosaveandtedeemtheitcteationltisnotenough
to do, onemustknowhowtosavethatwhich onehas done. ln
fact,thetaskofsalvationptecedesthetaskofcteation;itisalmost
asiftheonlylegitimiiationfotdoingandptoducingwete theca-
pacytotedeemthatwhichhasbeendoneandptoduced
Whatisttulysingalatinevetyhumanexistenceisthesilentand
impetviousintettwiningofthetwowotks,theexttemelycloseand
yetdisjointedptoceedingofthe ptopheticwotdandthecteative
wotd, ofthepowetoftheangel ,withwhichwenevetceasepto-
duc

ugandlookuga|ead)andthepowetoftheptophet,thatjust
astitelesslytettieves,undoes,andatteststheptogtessofcteation
andinthiswaycompletesandtedeemsit).Andjustassingulatis
thettmethat ies thetwowotks togethet, thethythm accotding
towhiclcteationptecedestedemptionbutintealityfollowsit,as
tedemptionfollowscteationbutinttuthptecedesit.

(. ln both Islamand|udaism,thewotkofsalvation-though
itptecedesthewotk ofcteation initsdegteeofimpottanceis
enttustedtoacteatedeeing.theptophetottheMessiah,inChtis-
tianity, thisideaisattestedtobythefactthattheSon,although
consubstantialwiththeFathet,wasgenetated,thoughnotcteated,
byhim).Theabove-citedpassage ftomShahtastnicontinues,as
amattetoffct,withthesewotds.'Andthisiswotthyofmatvel.
thatthespititual beings theangels, thoughptoceedingditectly
ftomthe Command,|avebecomemediatots ofcteation, while
thecotpoteal,cteatedbeings theptophetshavebecomemedia-
tots ofthe Command Whatisindeed matvelousheteis that
thetedemptionofctea:ionisenttustednotU thecteatot,notto
theangels,whoptoceedditectlyftom thecteativepowet)butto
CrcattonandSaliatton
y
acteated being. This means thatcteation and salvation temain
somehow foteign to one anothet, that it is not theptincipleof
cteationwithinusthatwillbeabletosavewhatwehaveptoduced.
Nevettheless, thatwhichcan andmustsavethewotkofcteation
tesultsandatisesftom it.Thatwhichptecedesintankanddignity
detivesftomthatwhichisitsinfetiot.
Thismeansthatwhatwillsavethewotldisnotthespititual,an-
gelicpowet,apowetthatis, inthefnalanalysis, demonic)

with
whichhumansptoducetheitwotks,whethettheybetechmcalot
attisticwotks,wotksofwatotpeace), buta mote humble and
cotpotealpowet, whichhumanshave insofatastheyatecteat

ed
beings. 8utthisalso meansthattletopowetssomehowc

in-
cide in theptophet, thatthecustodian ofthewotkofsalvation
belongs,asfatashisbeingisconcetned, tocteation.
y. ln modetn cultute philosophy and ctiticism have inhet-
itedtheptopheticwotkofsalvation,thatfotmetly, inthesacted
sphete, had been enttustedtoexegesis); poet:y, technology, and
attatetheinhetitotsoftheangelicwotkofcteation.Thtoughthe
ptocessofseculatiiationoftheteligiousttadition,howeve
,
t,the

e
disciplineshaveptogtessivelylostallmemotyofthetelatronship
that had pteviously linked them so intimatelyto one anothet
Hencethecomplicated andalmost schiiophtenic chatactetthat
seemstomatkthistelationship.Once,thepoetknewhowtoac-
countfothispoetty,'Toopenit thtoughptose,"asDanteputs
it),andthectiticwasalsoapoet.Now,thectitichaslostaccessto
thewotkofcteationandthusgetstevengebyptesumingtojudge
it,whilethepoetnolongetknowshowtosavehisownwotkand
thusdiscountsthisincapacitybyblindlyconsigninghimselftotle
ftivolityoftheangel.Thefactisthatthesetwowotks-whichap-
peatautonomousandindependentofoneanothet-ateinteality
twofacesofthesamedivinepowet, andtheycoincide, atleastas
fat as theptophetis concetned,wi:hinasinglebeingThewotk
ofcteation is, in ttuth,onlyaspatkthathasdetached itselfftom
the ptopheticwotk ofsalvation,an1the wotk ofsalvationisonly
aftagmentoftheangeliccteation:hathasbecomeconsciousof
6 CrcattonandSaliatton
itsclfThcptophc:is au augclwho, iu thcvctyimpulscthatsputs
him iuto actiou, suddculyfcclsiu his liviughcshthcthot ofa
diffctcutcxigcucyThisiswhythcaucicutbiogtaphicstcllusthat
Platowasotigiuallyattagicpoctwho,whilchcadiugtothcthcatct
tohavchisttilogypctfotmcd,hcatdSoctatcs'voiccauddccidcdto
butuhisttagcdics
.
6.|ustasgcuiusaudtalcut-otigiuallydistiuctaudcvcuoppo-
sitc-atcucvctthclcssuuitcdiuthcwotkofthcpoct,sothcwotk
ofctcatiou audthcwotkofsalvatiou,iuasmuchasthcytcptcscut
thctwopowctsofd siuglcGod,tcmaiuiusomcwayscctctlycou-
joiucd. Whatdctctmiucsthcstatusofthcwotkis,howcvct, oucc
agaiu, uotatcsultofctcatiouaudtalcutbutofthcsiguatutcim-
ptiutcdouitbygcuiusaudbysalvatiou.Thissiguatutcisstylc.
thccouutctfotce,asitwctc,thattcsistsauduudocsctcatiouftom
withiu, thccouutctmclodythatsilcuccsthciuspitcd augcl.Vicc
vctsa, iuthcwotkofthcptophct, stylcisthcsiguatutc thatctc-
atiou-iuthcvctyactofbciugsavcd-lcavcsousalvatiou,itisthc
opacity aud almostthc iusolcuccwithwhich ctcatiou tcsists its
tcdcmptiou,withwhich itsccksto tcmaiu uttctlyuight, uttctly
ctcatutcly,audiuthiswaytobcstowitstcuotouthought
Actiticalotphilosophicalwotkthatdocsuotposscsssomcsott
ofaucsscutialtclatioushipwithctcatiouiscoudcmucdtopoiutlcss
idliug,justasawotkofattotpocttythatdocsuotcoutaiuwithiu
itactiticalcxigcucyisdcstiucdfotobliviou.Today,howcvct,scpa-
tatcdiutotwodiffctcutsubjcctsasthcyatc,thctwodiviuc:unnah
scatch dcspctatclyfot a mcctiugpoiut, fotathtcshold ofiudif-
fctcucc,whctcthcitlost uuitycau bctcdiscovctcdThcydothis
bycxchaugiugthcittolcs,whichucvctthclcsstcmaiuimplacably
dividcd.Atthc momcutwhcu, fotthchtsttimc,thcptoblcmof
thcscpatatio

bctwccupocttyaudphilosophyfotccfullycmctgcs
iu outcousciousucss. Holdctliudcsctibcs philosophy,iu alcttct
toNcufct)3 a'hospitaliuwhichthcuufottuuatcpoctcautakc
tcfugcwithhouot."`Iu outdaythc hospital ofphilosophyhas
closcditsshuttcts.Ctitics,ttausfotmcdiuto"cutatots,"hccdlcssly
takcthcplaccofattistsiuotdcttosimulatcthcwotkofctcatiou
CrcattonandSa/iatton 7
thatthclattcthavcabaudoucd,whilcattisaus,whohavcbccomc

t:vc dcdicatcthcmsclvcsw:thgtcatzcalto awotkofrc-

opcta
,
b h
d
.
ui uwhichthctcisuolougctauywotktosavc
,
l u ot
cmpt:o

ctcatiouaudsalvat:ou uolougctsctatch outo oucauothe:

cascs
d d
thcsiguatutcofthcittcuacious,amotouscou:ct us:g

c au
dividcd,thcyplacccachothctiuftoutofain:t:otiuwhichthcy
cauuottccoguizcthcmsclvcs.
Whatisthcscuscofthisdivisiouofdiviuc-audhumau-
pt.isiutotwowotks?lfiuthchualaualysisitisttucthat,dcspitc
thcdiffctcucc iuthcitstatus, thc mutualtoots ofthc towotl

s
sccmtostcmftomacommoutcttaiuotsubstaucc,whatdocsthcit
uuity cousist of` Pcthaps thc oulyway to lcad thcm backoucc
agiutothcitcommou tootisbythiukiugofthcwotkofsalva-
tiouasthataspcctofthcpowcttoctcatcthatwaslcftuuptac

ic

cd
b thcaugclaudthuscaututubackouitsclf.|ustas potcut:ality
aticipatcsthcactaudcxcccdsit,sothcwotkoftcdcmptiouptc-
ccdcs thatofctcatiou.Ncvctthclcss, tcdcmpttouis uothugothct
thauapotcutialitytoctcatcthattcmaiuspcud

iug,th:tt

tu
,

u
itsclfaud'savcs' itsclf 8ut whatisthc mcamugof savmg
thiscoutcxt?Aftctall,thctcisuothiugiuctcatiouthatisuotulti-
matclydcstiucdtobclost.uotoulythcpattofcachaudcvctymo-
mcutthatmustbclostaudfotgot:cu-thcdailysquaudctiugof
tiuygcstutcs,ofmiuutcscusatious,ofthatwhichpasscsthtough
thcmiudiuafash,ofttitcaudwastcdwotds,allofwhichcxcccd
bygtcatmcasutcthcmctcyofmcmotyaudthcatchivc
.
oftcdcmp-
tiou-butalsothcwotksofattaudugcuu:ty, thcftu:tsofaloug
audpaticutlabot that, soouctotlatct, atccoudcmucdto disap-
p

.
lt isovct this immcmotialmass, ovct thcuufotmcdaud im-
mcuscchaosofwhatmustbclostthat,accotdiugtothcIslamic
ttaditiou, lblis, thcaugclthathascycsoulyfotthcwotkofctc-
atiou, ctics iuccssautly

Hc cticsbccausc hc docsuotkuow that

whatoucloscsactuallybclougsto God, thatwhcuallthcwotk
ofctcatiouhasbccufotgottcu,whcuallsigusaudwotdshavcbc-
comcillcgiblc,oulythcwotkofsalvatiouwilltcmaiuiudcliblc.
8 CrcattonandSalvation
8. `har is a "savcd porchrialiry, rhis powcr ro do (ahd ro hor
do) rhar docs hor simpy passihro acrualiry, soasU cxhausrirscl
ih ir, bur rarhcr cohscrvcsirscltahd dwclls (ir is "savcd) assuch
wirhih rhc work:Jhc work ol savarioh coihcidcshcrc poihr tor
poihrwirhrhcworkolcrcarioh: rhc tormcruhdocsahddccrcarcs
rhc arrcr ar rhcvcrysamc momchr ircarrics ahd accompahics ir
ihro bcihg. Jhcrc is hcirhcr gcsrurc hor word, hcirhcr color hor
rimbrc,hcirhcrdcsirchorgazcrharsalvariohdocshorsuspchdahd
rchdcr ihopcrarivc ihirs amorous srrugglc wirh rhc work Jhar
whichrhcahgcllorms, produccs, ahdcarcsscs, rhcprophcr brihgs
backroahuhlormcdsrarcahdcohrcmplarcs. liscycsobscrcrhar
which is savcd burohly ihasmuchasir willbclosrohrhclasr day
^hd ]usr as a lovcd ohc is aola suddch prcschr ih our mcm-
ory,burohly ohrhccohdiriohrharhcor shcisdiscmbodicdahd
rurhcd ihro ah imagc, so rhc work ol crcarioh is howihrimarcly
mcshcdihcvcry asrdcrailwirhhohbcihg.
Iur whar, rhch, is savcd hcrc, cxacrly: or rhc crcarcd bcihg,
bccauscirislosr, bccauscircahhorburbcosr. !orrhcporchrial-
icy, bccauscirhas ho cohsisrchcyorhcrrhahrhcdccrcarioh olrhc
work. hsrcad, rhc crcarcd bcihg ahd rhcporchrialiryhowchrcr
ihro arhrcshold ih which rhcy cah holohgcr bc ihahyway dis-
rihguishcd tromohcahorhcr.Jhismcahsrharrhc ulrimarchgurc
ot humahahddivihcacrioh appcarswhcrccrcarioh ahd salvarioh
coihcidcihrhc uhsavablc.his coihcidchcc cah bc achicvcdohly
ilrhc prophcrhashorhihgrosavc ahd rhc ahgchashorhihg clsc
rodo. !hsavablc, rhcrclorc, is rhar work ih which crcarioh ahd
salvarioh, acrioh ahd cohrcmplarioh, opcrarioh ahd ihopcrariv-
ity jinocro:tm} pcrsistihcvcrymomchr ahd,wirhourcavihgahy
rcsiduc, ih rhcsamc bcihg (ahdih rhcsamchohbcihg).lchccirs
opaqucsplchdor, whichvcrrigihouslydisrahccsirscttromuslikc
asrarrharwilhcvcrrcrurh.
y. Jhc cryihg ahgcl rurhs irsclt ihro a prophcr, whilc rhc la-
mchrotrhcpocrlorcrcariohbccomcscriricaprohccy,rharisro
say, philosophy. Burprcciscly how-whch rhcwork ol savarioh
sccmsrogarhcrwirhihirscllasuhlorgcrrablccvcryrhihgrharisim-
Crcation
anJSa|vation
y
h

work isrrahslormcd. r rcmaihs, ot coursc,

ncm
oria~
cvch r is

h
workol rcdc
mpriohscrcrha.

scdrocrcarioh,r c
.
ccausc,
as o
ppo
l
hassurvivcdcrcarioh, irs cxigchcyis
rhar sa
varioh
h
Jo
thccxrchr
d
h savcd
burrarhcrlosrihr c uhsav-
xha
usrc
i r c
.
d
ror,h
ow
cvcr, c
rioh
rhar is lctr
pchdihg, ir ch supas ah
B rh trom a crca
"
aol
c.
O

h rhoohgcrhasahobccrivc.
ihscr
urablc
savariohr a
h

drhar rhc suprcmc

khow
lcdgc
.
|
`
oh w y ir is sai
his is r c icas

hch
wc ho lohgcr havc
ahy usc
is
rhar
which c
'

o
vhnas survivcdour
work, is rhc lasr
Ior
ir.
`his khowc
l
g ,
l
vcs
rhoughsomch
owirho
|oh gcr
ts ruir
'
our
,
b
ahd
mosr
prccio(
h I a couhrry rhar wc arc a our
co
hccrhs
us,
likc rhc

gc
h
ograp
l
O
rodcdicarcroirrhcir
mosr
b h` d
\hril
umahs carh
d
ro
lcavc
c
h

I b bb rh rhissuprcmckhowc gc
`l
day
rhcir
crcrha a a ,
`d
d
bcauriu
rcasr ,
h

carrchdsrohurrc
yah
.
pcrsoha
marrcr,w ic oh
l h

willrc
maiha
l h rhcsrrahgcschsarioh
'
ha y
` A d rhus wc arc cr wir .
bl
gui
cr. h
` \ h
works
otrhcir
mcxp
ca c
d` rhcmcahmgor cwo
,
uhdcrsrah
mg
b
kot ah
yrhihg
clscrosay
d

.
ahd
otoursu
scquchr ac
i

is
'
h,
What Is the Contemporary?
thi

'

a
_

iketoinsctibeontheth:esholdof
And, ftst and
'
n ofwhatarewecontempotaries?'

ra `'
otemost, Whatdoesitmeanto becontem L ty. lnthecoutseofthisseminarwewillh
.
p -
textswh
h
aveoccas:ontotead
h
os
h
eaut otsatemanycenturiestemovedfromus aswell asot etst ataremo

isessential thatwe

n
t
a
e
g
c
e
en
t
t,
b
ot

ven
vetytecent.Atalleventsit
o e:nsomeway
.
thesetextsThe'time" f

contempotaresof
suchitmakesanexigen

:ar

:s
b
conte
mpotatiness,andas
te

tsandthe
authotsitexamines.|

t
a

ntempo

arywiththe
th:sseminarmaybeevaluated byits-b
egtee,t esuccessof
suteuptothisexigency.
y out-capac:tyto mea-
ans.
a

vonalindicationthatmayotientoutseatchfot
8 h
.
oequest:onscomesftomNietzsche Roland att essummarzestaisans

.
Coll edeFr
'
wetU anoteomh:slectutesatthe
Ftiedch N

anc Thecontemporaryis the untimely"ln 8;(

that
pointo
:et
C
z
_
c e
k
, youngphuologistwhohadwotked up to
n tee
textsandhad two
u
.
unexpectedcelebtitywith 7hcBtrtho7,,
e
,

.
d

n
zcitgcma::cBctmchtur h L
/~
whichh
gcn, t e ntinclMcdttatton:, a wotk in
withre

t
:t
h
otote

ms

ithhi

sti

eandtakeaposition
W d
g
h b
p esent
Th:s med:tat:on isitselfuntimely " erea att e egin f h

nugL t esecondmeditation 'b

10
, ecause:t
vhat1: thc Cortcmorar? II
seeksto undetstand asanillness, adisability, andadefectsome-
thingwhichthisepochisquiterightlyproudof,thatistosay, its
histotical cultute, becauselbelieve thatwe ateallconsumedby
thefevet ofhistotyandweshould atleasttealizeit."' lnother
wotdsNietzschesituateshisownclaimfot'relevance" attualttc,
his'contempotatiness'withtespecttotheptesent,inadisconnec-
tionandout-of-jointness.Thosewhoatettulycontempotaty, who
ttulybelongtotheittime,atethosewhoneithetpetfectlycoincide
withitnoradjustthemselvestoitsdemands.Theyatethusinthis
senseittelevanttnattualc,. 8utpteciselybecauseofthiscondition,
pteciselythrough this disconnection and thisanachtonism,they
atemotecapablethanothetsofperceivingandgtaspingtheitown
time.
Natutally, this noncoincidence, this 'dys-chtony," does not
meanthatthecontempotatyisapetsonwholivesinanothertime,
anostalgicwhofeelsmoteathomeintheAthensofleticlesotin
thelatisofRobespietteandthem+tquisdeSadethaninthecity
andthetimeinwhichhelives.Anintelligentmancandespisehis
time,whileknowingthathenevetthelessittevocablybelongstoit,
thathecannotescapehisowntime
Contempotatiness is, then, asingulattelationshipwith one

s
owntime,whichadhetestoitand,atthesametime,keepsadis-
tanceftomit.Moreprecisely, itis thatrclatton:htutthttmcthat
adhcrc:to ttthrough adtjuncttonardan anachront:m.Thosewho
coincidetoowellwiththeepoch,t|osewhoatepetfectlytiedto
itinevetytespect,atenotcontempotaties,pteciselybecausethey
donotmanagetoseeit,theyateno:abletontmlyholdtheitgaze
onit
?. lnIz} OsipMandelstamwtitesapoementitled'heCen-
tuty" ,thoughtheRussianwotd ickalsomeans'epoch'ot'age").
Thepoemdoesnotcontain atedectiononthecentutybuttathet
atehectiononthe telationbetweenthepoetandhistime,thatis
tosay,oncontempotatiness. Not't|ecentuty, " but, accotdingto
thewords that open the ntst verse, `mycentury"ot 'myage' (ick
m.t):
z
What /the
Contemp
ora
r?
My century,
my beast wI
!!
to look
inside your eys
L WI manage
a
h
nd
weld toge
thet
with
his
own bi
d t e verteb
f
LL
rae L
two
cent
uries?
hc gOct,
whO
must
gay !Or h
I hc
h
I cOntcm
gO

w
0 muthrmy Oc

Iancss
WIth
hs I
b
:I
_azc
O t
h
c,
ca

t, w

Omust
wcd wth
hs
Own b
n O
t c
cycs O!hs
ccntury-
O! tImc.
hc
twO c
cntu
rcs,
thc t
O

d thc shattcrcd backbO

nc
bc

nsu__
cstcd,thc
nnctccnth
and
_
c
tI

cs,
arc
nOt
Ony, as h
as

OInt,

hccn_th O!asn_cndvdua
`
n

th butasO,
mOrc tOthc
um OU_inay
mcans
thc
gcrOd !
s
c (rcm
cmbcr that
saecu_
t
!vchstOrcagc

Od
thatwc
ll

0
h
a gc

`
On

!c)
and thc
cOcc
_
/s w
c

ca
t: t
Is casc th

carn inthcast strOgh
! h
c twc
ntIcthccntury
ccn
tury s shat
tcicd

c O
.
t c gOcm,
thc
back
bOnc O!th

ths !
.
:c
gOct,
InsO!ar as h

I
.
tacturc, ts atOncc that
whch

I
cOnt
cmg
Orary, is
Itsc! and
thc
bOOdthatm
Img
cdcs
tItnc
!rOm cOmgOsn
| ll l
ustuturc
thIb

_
ara cIm
bct
wccn th

rcacOrths
wOund
h
h
c tImcand th
` b
.
c
t c Onc
hand,and
thc
tmc
d h
cvc
! tc
acO! thc crcaturc On
th
!
an t c vctt b
!
`
c Ot1cr,
cOnsttutcsOncO!th

c Iac O thc
ccnt
ury,
On
ccsscntIathcmcsO!th
o long as the
creature
lives
cgOc
m:
1t
mUSt carry forth
its
vert
ebrae
a the w

ve

play
along
,
1th
an
mVIsible spine.
lke a child
'
s tender
cartilage
IS the
century of the
newb
orn
earth.
hcOthcr_rcatthcmcand
ths
ll
h Im
a_c
!
'
cct cgrcccd

O cO
ntcm
gOrarncss-
h !
m_Onc,sasO
an
thc
wcdn_,O!thc
ccnt
urysv.tb
t
a
0 thc
shattc
rn_,
as
wc as O!
O!asin_cindvdua|n
ths
h
c,bOth O!
whIcharc
thc
wOrk

casc,t cgOct):
o wrest the
century
away from bOI
so as to start th
Id
ldage
e Wor
anew
one lnust tie toge
ther
with a .ute
the
knees of all the
knotted d ays.
hat
thssanmg
Ossbctask-
O i atany
ratcag
arad
OxcaOt1c
What Is the Contempormy!
Is
grO
vcn by thc OOwIn_ strOghc wIth whIch thc gOcm cOn-
cu
dcs. Ot Ony dOcsthccgOch-bcast havc brOkcnvcrtcbrac,but
vt/,
thc
ncwbOrn ccntury, wants to turn arOund |an mgOssIbc
_csturcOr agcrsOnwIth a brOkcnbackb

nc) InOrdcrtOcOntcm
gatc ItsOwntracksand, thIway,tOdIsgay Itsdcmcntcdacc
But your backbone has been shattered
Cmy
wondrous, wretched century.
With a senseless smile
like a beast that was once limber
you look back, weak and cruel,
to contemplate your own tracks.
}.+hc gOct-thccOntcmgOrary-must!rmy hOd hIs _azc On
hIs Own tImc. Lut what dOcs hc whO sccs hIs tImc actuay scc:
Nhat Is thIs dcmcntcd _rIn On thc acc O hIs ccntury I wOud
Ikcat thIs gOInt tOgrOgOsca sccOnd dc!nItIOnO! cOntcmgOrarI
ncss. +hc cOntcmgOrary Is hc whO !rmy hOds hIs _azc On hIs
OwntImc sO as tO gcrccIvcnOt ItsI_ht but rathcr Its darkncss.1
cras, Or thOsc whO cxgcrIcncc cOntcmgOrarIncss,arcObscurc

+hc
cOntcmgOrary Is grccIscy thc gcrsOn whO knOws hOw tO scc thIs
ObscurIIy,whO Is abctOwrItcbydIggIn_hIs gcnIn thc ObscurIty
O thc grcscnt. Lut what dOcs It mcan
.
`tO scc an Obscurty, `tO
gcrccIvcthcdarkncss
+hc ncurOghysIOO_y O vIsIOn su__csts an InItIa answcr.Nhat
haggcns whcn wc !nd Ourscvcs In a gacc dcgrIvcd O _ht Or
whcn wc cOsc Our cycs: Nhat Is thc darkncss that wc scc thcn:
curOghysIOO_Ists tc us that thcabscncc O I_ht actIvatcs a sc-
rIcs O gcrIghcra ccs Inthc rctIna cacd O-ccs

Nhcn actI
vatcd,thcscccs grOduccthcgartcuarkIndOvIsIOnthat wcca
darkncss arkncssIs nOt,thcrcOrc,agrIvatIvcnOtIOn |thcsImgc
abscnccO I_ht,Or sOmcthn_IkcnOnvIsIOn) but rathcr thcrcsut
O thc actvIIy O thc O-ccs, a grOduct OOur Own rctna. +hs
mcans,I wc nOw rcturn tOOur thcsIs On thc darkncss O cOntcm-
gOrarIncss,thattOgcrccIvcthIsdarkncssIsnOta OrmO IncrtIaOr
O gassIvIty. !athcr,It ImgIcs anactIvIIy and a sIn_uar abIIIy. n
Ourcasc thIs abIIty amOunts tOa ncutraIzatIOnO thcI_hts that
(
What Is /c
Contem
porary?
cOmc Om
thc cg
Och In
Ordcr tO
dIscOvcr Irs Obs
curIty IIs Dcc:
dark
ncss,
whIch
Is
nOt, hO
wcvcr, scg
arab
cOm thOsc I_hts.
hc
Oncs whO can
ca
thc
mscvcscOn
tcm
gOrary
arc Ony
whO
dO
nOt
aOw
thc
mscvcs tO
bc OI
ndcd bythc
I_hts O!
ccnt
ury
and
sO m
ana_c tO _ct a _Im
gsc
O! thc
shadOws In th
Osc
I_hIs, O!thcIrIntImatcObs
curIIy
avIn_
saId
thIs
much, wchavc
ncvc
rthccss
stI
nOt
addrcsscd
Our
gucstIO
n
Vhy
shO
udwcbc
at
a
Intcrcstcd In gcr
ccIvIn_
thc
Obs
curIty
that
cma
natcs !rOm thc
cgOch:
s
dark
ncss
nOt
grc
cIscy
an
anOny
mOus
cxgc
rIcncc that
Is
by
dchn
ItIOn Imgcn
ctrabc, sOm
cthIn_ thatIs nOt
dIrcctcd at us
and
thus
can
nO cO
nccI
us:
!n
thc cOnt
rary, thc
cOntcm
gOra(y
Isthc
gcrsOn
whO
gcrccIvcsthc
dark
ncss
O!
hIs
tImc
assOmct
hIn
_
that
cOn
ccOs hIm, assO
mcthIn_
that
ncvcr
ccascs tO
cn_a
_chIm.
ark
ncss IssO
mcthIn_ that
mOrc
than any
I_h
tt
urs
dIr
ccty
and
sIn
_uary tOward hIm
hc
cOntcm
gO
rary
Is thc Onc
whOsc
cycs
arc
struck by
thc
bcam O!
dark
ncss
that cO
mcs!rOm hIs Own
tImc.
j. n thc
hiiDamcnt
that
wc Obscrvc at
nI_ht, thc
stars shInc
brI_hty,
surr
Oun
dcd
by a thIck
dark
ncss oIncc
thc
nu
mbcr O!
_a
axIcs
and
um
InOus
bOdIcs In thc
unIvcrsc Is amOst
Inhn
Itc,
thc
dark
ncss
that
wc scc In thc
sky Is sO
mct
hIn_
that, accO
rdIn_
tO
scIc
ntIsts, dcm
ands an
cxg
anatIOn t Is
grc
cIscy thc
cxg
ana
tIOn
that
cOntcm
gOrary
astrO
ghy
sIcs
_Ivcs !Or thIs
dark
ncss
that

wOud
nOw
Ikc tO
dIs
cuss

n an
cxg
andIn_ unI
vcrsc
thc
mOst
rc
mOtc _aa
xIcs
mO\c a
way !rOm us ata sgccd
sO _rcat that
thcIr
I_htIs
ncvcr abctO
rcac
h us.
Vhatwc
gcrccIvcasthc
dark
ncss
O!
thc
hca
vcns IsthIs
I_ht
that, thO
u_h
trav
cIn_ tO
ward
us,
cannOt
rcach
us, sIncc thc
_aa
xIcs !rOm
whIch thc
I_ht OrI_
Inatcs
mOvc
awayOm usata vcO
cIty
_rcatcr than thc
gcc
d O!
I_ht.
OgcrccIvc, In thc
dark
ncss O!thc
grcs
cnt, thIsI_ht that
strIvcs
tO rcach
us
but
cannOt
thIs Is
what It
mcans
tO bc
cOnt
cmgO
rary /ssuch, cOntc
mgOrar
Icsarc
rarc. /nd
!Or
thIs
rcasOn, tObc
cOnt
cmg
Orary Is,
hrs
and
!Orc
mOst, a gucstIOn O! cOura_c, bc-
causc It
mcans
bcIn_
abc
nOt
Ony
tO
hiiDy hx
Onc
`
s _azc On thc
dark
ncss O! thc
cgOch
buI
asO
tO gcr
ccIvc In thIs
dark
ncssa I_ht
What Is the Contemporary' ,

! dIstanccs Itsc rOm us.
!
!cdIrcctcd tOward, IIhnItc
)
Or an aggOIntmcnt that
that, wl!
d It Is Ikc bcm_ On tIInc
hcr woI s
In
Ot
tbutmIss

h t cOntcmgOrarIncss gcr-
ccannO
! hc grcscnt t a

t
on
h

s thc rcasOnw :y t
`
thc grcscnt, Is In ract nO
J I I
b kcn vcrtcbrac

!ur timc,
hus ts backbOnc

s has rO

sny way rcac .

ccIvc
dIstant
`
It cannOt U
`
OthIsracturc.
! thcmOst
!

thc cxact gOmt

Ony
dwc!nd Oursc vcs In

OrarIcs. t Is Im-
Is
brOkcn an
dcsgItc cvcrthm_
'
cOn

cI

g
`
IncOI:-
.
hy wc arc,
h t I IIgucstIOn
jhI
:
a

OrcaI

cthatthc
`
"
ggOInt
;
c
cn
:
a

c
a
InchrOnOO_Ica tImc
`
gOr
OrarIncss dOcs nOt r

!y ta_
chrOnOO_Ica tmc,

r_cs,
tcmg
h

that wOrkII:_ wIt

thc untImcII:css,
It Is sOmct
d
I
;::
nsO
:
ms It

1nd thIs ur_cncy I

;
Imc Inthc Orm O
r

s
:c;1OnIsm that gcU

Its

s t

_r
:
!

:
rcady that Is asO

tOO sOOnthat Is asO a tOO atc

rccO_nI

c Inthc ObscuUt y0
a

OrcOvcr, It aOws us to
b

abc tO rcachus, I
`nOt yct.
h IthOutcvcr cII1_ thc grcscnt thc I_ht t at, w
d

_tOwar us.
crgctuay vOya_II:

cc O tImc that wc

! cxgcUcn 1 OOd cxamgc O thI

.
sgccI

hIOn can bc dchncd as Ihc ca

i

cOIcmgOrarIncss Is
:
:
sh
i
I
:;
s
dIscOntInuIty that dIvI
:
:
s
I
;
ductIOn IntO tImc
0 ! ts bcIn_-m-ashIOI1
mtrO
Or IHccvancc, I

bc
accOrdIn_tOItsr

cvan

c
hIs cacsura, as subtc as It may O-!On_cr-bcIn_-II:-as IOn.
h c whO nccd tO makc nOtc O rcmarkabc In thc scnsc that

t O
:
hc attcst tOthcIr Own bci_ It dO sO InaIby, and 1 sO d

Ir_
y :nd hxthIs cacsura wIthIIi In ashIOn. Lut I wc try tO O ]cc
un rasgabc. nthchrstgacc chrOnOO_IcatImc, It rcvcasItsc as
whYchIt cOmcs IntO bcIn_, I thc nOw O ashIOn, thc

nstaI

t I
rOnOmctcr. s thIs nOw gcr- t IdcntIhabc vIa any kIIid O

c
h dcsI_ncr cOnccIvcs O thc gs thc mOmcnt In whIch t
a:Ichncthc ncw styc O thc _cncra cOnccgt, thc nuancc
hcn thc IshIOn dcsI_ncrcOnvc
:
cOthcs: !r Is It thc

nOmcnt
;thcntOthctaIOrwhOwIscwt c thccOnccgttO hIs assIsta

!
ts

n
mOmcntO thcashIOnshOw, wh

n grOtOtygc` !r, rathcr, I It

h
t c
! cOgc whO arc aways andOny h Othcs arc wOrn by t c On y g
d thOsc whO nOncthccss,
t c c
` Or mO c s- In ashIOn, thc manncguII1s
1U
What Is the
Contemporar?
grccscy
Or
ths rcasOn, arc ncv
cr tr
uy
n as
hOn:`
n
th
s
nst
ancc,thc
bc
ngnashOn O
thc
sty
c
w
dcgc
ndOn th
c
that thc
gcOg
c
O
hcsh
and
bO
Od,
ra
thcr than
thc
man
ncg
Il
I:
(thOsc
sacrh
ca
vctms Oa acccssgO
d),
wrcc
Ognzctas
and
chO
Osc
thats
c
Oi
thcrOwn war
drO
bc.
hc
tmc u as
hOn,
thc
rcO
rc, cOns
ttu
tvcy
ant
cg
atcs

and
cO
nscg
ucnty
s
asO
aw
ays
tOO
atc. t aw
ays
takcs thc
O an
ung
rasg
abc
thr
cshO
d
bct
wccn a nOtyct
and a nO
ts
gutc grO
babc
that, asthc
thc
OO
ga
ns
sugg
cst,
thscol:|iIa-
tOn
dcg
cnds un thc act that
ash
On, at
cast n
Our
cuturc, s a
thc
OOgca
sg
naturcO
cOth
ng,
whchd
crvcsOm
thc
hrstgccc
O
cO
thng
thatwas
scw
n by
/damand!vc
atcr thc
!r
gnao
n,
n
thc
Orm O a O
ncOth
wOv
cn Om
hgc
avcs
`
(O
bc
grccs
c,
thc
cOt
hcs
thatWc wcar
dO
nOt
dcrvc rO
m
ths vcg
cta
O
ncOth
but
Om thc
tnicae
pelliceae,
thc
cOt
hcsm
adc
rOm
anmas sk
n
that \
Od,
accO
rdng
tO
\c
ncss ]:2!,
gavc tO
Our
grO
gcn
tOrs
as
a tang
bc
sy
mbO O
sn
and
dcath n
thc
mOmcnt
hc
cxg
ccd
thcm Om
ara
dsc.)
n
any
casc,Wh
atcvcr
thc
rcasOnmay
bc,
thc
nOw,
thc
kairos O
ashOn, s
ungrasg
abc:
thc
gh
rasc, ` am n
ths ns
tant n
a:hO
n
s
cOntr
adctOry
bc
causc thc
mOmcnt
n
whch
thc
sub
jcctgrO
nOu
nccs t,
hcs
arc
ady
Out
O
ashOn oO,
bcng n
1shOn,
kc
cOntc
mgO
rarncss,
cn
tas a ccr
tan
casc,
a
ccrt
an g
uaty
o
bc
ng
Out-O
-gh
asc
Or O
ut-O-
datc, n
wh
ch
O
ncs
rccva
ncc
nc
udcs
wt
hn
tsca sm
agar
O
what
cs
Out-
s
dc O ts
c, a sha
uc
O
demode O
bcng
Out O
ashOn. t s n
thsscnsc thattWas sad Oan
ccg
ant
ady
n
nnctccnt
h-c
cnt
ury
a
rs,
ic cst
cO
Ucmg
Ora
nc
dc tOut c
mO
ndc
(ohc s cv
cry
bO
dys
cOn
Ic
mgO
rary).
utthc
tcmg
OraIy
O
ashOn
has
anO
thcr ch
arac
tcrthat
rcatcs
t tO cO
ntc
mg
Ora
rnc
ss.
OO
wng
thc
samcgcst
urc
by
whch
thc
grc
scnt
dv
dcs
tmc
accO
rdngtO a
nO
mOrc
and a nOtyct, t
asO
cst
abshcs ag
ccuar
rcatO
nshg
wth thcsc
Oth
crtm
cs~
ccrt
any
wth
thc
gast and
gcrhags
asO
wth thc uturc. ashOn
can
thc
rcO
rc
`+tc,
and
n
ths way
makc
rccvantagan,
any
mO-
mcntOm thc
gast (thc _;Os,
thc
_/
cs,
but
asO thc
nc
Oca
ssca
Or cm
grc styc)
t can
th
crcOrc
tc
tOg
cthcr
th
at
whch t
has

vhatIs thcContemporar. ,

hat whIch It d rcvIta Izc t

d
ca rc-cvOSL} an
b
| dIvIdc -Ic ,
IcxOra ,
d d
! d ca
h !
had
dccarc

! rcatIOnshIgWIt t:c h sgccIa

!

` thcr asgcct tO t Is

rcscnt bymarcng
6.hcrc Is anO

css InscrIbcs Itsc m thc g

t!:c IndIccs and
gOraHn
h gcrccIvc
b
Qast. |Onm
archaIc. !ny thOsc w O
dcD and rcccnt can c
It aDOvc a s
hc archaIc In thc mOst

O
kh thatIs tO say, thc
sIgn
aturcs O t
rchatcmcans cOsctOt

hrOnO|OgIca gast
cOntcmgOrar_.
IgIn Is nOt Onysituatc
and dOcs nOt ccasc
OrIgIn. Lut t c Or
wIth hIstOrIca bccOmmg
cs tO bcactIvc In
mgOrary
b O cOntmu
h

It Is cOntc
IthIn It,ust as thc cm ry
d thcchId Inthcgsyc Ic
tO
OgcratcW
thc maturc OrganIs
_
!
, an
ncarncss, whIch dc
P
nc
thc tIssucs O
!t. LOth thIs dIstancmg and
thIs grOxImIty tO thc
IcOthcadu
havc thcIr OundatIOn m
h In thc grcscnt.
Orarmcss,
h c Orcc t an
.
cOntcmg
h c guscs WIt mOr
! Or thc hrst tImc
.
h t nOw cr
cw YOr c
h `
OrIgm t a
h skyscragcrs O

d thIs arc aIc

h sccn t c
d ! gcrccIvc
hOcvcr as
d has Immc Iatcy
h

that thc
t awn

h t c ruIn
rOmthc Occan a
thIs cOntIguOusncss wit
!!
hc grcscnt,
d dcnttOa .

faes O t
`
O_|1havcma ccvI
h hcrcIsasccrct a
Ora Imagcs
d knOwt at t
atcmg

}tcraturc an O art
sO much bccausc
IstOrIans O
h ndthc mOdcrn, nOt
hc grcs-
thc arc aIca
.
charmOnt
nnIty bctvccn
m tOcxcrcIsc a gartIcl ar

hIddcn In thc

ms scc
d rn Is
thc archaIc Or
b thc kcy tO Ihc mO c
t wOrd In Its
b thcr ccausc
h thc ancIcn
cnt ut ra
d thc grchIstOrIc. us,

r tsc,hcavant
ImmcmOHa an
! mOrdasOastOrcdIscOvc
s thc grImItIvc
`
stOt :c g

! O gursuc
dccmctr1
h has Ost Itsc Ovcr tImc, a s
n say that thc cntry
gardc, w Ic

!t Is InthIs scnsc that Onc ca

O anarchacuOgy
and thc archaIc.
t ncccssarIytakcs

hc Or
st but rcturns tO
gOInt tO thc gr
h
cscn
cr rcgrcsstO ahIstOHca
|
!
a

cagabcO!Iv-
d t Owcv ,
b utcy m
that Ocs nO ,
tthat wcarca sO
k dback tO-
h hcgrcscn

tysuc c
that gartWIt m
`
t
IvcdIsthcrcurcmccssan
h

hc grcscntIs
Nhatrcmamsun

bc tOrcac It.

d
mg

.
hOut cvcr bcmg a
hngthat IslIvc
d h gmWIt

cvcryt I

war t c O
h h unIvcd ccmcntm

! thc mass O
h Othcrt ant Is
cnt Is grccIsc y
1O t mg

dcs acccss tOthc grcs
Its cxccssIvc ncar-
hatwhIch Imgc
|ItstraumatIc charactcI,
thIsunIvcd
what Or sOmc rcasOn
dtOIvc.hcattcntIOntO )wchavcnOtmanagc ncss
3 What Is the Contemporary?
....-...-....-....-.,....,.1..--....-.,....,.-.....
.....-..-...-......,.-.-...-.--...-.-.-.---..
,.+...-.....-...-1........-.......-.,......-.....-
---..-.-..1......,-,.,......,...,.....-.-......-..-,
.....1....,......-..-.-.....1......,-.-.,+...-....,
,
my...-.......,1..1-...-..-,......--.........-......1
.1...........,s..,.-...-.,-,.-..........-............-.

,..........-,.-.-........-..-......,-.-..,.....-.....-
..-....-.,....,,..U .....,-.....-.........,----...-
1..-.-.....-.!I ..-...-.--........-...-.,....,..
...-...-...-.-..--..-.......-.......,...-.....,-.
.-..-1.............-...-.-....,,....,..-..-......-..
...........-..--...,,...-....-......-.--.--....-...1
,-.-........+.-.-........,....--.,...,.......-..-.....
:....,-....-....-,...........--,-..-..-...1.......-.
.....-....-....-....-.,......-..,.-.-..-..-.......-.
.........-...---..,....-.,....,.....-:-...........-
.....,.-...-.,..-........-..(ho nyl kairos). .....,..
.......-........,.....,..1-.-......-
,
..-parouia, ..-.-....
..c...........,......--.1...-.......1.-.......,.......
.......-.-,.....-.............-...,......,....,..,.....,
-.-.,...........-,.....1..-...-.........,......-........

..,-.-.,...-....-,...1-..-.-...........,.,..,.-.,...
,.-,.......|...,.-.-....-.-..tpos, -,..-....-,.-.-..
....1........,..-......,.-.-..-11-.....1.......
.,,-...,..-....-:-........-...,..-....-1-.,......1
...-......--..,.,.
+....-.........-.-..-.,....,........,..-..-...
,-..-....,..-1..|.-......-,.-.-...,...,....,..........-.-.
.-......1-....,...-....-.,....,........-..-..1...1..,
..1...-.,......,...-.....,.-.-.............,....1,.....,..
...-............-....-..-...-.-...-.1......,.......-
.--..,.......-.......1..,....-.-....,....1.-........-
....,.,..........-.......-.,-..,.......-......
....-.,..1|................-.-..,..........-.....-....

What Is the Contemp

orary.

..-
...........-
,....

....-1
,-
.-.-..
.........1.
_
.
_

..

"
...-.,..1....-
1....
-....

......
.1.
......

1. -

.
..-.-
...-.....
:...-.r...
....
.

....i......
-....,... ,
.
.......
.........-..,.
.
-
1 .-..-....-. ..
..-.-.
..1....

.1....-,...
..-..-........-.
....
....-
,.....-...

.
..-
.
.

v...-.
:-.,....
...-.
......-
..,.........-
,.-.-..

...

..,-....-,...
.1....-.....
..........
..1-....

..

.
....,..., ...
1-.-.

..-1
..-.

..
-.-
..
,-..,.. .--

,
-.|.
...-.
..1......
-.,-.., ..
t..
-..
......,.|.........

.....,.....
.-....,..1
.
-
.,....-..
. .
..
.......
1.... -...

..-
.-....1
1....-...O . -
..-.
.-...........
.+
.
.
.
....-.
....
1-,
-.1..
.
......-....-..
.. ...
,
.. .
1xlv
mnt
xr:r
. ln
!Om
an trIas,
whcrc
ubIc
rOc, san
dcr rc:rc
scnt d

grOsccu
tiOn
gay
cd a Im
d

c a t 1rcat sO
I
ltc
O
ustI

c that
thc
asc
accuscr
vas
_I

vc Or thc ad
mInI
stratIOn
hcad
vlth
thc
cttcr ]
(InItIaO /

unlshcd by
mark
In_
hIs Orc.
mcHtO avIdc ct I
h
umn
tator, sa
ndcrcr) l

h
h
tO
avc
dcm

t Is t c

n
ls

t Or thc Intcrgrc
tatIOn O1a[

cd thc Im
gO|Iancc
O
am
l_u
Ousy
grcscnts Ita

c
//
whOsc
IncI I*
havc sandcrcd
Osc 1
_
s a s
andc
rOus
trIa (cOmcOnc
g

anyth

Or
Onc
mO
rnIn_
`
h
must

ln_wrOn_,hc
was
arrcs
tcd) L
l
.
`
vlt Out ha
vIn_
dOnc
actthat
1aIkahadstudIcdth
h
/
ca ln_
Our
attc
ntIOntOthc
grcg
arIn_ Or thc c_a g
c

IstOry O!Omanaw whIchcv rOrc

ssiOn
ctI
as
nOt
stand (accOrdIn_t

`
ml
I su_
_csts that 1 d
Or
1at:a
butOrsa-d
-
OInlOn thatdatcs back
tO
ax sr+.
2. hatsa
ndcr
lc
I
rcscnts t:c
h tO th

cntIrc 1a
_
ac

H
uc
unIvcr

/
tO t c
nOvc
and,
gcrh
ags,
mythlc
Orccs
O aw
b
, sO
gOt
cnty markcd b
h

b
ccO
mcs, hO
wcv

/ t c
wc O scrvc thc
OlO
wIn_
gO
I
cl,cvcn
mOrcIu
mIn
atIn_
!tc
Int`at t :c m
h
cascs tO stand
sImgy
Or k l

O
mcnt w
cnthccttcr
rccrs
rathcr tO kalumn
iator (th.
_nllta
(thc
asc
accu
satI
On)
but
that thc
ascaccuscr Isthc

scacc

scr), thIs canOnymcan vcry

giOt
a_O
nlstO thcnOvc
h
, w L
:as
2
1 2
bc_unasandcrOus trI

a_aInsthIms

sItwcrc.+c`sOmcOnc
goond
whO, wIth hls sandcr, has lnitIatcd thc tHa ls ]Osc !.
Ims0
hIs Is grccIscy what an attcntIvc rcadIn_ O thc nOvc dcm-
Onst
ratcs bcyOnd a dOubt. vcn thOu_h1 actuay knOws rI_ht
rOm
thc start that thcrc Is nO way tObc cOmgctcy ccrtaIn that
chasbccn accuscdby thc cOurt dOntknOw I yOu havc bccn
accuscd, thc InsgcctOr tcs hIm durIn_ hIs !rst IntcrvIcw),` and
thatatanyratc hIscOndItIOnO bcIn_undcr arrcst dOcsnOtIm-
gy any chan_c InhIsIc,hc stI trIcsIncvcrycOnccIvabcwaytO
gcIictratc thccOurt buIdIn_s |whIcharcnOt actuay cOurtbuId-
In_s butrathcr attIcs,stOra_crOOms, Or aundry rOOms-whIch,
gcrhags, arc Ony transOrmcdIntO courtsby hIs _azc) andtO In
stI_atc a trIa that thc ud_cs dO nOt sccmtO havc any IntcntIOn
OInItIatIn_

+hatthIs Is nOt cvcn a rca trIa Or thatmattcr, but

thatthctrIacxIstsOny tO thc cxtcntthat1

rccO_nIzcs Itas such,

Is sOmcthIn_ that 1

hImsc anxIOu:y cOnccdcs tO thc cxamIn-

In_ma_Istratc durIn_thcInItIaInguI:y

cvcrthccss,hcdOcsnOt
hcsItatc tO grcscnthImsc tO thc cOurt cvcnwhcnIt has nOtbccn
cOnvcncd, and It Is grccIscy atthIs mOmcnt that hcunncccssar
Iy admIts tO havIn_ bccn accuscd. cImIary, hc dOcs nOt hcsItatc
tO su__cst durIn_ hIs cOnvcrsatIOn wIth NIss Lurstncr that shc
shOudascyaccuschImOassaut(InaccrtaInscnsc,hcthcrcOrc
sc-saI\dcrs). n thc !na anaysIs thIs Is grccIscy whatthc grIsOn
chagaInInOrms1

O at thc cOncusIonO thcIr On_cOnvcrsatIOn

Inthc cathcdra +hc cOurt wants nOthIn_ rOmyOu t rcccIvcs
yOu whcn yOu cOmc and dIsmIsscs yOu whcn yOu _O

` n Othcr
wOrds, `thc cOurI dOcs nOt accusc yOu, It Ony _athcrs thcaccusa-
tIOnsthatyOumakca_aInstyOurscl
}. vcry manInItIatcs a sandcrOus trIaa_aInst hImsc +hIs Is
1a:a
`
sgOIntO dcgarturc. !cncchIsunIvcrsccannOtbctra_Icbut
Ony cOmIc _uIt dOcs nOt cxIst-Orrathcr, _uIt Is nOthIn_ Othcr
than sc-sandcr, whIch cOnsIsts In accusIn_ Oncsc O a nOncx
Istcnt _uIt (that Is, O Onc

s vcry InnOccncc whIch Is thc cOmIc

_csturcgarcxcccncc)
zz "
jhis is ih unc wih rl
,
Katl
c ihcilc
.
C, accordihg ro wl
,
h "
_ chuhciacd cscwh
i db
uc orgmal h
crc
u

rc ymah, cohsissihhc
sm, c ahcich
'
IauIr
w ich hc docs no dcsis
.
rh
accusaiohharhcmakcs ahd
haah origihal sihhas b

ar a wrohg has bcchdohcro

cascwihslahdcr guil
cch c
l
ommmcdagaihsr him ^
.
rarh

ishocaus I h
. s is
cris chihcdwih
c o caccusaionh
^
iI.

sa

marcioIIac,slahdcrcxis
.
oIhc mhocchccoI rl
sohlyilrhcaccuscris
b
c accuscd I h
co h

ih~
.
cmgahyguiloasccraih !
ohy ! c accuscs wihour

iohbccomcsaronccboh

hccascoIsclI-slahdcrhisco

msoIar ashcisa:clI d
hcccssaryahdimossiblc jh
h

ic

ho
-sah crcr khows
caccuscd
cchr,ou, ihsoI+rash

cccrlywclhah
h
cisaccusmgh II
c isU-
h

h
isguilyoIslahdcr, rhar hcdc

sc , hckhows]usaswcll
a :acsquc siruari`oh
rvcso ocmarkcd Jh`
.
d
ar cx
. is is
ocscvcrymah-slahdcr dI l
cc chcc. Iur whydocs K.- h
ah asclyaccuschimscll
v y
q. omahu
.
h o
iss cohsdcrcd sl d
__

_
h lcd asray (rhcy uscd

cr o bc ah accusaioh har
m y,rahdomly n I
rcrm temeritas Iro
tenebra, darkhcss).

i.-
_mologicallylihkc+or...
ho sccm o bc origihallya cch
s

ivcs rh

hcvcrbaOre docs

osr ahcichr csimohials (Ior c

icaI jutdical rcrm, ahd ih rhc
i is uscd ih a moral
xamlc, ih lIautus ahd

,
schsc rarhcr rl
.
cichcc
j
rccisc ym irs liminaI Iuhcri
.
ah a jurdicaI ohc. Iu i is
ac

usaiohrcvcalsirsdccisivci
virh rcscc ro rhc aw ha hc
hc Iomah rial

orrahcc.
r
ochsvihhc

ioi, ar rhc bchcs oI rh
H0DUHl: delatio, hc !

c accuscr oI l
hscii-
crsohm rhclis ot h
, c hamc oI rhcd
l
c accuscd
chouhccd
i
rom causa, which
_
cahs "ro ih
_
ic
,
|
a
l
re c
'
ymologicallydcrivcs
h accrram h
c tamare t ]
,
schsc, cmosIu d
H causa. Causa
i
I
hamc

somcrhihg rhar has bc

amch

aljuridicaIcrmbcausc
o

law ()us as res sighihcs somc

imlicacd wirhih rhc shcrc
wihmrhc shcrc oI ah ua c
hmg har has bcch imicacd
hcIouhdarioh oIauriica
)Causa indicarcshawhichlicsar
causa ahd res (whichmcahs "r
s
h
ruario

hcrclaiohshi bcwcch
mg,ara` ] ` m arm) is ihsrucivc
z}
I
p

rh
is
pc
rs
ccr
vc.Iorhbcl
ohgrorhc
vocab
ulary
olaw,
whcrc
r
ac
yd
cs
gharc
rhar
whichis ihqu
csrohharra
\
or haur
dca
rc
|aroh
sh
p) !h\
om
ahccahguagcs,how
cvcr, causa prog
rcssivcly
rakcs
rhc
placcol res; ahd
alrcr
r
camc
ro
dcs
gnarcrhc
uhk
howh
0
a|gcb
raicrcr
mh
oogy (jusrash\rc
ich,
res survivcsohly hthc
torm
ot
rien,
horh
hg),
causa
givcsway
ro rhc
rcrm
coso
("rhhg
in
Iraah,
cho
se h
Irc
hch).
'^u-rhis:horoughly
hcur
raahd
gc-
h
crcword-
ha
mcs,ihrc
aliry,"wharisrhc
casc
[in causa]," wharis
ar
srakchaw
(ahdihlahg
uagc).
Ah
is
is
ro
sugg
csr
har
rhc
gravry
ol sla
hdcr is a luh
crioh ol
ts
abi
liryro
pur
hro
qucsrohrhc
vcry
prih
ciplc
olhc
rral: rhc
momchr ol
accu
sarioh.
?lcr all,
whardc
_
hcs rhcrral
s
hcrhcr
gu
l
,w
hch s uhhc
ccssaryih
arch
aic
law)
hor
puh
shm
chr
\ur
ra
rhc
r
rhc
accusarioh.
Ihd
ccd,rhcaccusaroh s
pcrha
psrhc u-
rdcal
carc
gory par cx
cclchcc
(kategoria
mcahs"ac
cusa
rioh ih
(rc
ck),
wirh
ou
whch rhc
whocc
dihcc ol law
would
Iall
aparr:
rhc
ih
dicr
mchrolIchg
wrhhrhc
sphcrc
ol la
w.`hc
law,rhch,s
cssc
hrialy
ahaccusaroh ora"car
cgory.
'hch
Bchgshd
crcd
,
or
"ac
cuscd, wrhhrhc sphcrc
ol law, r
loscs rs hhoc
chcc, r
bccomcsacoso arhihg),rharisa causa |a
casc):ahooccr
ol rga
roh
(lor
rhc\
o
mahscausa,
res,
ahd
lis
wcrc,hrhsschsc,syh
ohy-
mous).
.3cll
sah
dcrsarr
ol\
ahssrrarcgyihhisihccssahr
srrug
gc
wrhrhc
aw.
\hrhc
hrsr
placc
it
calls
guilrhroguc
srohor,
morc
rc
cscy, rhc
prih
ciplc
accordihgrowhch rhcrcsho
uhshmchr
wrh
our
guilr. ^ohg
wrh
rhs
r also gucsrohs
rhc
accusarioh,
whichgrouhdsrsclh
gur(wc
cahaddhc
IoH
owhgrorhc
cara-
loguc ol Ir
odah
hohschs
cari
cs.
\a
ca
docshor
carc
abour rhc
gucsroholgracc
bur
rarhcraoourrhcaccusa
rioh,
whch srs
op-
osrc).
"
ow cah
a
mah
ih gch
cralbc
gulry: |oscll.
asks
rhc
prsohcha
plaih,who
sccmsroco
hcur,\y
sayhgrharrhc
schrchcc
docshorcxist
bur
rhar
"rhcrralrsclsrra
hslo
rmc
d,rrc
ly
lirrc,
hro
rhc
schr
chcc. Jh
rhc
samclash
ohamodcrhurisr
haswrit-
rch
rhar, hrhc
mysr
cryolrhc
rral,rhc
prih
cipc
null poena
sine
iu
dicio s rcvcrscd ahd
bccomcs a
darkcr
prihc
ipc, accor
dhg ro
1
whch
IhcrcsnOud_
mcnt
wIhOuI

mcnI cs nud
_mcnI
b
gunIs1In
cnI, Incca
O
C Insuch

'
aIa ccrIangOnI `
mcaI
h
!
aIa_ says
Ihc uncc
IO
+h
lS IO
avcarcady OsI I IgOu1I IcvIdcnIn sc!sand

dcIus Ira.
+hc
saI1dcrO `
!
crand,In_cncra,n Ihc
u Ia
Is a
! whcrc bcn_ nd
cIcd s Ih

cas w1crc
Ihcrc s nO
h
c m IcImcnt II ! h uc

Nhcrc
_utcOnssIsnb

b
sc , I c accu
saIOn
cannOI bc anyIhn_OIh
h
rI
h
n_m_a
`
OuI IhcIrIa,
Ihc
:O1
Ici cI I anI c Ial IIsc!
6 n addIOn IO sandcr !

temeritates Or ``darkc
,

m
h
anurIsIs
wcrcaWarcOIwO
`
I I1_s
O I c ac
.

cOusIOn bcIwccn accusc

d
cuaIIOI1.
praeva1catio,
OggO
scdIOsan
dcr)
d
r
h
an
accuscd
(whch s sInncIrc
a , an I c tergtve `
!
.
clisatOn (Or Ihc
KOm
h
rsatto, I1c
rcIracIOn OIhc
ac-

!
ans, w O saw an
ana
b Ia , Ihc
rcIracIOn OIh
O_y
cIwccn war
and

caccusaIiOn wasa I
d gtversare Or_
n1y
mca
cn O
cscrIOnter- C
ns IO Iurn On b k
)OscK. s_uIy Oa I
.
b
c s ac On sO
mcIh
n_).
. 1tcc. ccausc hc sa d h
causc,mas
much
a: hc scsand
h
n crs
unsc!; bc-
bccausc hc s nOI in a_

cI, c cOudcs
wIh
hmscl and
h
IccmcnI WIIh
hs Ow
.
scnsc, c Icr_v
crsaIcs,hcOOk I
n accusaIIOn (n Ihs
s CI acOg-O
uI andsIas
Or Imc).
,, !nc undcrsIands,
Ihcn,
Ihc subIcI
c_y
IhaI sccksIOdcacIvaIc
d
d

y Osc-sandcras a sIraI-
h d
an rcn crInOgc

h
I c In
Ictmc
nIIhaI
Ihc!
dd
rauvc I c accusaIOn

awa
rcsscsIO
d L

,
IIOn sasc, and mOr
h
war
cm_.
Ihc accusa- ,
cOvcr, I c accus `
d c
uscd,
Ihcn
I s Ihc tundam
!

c| cOmcI cs
wIh
Ihc ac-
h
cnIa Im
gcaIO
I

sg crcOaw
IhaIscacdh

n O
man wIIhn Ihc
h

cI cmIO g
ucsIIOn h
!

rmOnc snnO
ccnccbcOrcIhcaw
(andIh
.
c On y wayIO a-
II: OI

cxam
gc
Ihc aIh

.
cgOwcrs IhaIrcgrc
scnI ,
cr, Or
marria_ ) `
h accusc Oncsc!
c I, In I I scnsc, IO ascy
haI
sndcr can uc a dccnsc
mcchan
.
auIhOrIIy I ccary saIcd b h
h
sm H Ihc sIru__c
wIh
Cdc lI
wOud bc .r !
`
)

I c OI cr I, Ihc g|OIa_O
nsI OThe
.

caIIvcy
mnOccnI a d
h In
ucc
nI,mcansOdcc
'''K n

n !!l I ccndasO
guIc

nsc.
a a Imdccd
! !
I1cInsuH
ccncy OIhs
sIraIc
ccmgcIcy awarc
IIOIransOrm
IhcndcIm
_y

`
smcc Ihc rcsgOnsc
OIhc aw
cnI usc mIO a
d
cmc, an IO Iurn
sc-
1 2y
sandcr nIO IsOundaIOn. OIOnydOcs Ihc aw grOnOuncc Ihc
ondcm
naIOn aIIhcvcrymOmcnIHwhlchIIrccO_nIzcsIhcbasc
cssn
cssOIhcacclI.atOn,buII asOIransOrmsIhcscs!andcrcr
`
s
subI
cru_c nIO Is gcrgcIua sc-usI!caIOn. cncc humans dO
nOI
ccasc IO sandcr Ihcmscvcs, as wc as OIhcrs, Ihc aw (IhaI
s IhcIra) s ncccssary n Ordcr IO asscss whch accusaIOns aIc
grOundcss and whch arc nOI n Ih!s way Ihc aw

an !nd Is
sc-]usIh caIIOn by grcscnIm_ IIscas a buwark a_amsI Ihc dc
rum Ohuman bcn_s sc-accusaIOns (IO sOmc dc_rcc I has
acIcd as such wIh rc_ard IO rc_On,Or cxamgc). vcn man
wcrc
aways nnOccnI, nOman n _cncra can bc cacd _uIy,
sc-sandcr wOud sI rcman as Or_na sn,as Ihc basccss ac-
cusaIOn IhaI humanIy drccIsaI Isc!
8.IsmgOrIanIIO dsIn_ushbcIwccn sc-sandcr andcOncs
sOn. Nhcn !cn Ircs IO nducc!. IO makc a cOncssOn,Icn_
hm IhaI Ihc Ony chancc [hc has| tO cscagc s by cOncssn_
hs _uI,!. hasIy dccncs Ihc Ocr. 1nd ycI,n a ccrIan scnsc,
Ihc am OIhc cnIrc Ira s IO grOducc such a cOncssOn, whch
arcady n !Oman aw cOunIs as a sOiI Osc-cOndcmnaIOn. 1c-
cOrdn_ IO ajmdca ada_c,Ihc Onc whO has cOncsscd s arcady
ud_cd (confssus pro iudicato). hc cguvacncc bcIwccn cOncs
sOn and sccOndcmnaIOn s a!rmcd wIhOuI rcscrvaIOn by
Onc O Ihc mOsI auIhOrIaIvc !Oman ursIs: whOcvcr cOncsscs
cOndcmnshmsc sO IOsgcak (quodammodo sua sententia damna
tur). LuI whOcvcr ascy accuscs hmsc-nsOar ashc has bccn
accuscd-musI acc grccscy Or Ihs rcasOn Ihc mgOssbIy O
cOncssn_,andIhc cOurI cancOndcmnhm as Ihc accuscr Ony
IrccO_nzcs hs nnOccnccas Ihc accuscd.
n Ihs scnsc !

s sIraIc_y can bc dc!ncd mOrc grccscy as Ihc

acd aIIcmgI IO rcndcr Ihc cOncssOn,buI nOI Ihc Ira,mgOs-
sbc. OrcOvcr,as a ra_mcnIrOmIzOa!rms,IO cOncss Onc
'
s
Own _uI and IO c arc Ihc samc Ihn_. !n Ordcr IO bc abc IO
cOncss,Onc cs. '"!aH:a,IhcrcOrc,sccmsIOnscrbchmscnIO
a IradIOn IhaI-cOnIrary IO Ihc avOr IhaI I cnOys n[udcO
'hrsIancuIurcdccsvcy rcccIscOncssOn: rOmLccrO
'
whO

dchncs ii as "rcpugnani and dangcrous (turpis etperzc,ulosa), l

Irousi, who candidly adviscs, "Ioni cvcr conIcss (nav'oUt
mais) ,
. Inihc hisioryoIconIcssionihc link wiih ioriurcisparricu
ladysignihcani, alink ihai ah:a could hardlybcinscnsiiivc
hilcihclawduringihcagcoIihcrcpublicacccpicd conIcssicn
wiih somcrcscrvaiionsasawayio dcIcnd ihcaccuscd, during
agc oIihc cmpirc~abovc all Ior crimcs againsisovcrcign
(plois, bcirayal, conspiracy, orimpiciyagainsi ihccmpcrot)
alsoIor adulicry, magic, and illicii divinaiion~ihc pcnal procc-
durccniailcd ihc ioriuic oIihcaccuscd andhisslavcs inordcrio
cxioriIromu+cmaconIcssion. "rcsiihciruih (veritatem eruere)
isihc insignia oIihcncw|udicial rarionalc ihai, by closclylink-
ingconIcssion and iruih, makcs ioriurc (which in cascs oIhigl
ircasoncxicnds cvcn iowiincsscs) ihc probaiivc insirumcnipar
cxccllcncc. Icncciis dcsignaiion as quaestio injuridicalsourccs:
ioriurcis aninguirynioiruih (quaestio veritatis) , and ihisishow
iiwillbcihcniakcuupbyihc mcdicval inguisiiion.
Iniroduccd iniouccouriroom, ihcaccuscdundcrwcnianini-
iialinicrrogaiion.^Iicr ihchrsihcsiiaiions orconiradiciions, or
cvcnonlybccausclcdcclarcdhimsclIinnoccni,ihcjudgcordcrcd
ihcapplicaiionoIioriurc

Jhcaccuscdwassprcadouionhisback
onihcrack(cavalletto inIialianoreculeus inarin,mcaningliiilc
horsc,whichrclaicsio ihcCcrmanicrmIor ioriurc, folter, dcriv-
ing Irom FoMen, coli), wiih arms cxicndcd baclward and up-
ward, and hands iicd wiih a cord ihai passcd ihrough a pullcy,
i nsuch a way ihai thc cxccuiioncr (quaestionariu, tortor) could
pullihccordandcauscihcdislocaiionoIihccollarbonc.Jhishrsi
siagc, Irom which incnamc "ioriurc dcrivcs (Irom torqueo, `io
iorguc or iwisi uniil shaiicring),wasusuallyIollowcdbynogging,
aswcll as laccraiionwiih iron hooks and harrows. Jhc doggcd
scarchIoriruih wassuchihaiihcioriurccouldbcprolongcdIor
scvcral days, uniil ihcconIcssionwas hnallyobiaincd

long wih ihc diIIusionoIihc praciiccoIioriurc, conIcssion

z,
T
I
iruih

orccIu
lly
wrcsicd by ihc
l

ll
rom
i
ll d
io in
icr
na zc isc
.
h
ihai
ihc
subcci is com
pc c ,

s
iibcc
omcssomci iig
y
Sourccs rccord

uuonct,

d
arc
spo
nan
cous .
.

wn
consccncc, io
cc
I
l
ho conIcsswiih
ouibcmg
|rs o .
scso
pcopcv .
h

oIsurp
iscca
d
Iui
cvcn tn i csc
` n scn
sc
b
bsovc U
ita .
3

I
i
d
r
aIicr
having
ccna

h
"voicc oIcon
scicncc
accusc
o
-inas
much
as i s i c
.
l
nd
hc
co
nIcsston
h l
has pro
baitvcvauc a
t
scs

t,'ae
voz)ncvcri ccs
.
;(.
.
on
sctenc

(C
01t
;esto C
d
iionoIihc
co
cssor.
.
ics
ihc
con
cmna
imj
d iruih
l lnl bc
cwccn ioriurc an

l ihc
cssc
nia
b d
-
i is
prccscy
.
.
nam
osi mor i man
)O.

I
iicnionii.a . .
msio
aiira
ci a as a
I r mc

hc
vrics iii
ih
ai
scc

I
rcmc imp
oria
ncc o
_
_

b
"
:cs
ioriurc s o
cxi
k "
soc
occu
paion s
c-
cmb

cr
\2O io
i

na|cs
;
a

+ lcarn
how ioIorccihc
io
riu
rcd
and iori
urng

d
y
l '
Jwo
monihs pnor, hc
i ng
I h
sc
moui\
scdword
oui o i c cur
' l dr
awingoIa
ioriurc
ma-
cur
l
` IpapcrWiIa

h
hcsio
hisciicraspo
I

l+ccar
ihcs
wtihi
csc
a
iiac

hosc
unciton
l d
l
nc oI
hisownnvc
nio
n,w
h
ihc
iwo
pocsgci
pus:c
c.t
.
cdi+i s
way,
ords'
"C
ncc
ihc mansi
l
"''
Jhaiioriurc
may
scrvc
w
'
l l
spin
ro

l
lyouiwarduni
cs
d b ! Ic aIcw
days
carcr,
sov

nhrmc
y a
d
cxiracia
conI
csston s co
h
Iamanwhoschca
gcis
io

d onioi aio
h nhccomp
arcshs
con i
h
pcs:
JhcdiIIcr
cncc
w c

l
scrcws aii cicm

cdina viccwti.cwo
don'iwaii ii icy
c amp
hai in
ordcr io
scrcam
.
I
ics
ony in
ihs. . . . i
.
d iocxira
ciihc
conI
csson
rom
.
h
cws nor c
l
'1 _
hnishiig
hicn
ngi csct
&

d whcn
ihcy
drawc osc.
mc
bui
raihcrsiari
scrcamngarca y
icrcsi is
provcd by
ihc
,
ctclya passtng n
I
d
Jhai ihis was
noi
m

l h
ah:awriicsin usia cw ays
siory"n
ihc
Icna
Coo
ny, w+c
ihccom
posiiionoI
The
TriaL
in
Cciobcr))j,whic
inic
rru
h
in

ld
Com
ma
ndani is, in Iaci,

icdbyi c o
` I
Jhc
"apparaius
hvcn

i Ior ihc cxccu

iono
d
' nd an i.siiu
mcn .
ai oncc
a ioriurc
cvcc a
h
cIsugg
csis
ihis
whcn, a
nic-
capiia
punishm
cni ,ihc
oIhccr m

ha
vcni
uscdioriurcsincc
b
b
iton
hcsays,
c ,
lI .
posst c o cc
,
h
i tintics ii. iisc
paiiga
.
l
muc as
h
'idd c
^gcs).' is
prcctscyuas

hicicdbyihc
mac
hinc
i c
h
h
umshm
cnin .
ihcsciwo
Iun
ciions i aii cp

itatis in
which ihc
dscov-
dcswiiha
pariic
uar
quaestto ver
,
coiiici
1
cryO truthIscntrustcd nOt tO thcud_c but tO thc accuscd,
dOcssO by dccIghcrIn_thc wrItIn_ that thc harrOw InscrIbcs
hIs Hcsh:
Even the most dull-wined ones begin to understand. It begins
the eyes and from there it spreads. It is a spectacle that could
anyone to get under the harrow himself. Nothing else happens,
that the man begins to decipher the writing. He purses his lips as
were listening. You have seen that it is not easy to decipher the
with your eyes, but our man deciphers it with his wounds. It is
ficult labor; it takes him six hours to complete. But by that time, the
harrow has pierced him thoroughly and throws him into the ditch,
where he falls down on the bloody water and cotton wooL `
. lnthccna |OOny waswrIttcndurIn_thccOmgOsItIOnO
The Trial and thc s:tuatIOnO thc cOndcmncdgrcscUsmOrcthan
ust ananaO_ywItL thatO!. /s ! dOcsnOtknOw whathcIsac-
cuscdO, sOInthc shOrt stOrythccOndcmncddOcs nOtknOwthat
hchasbccncOndcmncd. cdOcsnOtcvcnknOwhIsscmcncc|O
cOmmunIcatc It tO hIm, cxgaIns thc O!ccr, wOud bcusccss.
c wI cxgcrIcncc It On hIs Own Hcsh) . ' LOth stOrIcs sccm tO
cOncudc wIth thc cxccutIOn O a dcath scnIcncc (Onc that, In thc
shOrtstOry, thcO!ccrsccmstO InHIct OnhImsc InstcadOOnthc
cOndcmncd). LutItisgrccIscythcObvIOusncssO thIscOncusIOn
that must bc gucstIoncd. hat what Is at stakc In thc shOrt stOry
Is nOt an cxccutIOn, but Ony tOrturc, Is ccary statcd grccIscy at
thc mOmcnt In whIch thc machInc brcaks dOwn and IsnO On_cr
abc tO gcrOrm Its unctIOn: hIs was nOt thc tOrturc that thc
O!ccrwantcdtOInHict, thIswasmurdcr, gaInand sImgc` hc
truc aImOthc machInc Is, thcrcOrc, tOrturc as quaestio veritatis.
cath, whIchOtcn OccursdurIn_tOrturc, Is OnyacOatcra cHcct
Othc dIscOvcry Otruth. Nhcn thc tOrturcmachIncIsnOOn_cr
abc tO Orcc thc cOndcmncd tO dccIghcr thc truth On hIs Own
Hcsh,tOrturc_IvcswaytO sImgchOmIcIdc.
lt IsrOmthIsgcrsgcctIvcthatOnc mustrcrcadthc!nachagtcr
O The Trial crc, aswc, wc arc nOtdcaIn_ wIth thc cxccutIOn
O a scntcncc but wIth a sccnc O tOrturc hc twO mcn wIth tOg
I
z
` ccOIid-ratc
actors Or cvcn
Ikctc

Ors,
_
t
wh
O
OOk
tO !. ll
c s
h

scnsc but quaestio

nari
'
whO
as,

thc tcc mca

d
d
arc
nOt cxccu
tIOn
cIs In

thatug untI thcn 1O

Oncha asc
c
tryIn_tO
_ct a cOn
cssIOn
!
who ascy accuscd
hIm
sc,

|
Im
Or
| t s
truc that It w

ncss

On O such
san
dcr
that
jcn
It
Is
gcrh
ags grcisc

| hIs Is cOn!
rmcd
by thc cuDOs
tBc
y
want
tO
cxtra

t rOm
h sa cOntact wIth !. , whIch rcca s
dcscrI
gt
On
O thcir !rst g y
tbc
tcnsOnOthcarms
andthc gO-
q u_h
Ina
vcrtIca gOsu
On)

.
icy hcdthcr
shOu-
\o
d d thc quaestIO.
d
sI
On
O thc
h
a
.
cc
d
us

d
I
crOOl
thcIrarms,but
Instcadwraggc_
d
rs
rI_
htbc U
Is,

ln
!
`shandsbcOwvIt
th
c
cm
abOutthc
whOc cn_thc
d
hIs, s
`
'
t
7

.
u
_
c _.Ig ! wakcd
aOn_

d an
ucs s

h
a
mcth
Odc
a, wc
-traI
\c ,
h

mcd
sucha cOsc
unl
t t at
h
d thc
t rcc Or
h
a
sIIm
y bctwccn t cm, an
k ddOwn
[zersc
hlgen Mitte], t cn

OncO thcmhadbccn
i1O
c

knOckcd
dOwn '

thrcc
O thcmwOud
havc
!
n_OnthcstOncInagOsturc
guItc
)vcnthc
!na
sccnc,vIt
.
)
tOrturc
_Onc
awry than
b
mOrc anact O
b
Orccd and Imgausi c, Is
m
tbc gcnacOOny aIstO!nd y
1 dasthcO
ccrH
h d th
an
cxccutIOn. n
h
kIn_
Or sOasOt c ca
h
hthat cwas OO
`
mcansO tOrturct ctru

d than
IkcacOncusOnO a quaes-
O !.
sccmsmOrc
Ikc a

Omici
cks thc
strcn_thtO dO
what hc
t
io
v
eritatis. nthc cnd,m ac
h
t,

a
tgasscdrOmhandtOhand
h d

scIzc t c
OI c as i
d d
kncw
was Is uIy: tO
` h
.
'
`hOcvcr has s an cic
.
d n_c It mtO
Imsc .
1
abOvc hIm an ]
u
` h b
tOrturIn_hImsc . t any

hIsOwnUut Ony )

hmsc cancOncss
.

m hasmsscd Its _Oa .

ratc,
tOrturc, kcanng
uu_
mtO tru ,
h

In Ordcr tO bc
subt
ractcd
\z. !.
|cvcry
man)
sandcrs
.
imsc
h
.
cms tO Inc
Ontc
staby

h
accusatIOn t at It sc
h
rOm
thc aw,
rOmt c
h

h h Is unabc tOcscagc |as t c

d h
d rOmw IC
c

dIrcct tOwar
an

y
dccarIn_
Oncsc 1-

c
s at Onc
gOmt, sImg
b
]
rsOn
chag
am
aIm
Ak )' cvcrthc
css, )
act-

ty
gcOgc awayst .

nOccnt Is
iOv _u
b
thc
grsOncr rOm
Onc O
h
d g rcscm m_

In_InthIs way, c cn s
..
u
OwsbcIn_
crcctcdInthc gHsOn
!a|ka.s ra_
mcnts,whO
sccs a

ndcd
Or hIm, brcaks Out
)
ard
mIstakcny bccvcs
that It Is
d
Intc
tO han_ h
msc|, !crc
,
h
h
nd _Ocs Own
d

O hIs cc Int c nI_

t, a
d

n thc sc-san cr O
b
thcaw
rOOtc as It Is I
cs thc am
I_uIIyO
.
]O 1
ihdividuas, itncvctthccssptcschtsitsclasapowctthatis
andsucriorto tlcm.
tis ih this schsc that onc shoud tcad thc patabcon thc
ol thc aw that tlcricstrccouhts to K. ih thc sccnc in
thcdta.Jhc door olthc awisthcaccusatiohthtough wbich
ihdividual comcs to bc implicatcd within thc law. But tbc
andsuprcmcaccusationisptohounccdbythcaccuscdhii:sclI[
bcit in thc lorm ol scll-slandct) . Iot this rcason thcS!I Ic\
thc aw cohsistsihmakingtbc accuscd bclicvc tbat thc accusatoJ
(thc door) is dcstincd (cthas) tcciscy lot him, thattbc
dcmahds (pcthas) somcthihgltom bim, thatthcrc is [pcth;y,
a tria in togrcss that has somcthing to do with him. n
thcrc isho accusatiohahdno ttia, atcasthot until thcmmar
in which whocvct ocicvcs himscl to bc accuscd stos 1u:m g
himsclt
Jhisisthcschscol thc"dcccption( 7au:chung) thatis,accom-
ihg to thc words ol thc pticst, utinto qucstioh by thc aiabc
("In thcihtt+ductotytcxtsto thclawitsaysolthisdccction: Ic-
lorcthcawstahdsadootkccpct).`hc problcmishotso much,
as K. bcicvcs, who dcccivcs (thc dootkccpcr) ahd who is bcihg
dcccivcd (thcmahltom thc couhtry).Jhctoblcm is aso hot
whcthctthcrwostatcmcntsolthcdoorkcccr(that"hccantgtaht
himadmittahccnow"ahd that "thiscnttahccwasmcahtsoclylot
ou) arc motc or c:s cohtradictoty. ^t al cvchts, thcy mcah,
`ou atc hotaccuscd, ahd "Jhc accusation cohcctnsyouaohc;
onyyoucahaccuscyoutsclandbcaccuscd. Jhcyarc,tbctclotc,
an invitation toscll-accusatioh, an ihvitation to aow ohcscllto
bccaptutcdin thctria.orthistcasohKs hopc--thatthcricst
couldgivchim"dccisivcadvicc thatwouldhcphim,hottoihhu-
chcctbctria butrathcttoavoid it, to aways livcoutsidcol it-
cahhotbut bc ih vaih. Ivch thc pticstis, inrcaity, a dootkccpcr,
cvchhc`bclohgstothccoutt.Jhctrucdcccptionisrccisclythc
cxistchccoldootkccpcrs,olhumans(orangcs:guardingthcdoot
is, ihthc]cwish ttaditioh, oncol thc lunctions ol ahgcs)-lrom
thc owicst burcaucratal thc way up to thc attotncys and tbc
higbcsttankihgjudgc-whoscaimis to inducc othcthumahs to

1
b
btbcdoottbatlcads
dbavctb
cmpasst toug
b
cont
ain a
thcm
scl
vcs
h
ah

`bc
para
bl<
docs,

r a
_ t dy ol
' \ut t c ti
a

h rcatstacisnott cs u
- "`',
dvi
cc, tb
ougb`
atis c
butrathcttbc"ohgstud
y
_ o
a
ih
itscll
bcarsno
guilt

J
_
_
e:
,,
r
hter:)
to
b
langen
ll
um
(in
dema
re
d`
b m
scIl
uhi
ntcr
rupt-
h
ttdc
catcs
d
tb
cmahlrom
t c c

un

law`!tistba
nks
to
tbis
stu
y,
i9
.
hbc
orcl
c
. .
o
pposi

bisso}
our
l
hc
countr)
ii

cdl)
urin
g
jam
ud,
tbat
tbc ah
tom

hd
outs
idc
thc
ttia

o
thisnc
` tlcto
lvc
totbc
vciy c

cl
_.
.wasa

oh
to
os
.
ol
bordcrs or

b tbc
constit
utioh

_
Ihas
much
as bc
cy
d
o
c
r
a

p
it
artic
uar
|
:
im
portan
b
t ih\
m
o
c
m

h
nd
surv
l
,
gt c ha

i
_its,
t c
a
cyor
an
agri
en:or
\
o
' '
o
`
'
d
h

l
_
cult cxam
otb
_ _c a surv
,
b d to ass a
h cco
a grom
ati
cu:),
onc
a
nisbcd
witb
dcat .
.
tumcnt, .
ould\c u
ii
st .
this
rot
cssion c
sucb
a dcgrcc
ct
wisc,
ptacticmg

a sacrcdcbara
ctci
to
c
| m
cs
\or
dcts bad, in
lact,
b
d rs
,ter
minum
ear
are)
occam
o
cli
mih
atcd
tbcsc
o
'
c

hi
`hctc
wcrc
tha
twb
ocvct
kI\ d\y ahyohc
vitb
utu r)
.
l I lahd

and
coud oc
c
.
t
bc im
ortancc o t+c
:ace
acc
ountin
g o
t
`\
]`ryolasccr
I
.
p\cr
rcasons
\ \
thc
ossi
aso
si

t
Ih
civillaw,ustasihpu
|ic

ahd assig
ning
portiohs
,
g

crri

\
_
_,,ti
t

dcr
t
d

.s
u

-
olland
(ager,

l
\ot
tbis
tcasoi, ii+s
'
a
d d
tcn
+ihcs
I
ptac
ticco
aw.

ois
bcs,ah
c
rcvcr
b
whoasccrta
ms

csta

.
``crc
atot
tor
parcxcc\chcc~~ c
was
also
callcdiu:aucto,

b
lahdsurvcyor

| ndarics
t c

ti:imu:

d 9
l
u
l
ahd
hc
bcdthc
titlc
vtrer

c
llcctioholtcxtsohah

o
aw,
b
tbat
tbc
rstco
\tis
Itisnot
surp
rising,t
,
c+,
Co
u:
|uri:\
am
ostac
.
cnt
uty.

sur
vcyi
hgrc
ccdcs|ustih

ans
di.cly
altcrits
pub
lication,tbc
nc
cvcncsssurp
tising
tbat
'
mmc
cdit
ioholtbc
Co
u:g
om

ticu
m
ccssi)
was
lctto
prc
atc hcw
sotut
ists\
ctc
ch
tbc
vritingso
wbichintc
rpo
latcdthc
oinion
tbc
lahdsutvcy
ors.
\ dsurv
cyor
was
tbcgroma
t hc \
omah
an
Jhc
instrumcnto t
z
1
..gruma) .............-.-..-...,......--1..
.,...-..--....,..-.....-.....

....-...-umbilicu
.-........--.1.............-...........
+..-.........-.....-.....-..-1....-,......1....-
........--.(rigores) ....,-.....-......-....-..-
.......-......
+.-\O ......--......-..........-...-.-...-....
...--.-..-kardo, ....-1.........U...........-driumu-
nus, ......-.......U -..+.-.-.....-....-.,-.. ,,
..-....1........-castrum .....-1,...-.."castl,"-cast'
fum ....-1.......-.....-.............,..,.
..-..,....,...........-1.....-.-.........-
1.-...-.......-...-.........,...,,-.-...-.-1
i....-s.......-......|.-.-...........-.........1.
.-....constitutio limitum ..--,.1.....-.r.......-..-
n,.-.....-....-.-..-Constitution oqLimits --........-.-
..1.

-.......-...-...1.........-.......-.
...-.-..,..-...-...--.....-...........-.. ......|.....
.-.-..........-1.,-.,-....--......- ..-.-........-...
.....-..-..-...-.-.--.-....-......1--1...-decumani ..-
....-.-,.........-.....-....-.....-...-kardines ......
.-....-......-,..-.
}. :.t|,...---..---.,...........-...............
s...-.ki..........1-s.1....,.-....-1..s-......-
......-.--1..-....-...,...s...........-,...Die
Schrifen der romischen i./....+.--......
,
.......-....
......-...-..-....-...,....!ton|nus,~-...t.-....
n,.-..c..................|............-..--.-....-
.,,-........-,..1..-...-...........-.......-..-....,..
:..........,......-......-...1..---.,...-..........
....-.-...castrum, .....-............,..........,
..-1-....,.......-.....-.....,,-.....k....--......,.-.
....-...-.:....-...-..-..1...........-.......
...-...--1.-.-.s......-..,.-....-.,....-.
...,-.....-...1..-,..-....,,..|-1..-..1..-..
) J
I
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.

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.

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,

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.

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d
1

,

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.
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/ur 0..
c
.
-

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.

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.-.
...
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'

t
uuu i-
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\
.--
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.
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-

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d
o
,

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-
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.-

,
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u

iu,). i....
.,
.

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decu
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us
maxlm
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,

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kardo, ...

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-,....
\
C
uc i-
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,
0

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...1... ,..

....
....-1
--.
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turli
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l).v.
..:
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'

.
.-..,
(
9
uoddic-l" '
d
]u

dU
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...

,
..-1
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. -.J OI1
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.
.-.
....
...-.....-

....

..

.-
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s..
...
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...-...-..
....
....C

-....-..
.....1.,....
conh~

?S \\ .--..--

, .....-
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..
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U
t.1..-.
..-....-...

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.....-...1...
..

.-
....-
....
-.-1
t-.-...-,.-
1

lt.\-....,-,...-
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1
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.
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. .......
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Oa
tu:
lilulio i
ilu
.

.7he Cu:llc,

.--
...
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.
o.
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. 1 ,..-...

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,....,.....k....,-.....-.-.1..,.u:ammen/ruch) .-
-,-..-..-1....-,.-.-1..,--....-.......-...-.......1
..1..--.-......--.-1...1-1..1............-.....-..
+.-....,-..1.-.., vildheit) ......,..1..-1....-...-..
....,..1-....--1.......agen), .......-...-.-.......
1.-.....-.

-..

,.-,.-.-.........,-..--..,....-...-..,
..1_emoagt] ....1-.....-.--..-..-....--..,,....-1
_ueitergagt] ...-,.-.-.......-,..-.-...-.-.............
,......-...,-....-....,..-..,....-a-.........-.....
----.........1..........-..-..-..1--,..1..-.
TI

is hUl1
.
t p

oceeds in a direction opposite to that of humanity

jnnnrdtcKtclrun_au:dcr1cn:cllcr|. Solitude, which for the most
part .1aS een always forced on me and in part sought by me (but
wasn t thIS also a compulsion?), is now losing alI irs ambiguity and
goes

o the extreme _clrau[ da:Hu::c:rc| .Where is it leading? Per

ha

s ft
.
leads, and thIs seems to me inescapable, to madness j1rr:nn,
whICh IS etymologically linked to trrcn,"wander," "err"]; there is noth
ing left to add, the hunt passes through me and tears me apart. Or
else can (can I?), even if only to a small degree, stay on my feet and
allow myself to carry on the hunt. Where, then, do arrive? "Hunt"
is only an image; ! could also say "an assault on the last earthly limit"
j.n:/rn_c_et dtchrzrc rd:clc Orcnzc|.This is an assault launched
from be
.
low
:
by ma

kind, and since this is also only an image, I could

replace It WIth the Image of an assault aimed at me from above.
All this literature is an assault on the limit and, if Zionism had
n

t intervened, it might easily have developed into a new secret doc

tnne, a Kabbalah [zucttcrncucn Oclcnlclrc, ctncr1abbala|.There
are ntimati

ns of this. Though of course it requires an inconceivable

genIUS to strIke new roots in the old centuries, or to create the centu
ries anew, without, in so doing, consuming their forces, but rather, to
only now begin consummating dlem.
10
6.+.-..-.-.,.-..-1-.....-.......-.......-...,......
-..1-1........In ....,.-,-....-........-...-...-.....1-..
....,...,.....-.,....--..-.-......,-.....-.1-...,
....--..-..........-......-..|--....,}, ...-,....
J
}
'

'`\ l
...............1.-.........-.. teg, .,...,-
.-.......-.-...,..1,..1.,.-.....-...,,..-.-k.-
-.......,,.........z.........-....-....1...,.-c...
....
-..........-......-...,,...........-,.,.....,,..1
..
-.-......,....-ue:di:cheZeit.......-...-1,.s....-
1...,-...,--...-.-.-....-1-.....-.....-.-..

...-...-.....
k.s.........,....-...-..1.....,....,........-...1

..
.-,..k,kardo, ..-..-..1..-.......-.....

..1..-.

.1..,..
........-., ,. +.-.....-..,..-.........k....,....
...-.......-....-...-1.......|-,.-..1....-.....-.....
................-.....,-......--1........-....-,.....-..
.....-.1-...............1......-,,..........--...1
...-.--.--...-,..1-....1..-....-.....-.....,-.....
....-..1.....-...........-...-.1,...-1.....11..,
.-,...-.-1,.....-......-......,,..

..-.....s...-..
,..-........-....-.....,-...H .-...,.-...-.,1-.-.....-1-,
..--...1...-......-,....-........-.....-..1.....-...-
...-.--,..-....-....-,...-.-.....-....-........-.-.......
-..-... ......-...........-...1....-,.............-......
.
.
1

+.-...........-.....................,.......--... ..-.
.....-,....-..-.....-..-..,.,......-.....,-..-..,
,. o..-.,.....1......k.s...,...1.....-,..............-
.-k.--.........-,.-,..-...-....,,.-......,.....,.1
....-..,.-.-...-.-.,..,c....v-..-.....-.-..-...,1..
....-1....-...-.,-...,.......-..,-.....-.-..-.,-.....1
..--..-..........,,-....--..-...-,.-.-......-........
..-.....-.,-.....-........-.....1-............-..-.
..........-.......,........-.....-....-..-..1...-..-.,-..
..-..-...,...1.1..-..........k.-.-...11..-...

.....
-.....-...-.k......--....-..-..--..-.-,.....
kv....-kardo) . ....-.-.-,acek.s.....-...,......
.-.,.-.-....-..-.,-.....c.................a........-
1....--......-...-.-...-......,,.-.....-..-...........
..,-..,....-....,..-1....-,.......,....-

...-......--.
......-....v-..-..,-......-..-.............---...,-1,

1
Thcscatcthcboaudatics,scpatatious,audbattictscstablishcd
twccuhumaus,aswcl|asbc:wccu humaus audthcdiviuc,
thclaudsutvcyotwautstoputiutoqucstiou
ThciutctptctatiouaccotdiugtowhichK.wautstobcacccptcd
thccastlcaudscttlciuthcvillagcsccms,thcu,allthcmotc
ous.Kdocsuotkuowwhattomakcofthcvillagcasitis,aud
lcsssoofthccastlc.Whatthclauds

:cyotiscouccmcdwithis
botdctthatdividcsaudcoujoiusthc:wo,audthisiswhathc
toabolishot,tathct,tcudctiuopctativc.Wctcthisbotdctactually
passcs, uo ouc sccms to kuow. lcthaps it docs uottcallycxist
passcs,likcauiuvisiblcdoot,withiucvctyhumaubciug.
Kardo is uotonlya tctm iu laudsutvcyiug, italso mcaus
hiugcofadoot'^hiugc_can, "lsidotcofScvillc'sctymology
us,"isthcplaccouwhichthcdoot jo:ttum] swiugsaudmovcs.Itis
socallcdaftctthcCtcckwotdfothcatt_aote:kardta:] ,bccausc
thchcattofmaugovctscvctything,sothchiugcholdsaudmoves
thc doot.Whcucc:hc ptovctb. tncadtneme::e, 'tofudoucself
atumiugpoiut '''''Thcdooto:ttum,"lsidotccoutiuucs ,witha
dcfuitiou thatKaacouldhavcsubsctibcd towithoutauytcsct-
vatiou), "is that whichimpcdcsouc ftom cutctiug"'Thco:ttarit,
thcdootkccpcts,"atcthoscwho,iu thcOldTcstamcut,impcdcthc
cuttauccofthcimputciutothcTcmplc."Thchiugc,thctutuiug
poiut,iswhctc tlcdoot thatobsttucts acccssisucuttalizcd.Aud
ifBuccphalusisthc"ucwadvocatc, "whostudics thclawoulyou
thc couditiouthatit uolougctbcapplicd,thcuK is thc "ucwlaud
sutvcyot," whotcudctsiuopctativc thclimitsaud thc bouudatics
thatscpatatc,audatthcsamctimcholdtogcthct) thchighaudthc
low, thccastlcaudtlcvillagc,thctcmplcaud u.chomc,thcdiviuc
audthchumauWhatwould happcu tothchighaudthclow,thc
diviucaudthchumaa,thcputeaudthcimputc,ouccthcdoot(that
is, thcsystcm oflaws, wtittcu aud uuwtittcu, thattcgulatc thcsc
telatiouships) isucuttalizcd?Whatwouldhappcu,iu thccud, to
that"wotldofttuth" ,towhichthccauiucptotagouistdcdicatcshis
iuvcstigatiousiuthcstotythatKakawtotcwhcuhcdchuitivelyiu-
tcttuptcdthccompos.tiouofthcuovcl)?Thisisjusthowmuchthc
laudsutvcyotisallowcdtocatchaglimpscof
4
On
th
e Uses and
Dis
adv
anta
ges of
Liv
ing
am
ong
Sp
ecters
thc
Uuv
ctsty
usttutcofAtch-
u
thc
iuaugvtal
addtcss
d
a

l btuaty
____
Mauft
cdoTafvt

\ dcl:vctc H c
'
all

tcctutc u

uc,
" fVcucc
uuo
uuccttautctms
Rcc u
cv
okcd
thc
ca avct

o
h
ho
ptoposcdtohostthc
Wotlds
l
daga:nst
t oscw
"Th
thc
battcwagc
l d d
thouta
uotcofsaducss.
c
h
coucu c
uotVI
d l
`
laitiut cc:ty, c
h h
bcttcttoput
makcup au :p-
ct ct:twas
pto
blcm
was uotw
h
l
tloo|sotdculous
thatcvcu
stckouthc
cadavct, t usma

ug

twhat
wc~thcpowct-
dh
kcd:t
'
uotwasI
u.ldt
cu
woul
avcmoc
d
'
h
~cudcd upwith,
thatis,a
lcss
dcfc
udcts,thc
d:satmc
ptop cts

.
'
b fotcoutvcty
cycs.
cadavctlquc ug
c
c cdsm
placablcdagu
os:s,
Almosttwo
dccadcshavcpa
l
ss s
h
uc

udcom
pctcucc,
wbosc
' h mpcaut ot.tya
pcuucdbyapctsou
w:t a
bl
cballcugc ugood
faith
,uotcvcu
accutacyuoouc
couldp

ss
.
: y
dthctcst
who,thcuastoday,
h`tccts
mutstcts,au .
thc
mayots,a:c I
,
d tb "

dcccu
cy" tocout:uucto
h
T f o's wot s, c u
h'
had aud
avc, J au
d
) T thc
catcfulobsctvct t :s
dollup aud uudctscllthc
h
ca

vct
.
o
uolougctacadavct,thatif
h
t atcu:cc:s
actuallymcaus,
owcvc

l b
c' :thasmauagcd
tomovc
ll
t:souy ccaus
itsomchowstt
cx:sts,i
d h d thccous
cqucutdccom-
bcyoudthc
statc
that
follows cat an
thatofthc
spcctct,ofthc
.
f h
Th:sucw
statc.s
f
pos:tiouo t c cotpsc.

tablyuthcmtddlco
.
thoutwatuug,
ptctc
.
dcadwho a
ppcatsVI
d
somctmcscvcu
spcak
ug,
.
h
k'
udscu ugs:gua

h
thci:g t,ctca :nga
.
ll' blc
"Vcuicc :sw :s-
though uawaythatsuotalways :ntc :gt
'
`Z
Onthc /:c:aadDi:advantagc:o{LtvtngamongSccte
gcrIng, a!urI wrItcs, thOugh hc adds that such whIsgcrs arc a0
unbcarabcsOundtOthcmOdcrncar.
+hOsc whO Ivc In NcnIcc attaIn a ccItaIn!amIIarIty wIth thIs
sgcctcr
`
!t suddcnyaggcarsdurIng anOcturna strO whcn,crOss-
Inga brIdgc, Oncs gazc turnsa cOrncr aOngsIdc a cana Immcrscd
InshadOws, as agImmcrO! OrangcIghtIs swItchcdOnInadIstant
wIndOw, andanObscrvInggasscrbyOnanOthcr brIdgc hOds Out a
!Oggcd-ug mIrrOr

!r whcn thc \Iudccca sand amOst sccms tO

gurgc as ItdraIns rOttcn agac and gastIc bOtUcs OntOthcZattcrc
grOmcnadc

/nd It was yct agaIn thc samc sgcctcr thatthanks

tO thc InvIsIbc cchO O! a hna ray O! Ight, IndchnItcy IngcrIng
Ovcr thc canasarcc saw cnshrOudcd wIthIn thc rcUcctIOns
O! thc gaazzOs In thcIr cvcr-darkcnIng ObscurIty./nd grIOr stI,
thIssgcctcr aggcars atthc vcry OrIgIns O! thIscIty, whIch wasnOt
bOrn,IkcamOstcvcryOthcrcItyIntay,as arcsutO! thccncOun-
tcr bctwccn atc antIguIty In Its dccInc and ncw barbarIan!Orccs
butrathcras arcsutO!cxhaustcdrc!ugccswhO,abandOnIngthcIr
rIchcs bchInd thcm I0 !Omc, carrIcd Its ghantasmin thcIrmInds,
tOthcn dIssOvc ItIntO thc cIty
`
s watcrs,strcaks, and cOOrs.
N|at Is a sgcctcr madc Ot !! sIgns, Or mOrc grccIscy O! sIg-
naturcs, that Is tO say, thOsc sIgns, cIghcrs, Or mOnOgrams that
arc ctchcd OntO thIngs by tImc

/ sgcctcr aways carrIcs wIth It a

datcwhcrcvcrItgOcs,ItIs, InOthcr wOrds,anIntImatcyhIstOrIca
cntIty.hIs Is why Od cItIcs arc thc guIntcsscntIa gacc O! sIgna
turcs,whIchthc hncur In turn rcads,sOmcwhatabscntmIndcdy,
In thc cOursc O! hIs d:I!tIng and strOIng dOwn thc strccts. +hIs
Is why thc tastccss rcstOratIOns that sugarcOat and hOmOgcnIzc
1urOgcancItIcsasOcrascthcIrsIgnaturcs; thcy rcndcrthcmIcg-
Ibc /nd thIs Is why cItIcsand csgccIayNcnIcctcnd tOOOk
Ikc drcams n drcams thc cycs O! thc drcamIng gcrsOn scIzc On
cachandcvcrythIng, cach andcvcrycrcaturc cxhIbIts a sIgnaturc
that sIgnIhcs mOrc than Its traIts, gcsturcs, and wOrds cOud cvcr
cxgrcss

Oncthccss,thOsc whO stubbOrny try tO Intcrgrct thcIr

drcamsarcstI atcastarUy cOnvInccd that thcy arcmcanIngcss.
Onthc /:c:andDi:advantagc: o{LvingamongScctcr:
J7
.
lhIn that has haggcncd In sOmc anc,
Im
Ia
ry, 1 thccIty,cvc )
g
c sIdcwak aOnga cana,In
zza U sOmcstrcct,OnsOm

h
In
sOmc Ia
!
`
ddcny cOndcnscd andcrystaIzcd mtO a g
sO
mcbac
`
a cy

!
su
b

! d cxIgcnt mutc and wInkIn

g, rcscnt!u
h t I at Oncc a I c an
,

t
dtant

cuch hgurcIs thcsgcctcr Or gcnIusO! thcg acc.

h d d` `+hc wOrk O! Ovc InrccOcctIng
NhatdO wc OwctOt c ca .

.
h rkO! thcmOst
h d d !IcrkcgaardwHtcs, It c wO
thcOnc
w O I ca ,
d ! ! ! ! ! c Lu It Is ccrtaIny nOt thc
.
tcd !rcc an aIt1 u Ov .
b h dI
s I1tcrcs ,

!! ! as
l
nOthIng!rOmus, utt cy

hcdcad atcra , nOt Ony

h
ca
sIcst.
h
b In Ordcr tO bc !OrgOttcn
I,

mtO dO cvcryt II\gO c

d d asO scc

wh thc dcad arc gcrhags thc mOst cman

hOw
cvcr,I grccIscy
y
d l l and dcIngucntwIthrcsgcct
` ObcctsO!Ovc

Nc arc c cnsc css

I1g
d d h ! Omandncgcctthcm.
tOthc
ca , wc cc
! hcNcnctIans
`
ackO! Ovc!Or
!ny In

n
t

Ovc It,nOr arc thcy cagabc

thcIr cIty.h y
.
! d d dI!hcut t Is much casIcr tO
!

ccOvmg tc ca I
.
O
Ov ngIt,II1
d Icatcand bOOdcssmcmbcrs
]
rctcndthatIt Is aIvc, tOcOvcrIt c
d
hb

t It tO thc tOur-
d

Or cr tO cx I !
wIth sOmc makcug a

rOugm
NcnIcc thc mcrchants arc tO
Ists
whO gay an adm ssIOIg

Ic

I .hc tOmbs, whcrc thcy O!!cnd

bc!Ound nOt 1 thc tcmg c u
C tLc cadavcr |Or rathcr what
! thc IvIng but cvcn mOrc s

nOt Ony
d h h wIthOutbcIng abc tO cOcss
thcybcIcvctObc a ca avcr, t Oug
r that Is tO say |I! thcmcr
It| LutthIs cadavcr s actuayasgcctc ,
b ! and subtc
!

| thc mOst nc u Ous

hants arc awarc O It cXIstcncc ,
`
.
-ntIty,and thusas dIstant !rOm acadavcr as OnccanImagmc.

O! I!c a gOsthumOus Or cOmgcmcntary
cgcctraIty I a Orm
`
h
`
hnIshcd cgcctraIty thus
h b

ns Ony whcn cvc yt II\g Is

! ! c t at cg
h mgarabc gracc and astutcncssO
has,wIth rcsgcct tO L c,t c mcO
d rccIsIOnO! thOsc whO
that
whIch Is cOmg

ctcd,t

Ou

n
]
t

crcaturcs O!thIskInd
nOOngcrhavcany i 1ga ca
'

NcnIcc |InhIs ghOst stO-

h H | carncdtO gcrccIvc 1
t at cnry amcs
h d cvcs| +hcsc sgcctcrs arc sO
rIcs hc cOmgarcs thcm t
h
O sy p s n
sthc.vIngwhOInvadcthcIr
dIscrctcandsOcuIvc, t at ItIa way
hOmcs and straIn thcIr rctIccncc.
(O Onthe
'e:and
Di:a
dvant
age:oLivin
gam
ong
Se
cte,
Lut thcrc s asO
anOt
hcr
tygc OIsgcctraty
that
Wc may
arva,
whch s
bOrn
IOm
nOt acccgtn_ ts Own cO
ndtO
n,
IO(_cttn_ t sO as tO
grctcnd
at a cOsts that t st
has
wc_ht and
Hcsh

cuch arva sgcc

tcrs dOnOt
vc aOnc but
Obstnatcy
OOk
IOr
gcOgcwhO_cn
cI^tcdthcm thrOu
_hth
cr
cO
nsccncc. +hcy
vc n thcm
as n_ht
marcs, as nc
ub Or
~~V
J|,
ntcr
nay
mOvn_thcrIccss
mcm
bcrs
wth
strIn_s
madc
Vhc thc
hrst
tygc OIsgcc
traty IsgcrIcct, sncc tnO
On_cr
anyt
hn_ tO add tO
what t has
sad
OI dOnc, thc
arva sg(g
(
must
gIctcnd tO havc a Iuturc n Ordcr tO
Ccar a sgacc IOr
tOr
mcnt
IrOm thcr Own gast,IOr
thcr Own nc
agac
|V
mgrc-
hcnd that
thcy
havc,ndccd,
rcac
hcd
cOmg
ctOn.
ln_
cbOr_
Lac
hmann
Oncc cO
mgarcd
an_
ua_c tO a
cty,
wth
t
anc
cnt ccntcr, ts
mOrc rcccnt and
gcrg
hcra bOrO
u_hs,
and h-
nay
thc
cncr
cn_bct
way
and u _as
stat
Ons,
whch arc
asO
an
ntc
_ra gart OIthc
cty +hc samc
utOga and
thc samc run
arc
cO
ntancd n Our cty
and n Our
an_
ua_c,
and
wc havc drca
mt
and
Ost
Our
scvcs n bOth; ndc
cd,
thcy
arc
mcrcy thc IOrm
that
ths
drc
am
and
ths
Oss
takc. lI wc cO
mgarc
Ncncc tO a an-
_ua_c, thcn
vn
_ n
Ncncc s kc
stud
yn_
!atn,kc
tryn
_ tO
grOnOu
ncc
cvcry wOrd,
syab
c by
sya
bc, n a
dcad
an_ua_c;
car
nn_
hOwtO Osc and
rcdscOvcrOur
way n thc bOttcnccks OI
dcc
cns
Ons and
uncxgc
ctcd
Ogc
nn_s OI
sugncs
and
Iuturc n-
Dntvcs lt must bc rc
mcm
bcrcd,thO
u_h,
that
Onc
shOud
ncvcr
dccarc a an_
ua_c
dcadgrOvdcdthat tst sOm
chOw
sgcaks and
s rcad; t s Ony
mgOssb
c-Or ncary
mg
Ossb
c~tO
assu
mc
thc
gOstOn OIa subcct n such
a an_
ua_c, OIthcOnc whO
says
"I. "
+hctruth s thata
dcad
an_
ua_c,ustkc
Ncncc,sasgcc
tra
an
_ua_cthat wccannOt
sgcak but
that
st
guvcrs
and
hums
and
whs
gcrsnts
Own
sgccaway,sOWc can
cvcn
tuay cOmctO
un-
dcrst
andand
dccI
ghcr
t,
abct
wth sOmc cIIOrt
and
thc
hcg
OI
a dctOnary.
Lut tO
whOm dOcs a dcad an
_ua_c sgcak:O
whOm
dOcs thc
sgcctcr OI
an_ua_c
turn:
Ot tO us,
ccrta
ny,
but nOt
cvcntOts
addrcssccsrOm a
nOthcrtmc,OI
whOm t nOOn_cr
has
any
rccO
cct
On.
/nd
yct,
grcc
scy IOr ths
rcas
On, t s as IOny
dD dante:o{IiiingamongSecter:
q\ h u:e:an ia v
nt e
ua c sgcaks, a an_ua_c tbc
IOr thc hrst tmc,that \ls

n
it azn_ tbathc has tbus rcIcrs tO |thOu_ WIt O
) by sayn_that usgcaks
hII0-)
a gcctra cOnsIstcncy
hc^
ItWIt \

I mbcm OImOdcrnty, cvc

I In a
Ncncc s thcrcIOrc tbctIucc
hc Onc cvOkcd by+aIur at tbc
]
ctcy dIIcrcnt sc
'
sc Il O
\
m

snOt ncw nuovo butast

cOm
dd s ur tunc

cndOIhsnau_ura a lc
aandarva+hsswhatwcusua y
_riori::imoJ ,that Is tO say,
OstmOdcrnty, wthOut susgcctI \_
undcrstand as gOsthIstOlyOI
cansbcn_cOns_ncdtO agOsthu-
h tthscOndtIOnncccssarIy

thatthcIcOIthcsgcc-
t a
` t Ima_mlI\_ s andsgcctra l ,WIt\Ou

d ltOn that t mgOscs

m0ll

d mgcrvlOuscOn ,
.
thcmOst htuI_lca an I

I Onduct andIcrOciOus
tcI I
mlsm_ru csO c
d
h
Obscrvancc OIuncOmgrO
I dawn dusk, n_bt, an
t
.
c
`

th a thcr sgccIa graycrs OI ,

Itamcs,WI
urs thc rcstOIthccanOmcahO
.dcccncy OIthc arva sgcctcrs whO cncc thc ack OIH_Or an
d n_ua_cs a Ordcrs and a vc amOn_ us. 1 gcOgcs an
d
a
svcrc_n.,thc cburcbcs and nsttutOns, a garIamcnts an
dhc _Owns havc sggcd Onc aI- thc syna_O_ucs,tbc crmmcs an
cOnd.On,thOu_h tbcy arc
`
b IntO a alva

b d
tcr anOtbcr, IncxOra y,
OIt. 1nd sO wrtcrsWHt a y, ungrcgarcd IOranduncOnscIOus
h r an_ua_csavc, garamcnts sncctbcy nccdtOgrctcndthatt c
d muatc a gOtca Ic IOr

b thcy ncc tOsI

h
c_satc n vaIn ccausc
.
arc dc r|vcd OIgcty bccausc t thcr arva natIOns, rc_iOns
h

b and Icc at bOmc amOn_ h bcsst c tOm s

`
nO On_cr knOw Ow tO
.cctOns and manncguins

b why wc scc s
d
thcm +bs Is t c rcasOn

d tO chccrIuy cOn uct

d ummics grctcn In_

d
marchn_ stlDy an m

n_ tbat tbcr dccOmgOsc

WIt\Out IcaIzi
h

thcr Own cxbumatIOn,

`
h b nd tattcrs, tbat t CH

tbcm II\ s am cs a mcmbcrs arc cavlI\_

|

andunntc_bc. wOrdshavcbccOmc_OssOa Ic
.
knOws nOthn_ OIany OItbs. t nO Lut tbc sgcctcr OINcmcc
I c tOthctOursts. cr- b ` tIans Or O cOuIs
'

.
On_cr aggcars tO t c cnc ,
h d awaybybrazcn admInIs- b

whO arc c asc

b h
hags t aggcarstO c__aIs

IOmanctO anc wIt t cIr hO anxlOus

)
crOss r tratcrs,OrtOrats w
(z
OnthcUc:
and
t:a
dvan
_' ivmgamong
Sccter:
muzzles to tleground

l
I
`
oi tot oser:rep
I l

to
ucubr
ateon
tlis
oe
d d
eopev O, like
exi
les
navot e e
S`
,
argues,
vitlits
choirb I I

sson.
mcevlattle
l
oy- t:evotce tstl 'l II I t elangu
ages
olLuro
ati a t:e cities
and
l
penov
survtveonlyas l t osevlo
lave under
stood
tles
p antasms,tlen
iar
deeds
onlytlo
I
emosttnttmate andmost ,
sevo
rectteand
d I
.
andstones,vill
perlap b
bl
iecor
t ediscai
`
i:ate
l`
,
s
e a eoned+y
v tcl
ltsto
ryin
vl I
to reopen tlat
bre
acl
tc: ! e
sudd
enly
lullllsitspro
nise.
On Wat We Can Not Do
Leleuze once delnedtleoperatioi olpover asa separation
ollumanslrom vlattleycando,tlatis, lrom tleirpotential-
ity. Activelorces areimpededlrom beingputintopracticeeitler
because tley are deprived oltle materialconditions tlat make
tlem possibleorbecauseaprolibitionmakestlemlormallyim-
possible. lnbotlcasespoverandtlisisitsmostoppressiveand
brutallormseparateslumanbeingslromtleirpotentialityand,
intlisvay, renderstlemimpotent.Jlereis, nevertleless,anotler
andmoreinsidiousoperationolpovertlatdoesnotimmediately
allectvlat lumans candotleir potentialitybut ratler their
"impotentiality, " tlatis,vlat tleycannotdo, orbetter, cannot
do '
Jlat potentialityis alvays also constitutivelyan impotential-
ity, tlateveryabilitytodoisalsoalvays alreadyanabilitytonot
do, is tledecisive point oltletleoryolpotentialitydeveloped
byAristotle in tle nintl bookoltle Mcta[:tc:. "Impotential-
ityjadnamtaJ , "levrites, ''isaprivation contrarytopotentiality
dnamt:]. Lverypotentialityisimpotentialityoltlesamepoten-
tiality andvitlrespectto tlesame potentiality|" (io(6a)o-)i).
"lmpotentiality" doesnotmean lereonlyabsenceolpotentiality,
notbeingabletodo,butalsoandaboveall

beingabletonotdo,"
beingabletonotexerciseone`sovnpotentialityAnd,indeed, it
1`
++
OnvhatW Can Not Do
is precisely this specifc ambivalence of all potentiality-which
always the power to be and lO not be, to do atld U not dO-
,hat '
defnes, in 1ct, human potentiality. This is to say that human
ings are the living beings that, existing in the mode of potentiality,
are capable just as much of one thing as its opposite, to do juSt as
to not do. This exposes them, more than any other living being,
to the risk of error; but, at the same tilnc\ it permits human beings
to accumulate and fredy master their own capacities, to transform
them into "faculties." It is not only the measure of what SOlmeone
can do, but also and primarily the capacity of maintaining one
self in relation to one's own possibility to not do, that defnes the
status of one's action. While fire can only bur, and other living
beings ate only capable of their own specific potentialities-they
are capable of only this or that behavior inscribed into theit bio
logical vocation-human beings are the animals capable of their
own impotentiality.
It is on this other, more obscure, face of potentiality that today
the power one ironically defnes as "democratic" prefers to act. It
separates humans not only and not so much ftom what they can
do but ptimarily and for the most part from what tbey can not
do. Separated from his impotentiality, deprived of the experience
of what he can not do, to day's man believes himself capable of
everything, and so he repeats his jovial "no problem," and his ir
responsible can do it," ptecisely when he should instead realize
that he has been consigned in unheard of measure to forces and
processes over which he has lost all controL He has become blind
not to his capacities but to his incapacities, not to what he can do
but to what he cannot, or can not, do.
Hence the defnitive confusion in our time between jobs and
vocations) professional identities and social roles, each of which
is impersonated by a walk-on actor whose arrogance is in inverse
proportion to the instability and nncertainty of his or her perfor
mance. The idea that anyone can do or be anything-the suspi
cion that not only could the doctor who examines me today be a
On
vhatwc Ccn
NotDo
+
t
even the
execu
tioner who
kiUs me
vi
deo
art
ist tom
_
s
b
,
h
e
1
___
a
l
s
o
a singer
-iS

,b
u

the
is
act
uall
y, as m

ever
one is simply ben mg rm
t
e
ction of the awa
renes
h
s t
xibily that is today the primary
1f
ccord
ma to t IS
or hetse
\
a
h ma(et dem
ands
from
each
person.
uaht
t lar t e
q
h
ir
overis
hed and
less free than t IS
.,
makes us mOl
.
I
F
Those who are separated
from
f am r m
potentta tty.
I
d
es
tra
nge
ment r
! r'esist they can stl not o.
d
however, stl
'

.
what the
y can
O, can,
d f
h ',' own
impo
twn
ahty
lose, on
re rom t
.
'
Tho
se
who are
sepal a
.
to resist And just as It IS
the
other
hand, first of a
l
l thcaclty
cannot .e that guarantees
onl
y the burning awa
teness O w at
he lucid
vision of what
we
f I \ we are, so It lS on y
.
the trut O w a

..,to our
actlons.
not
or can
not, do t 1at glVeS
can
)
6 Identity without the Person
h
Jhedesiretoberecognizedbyothersisinseparablelrombein
uman. Indeed,

uchrecognitionissoessentialthat,accordingt
Hgel, everyone ts ready toput hisorherovn lile injeopardyin
or erto obtam t

t.hisis notmerelyaquestionolsatislactionor
selIlove, rather, tttsonlythroughrecognitionbyothersthatman
canconstttutehtmsellasaperson.
h
P
:
rsn

originallymeans"mask, "anditisthroughthemaskthat
t e

tn

tdual acqutres a role and a social identity. In Rome ev-

erymdtvtdualvasidentihedbyaname that expressed his belong-
tg toate:, to almeage, but thislineagevas dehnedinturnb
t eancetorsmaskolvaxthateverypatrician lamilykeptinth
atrtumO ttsome Fromhere, itonlytakesasmallstep totrans-
lormpersona intothe"personality` thatdehnestheplaceolthein-
,tviduali

thedramasandritualsolsociallile.Lventually,persona
l
ame tostgm|the ]undtcalcapacityandpoliticaldignityolthe
reeman.Jheslave, inasmuchasheorshehad neitherancestors

or m

s,, noraname, likevise could nothavea"persona,"tha

ts, ajurd

l capacity (serous nOll habet personam). Jhe stru e

lorrecogmuonis,therelore,thestruggleloramask butth
gg
l

h h "
`
ismas

ot

t es vtt t e peronality' thatsociety recognizes in ever

md

vtdu

l(orvith the"personage" thatitmakesoltheindividu

vtt

attines, rettcentconnivance)

Ientit without the Person

(;
Itishardlysurprisingthatone's recognitionas apersonvaslor
millenniaone`smostjealouslyguardedandsignihcantpossession.
Qther humanbeingsareimportantandnecessary primarilybe-
causetheycan recognize me. Lven thepover, glory, andvealth
that the "others" seem so sensitive to, make sense, in the hnal
a
nalysis, onlyinvievolthisrecognitionolpersonalidentity. Cl
course,onecanas itissaidthattheCalipholBaghdad, Iarun
a-R
ashId,vaslondoldoingvalkincognitothroughthestreets
dressedasa beggar Butilthere vere never a moment in vhich
thename, glory, vealth, andpoververe recognized as "mine,"
il-ascertainsaintsrecommenddoingIveretolivemyvhole
lile innonrecognition, then my personal identityvould also be
lostlorever

Inourculture,hovever, thepersona-mask"doesnotonlyhave
ajuridicalsignihcance. It also madeadecisivecontributionto the
lormationolthemoralperson.Jhis lormation hrst took place in
thetheaterbut also instoicphilosophy,vhichmodeleditsethics
ontherelationshipbetweentheactorandhismask

Jhisrelation-
ship isdehnedbya doubleintensiq: ontheonehand, theactor
can neither aspire to choose nor to reluse the part that the au-
thorhas assigned tohim.Cntheother hand, hecannotidenti|
himsellviththepartvithoutleavingsomeresidue. "Remember,"
Lpictetusvrites,
that you are an actor in a part that the author of the play chose to give
you: short jfhe wants it short, long ifhe wants it long. Ifhe wants you
to act the part of a beggar, see that you act the part skillfully. And do the
same ifit is a part of a cripple, or a public ofcial, or a private citizen. It
is not up to you to choose your part. But what does depend on you is to
skillfully perform the persona that has been assigned to you.l
evertheless,theactor(likethesage,vhctakestheactorasapara-
digm) mustnot identi|completelyvithhispart, thus conlusing
himsellvithhisstagepersona. "Jhetimeis coming,' Lpictetus
admonishes, "vhen actors villbelieve thattheirmasks andcos-
tumesreHecttheirveryselves."
Identit without the Person
Jhe moralperson constituteshimselI then, through, atonce anadhesionto,andadistancinglrom,thesocialmask.he

itvithoutreservationand,atthesametime,almostimpercrptibl

distanceshimselllromit.
Ierhaps novhere does this ambivalentgesture,alongvith the ethical gap that it opens up betveen manand his mask, apnear vithsuch evidence asin the Romanpaintings andmosaics that representthesilentdialoguebetveen theactorandhismaskJhe actor is depictedhere either standing orsitting in lront olhis mask,vhichisheldin hislelt hand oris placed ona pedestal. Jheactor`
sidealizedpostureandengrossedexpression,ashelxes
his gaze on the blind eyes olthe mask, are a testimony to the

pecialsignilcanceoltheirrelationship. Jhis relationship reaches

tts cttcalthreshodand, at the same time, the beginningolits
decii:atthecommencementolthemodernage,vithportraits
olactorsinthecommedia de/l'arte Ciovanni Cabrielli ,knovnasil Sive!lo), Lomenico Biancolelli ,knovnasArleechino), andJristano
Martinelli ,healsoknovnasArlecehino) . Movthe actornolon-
gerlooksathismask, vhich isstilldisplayedasheholds itinhis
hand.Jhedistancebetweenmanandpersona,"soblurryinclas-
sicalrepresen

tions,isaccentuated bythevivacityolthegazethat
theactordecisivelyandinquisitivelydirectstovardthespectator.
In thesecond halolthenineteenthcentury, techniques usedby
thepolice undergo an unexpected development,vhich involves a
decisivetranslormationoltheconceptolidentity. !romthispoint
tdentttynolongerhas,essentially,anythingtodovithrecognition
andtheperson`
ssocialprestige. Instead, itresponds to the neces-
sityolensuringanothertypeolrecognition: that oltherecidivist
criminalbythepoliceollcer Itis noteasylor ushabituatedas

vearetotheknovledgethatvearerecordedvithgreatprecision
mllesanddatabasestoimaginejusthovarduousitcouldbeto
ascertainpersonal identityinasocietythathadneitherphotogra-
phynordocuments olidentilcation
^s a matrerollact, in the
second hallolthe nineteenth century this became theprincipal
problem among thosevho sav themselves as the "delenders ol
Identity without the Person A

' againsttheappearance, and increasing dillusion, olthe

soctety
b

l h
h ure that seems to constitute theO session C t e nmeteentl

bourgeoisie the "persistentollender

' Both Franceand

centuy .

l
L ndpassedlavsthatclearlydtstttgutshedbetveenthe rst-
nga
d h d

timecriminal (vhosepunishmentvaspriso

) an t ercci rvist
.
,vho vas punished instead by bemg deported to the
cm
a

) J`Le necessityolbeingable to tdenn|vith certati:ty

co
onies .

.
the
person arrested lor a crimebec+me at this pointa necessary
nditionloralunctioningjudiciarysystem.
co
Itvasthisnecessitythatpushed^lphonseBertillon,anobscure
bureaucratin the Iarispolicedepartment, toestablishtovardthe
endoltLe i8;os asystem olcriminal identilcationbased onan-
thropometricmeasurementsandmugshots Injustalevyearsit
vouldbecomeknovntothevholevorldasBertillonage. Vhoever
happened to be detained or arrested lor vhatever reason vould
immediatelybesubjectedtoaseriesolmeasurementsoltheskull,
arms,lngers, toes,ears,andlace.Cncethesuspecthadbeenpho-
tographed bothinprolleandlrontally, the twophotosvouldbe
attached to the "Bertillon card," vhich contained all the uselul
identihcationdata, accordingto thesystem thatits inventorhad
christenedportrait parie.
^round the same time, Irancis Calton ,a cousin olCharles
Larvin)by developing thevorkolIenry Faulds ,abureau-
cratin the Lnglsh colonial administration)begantovorkon
alngerprintingclassilcationsystem, vhichvouldallovlorthe
identilcation olrecidivistcriminalsvithout posstbtlityolerror
Curiously, Calton vas an avid supporter olBertillon`s a

:thro-
pometric-photograpLic method and advocated its adoptun H
Lngland Buthealso maintainedtLattLestattsttcalsurveyolln-
gerprintingvas particularlysuited to nativeslrom te cooitcs,
vhose physical characteristics tended to be conlusttg and

p-
pearedindistinguishabletoaLuropeaneye.^t
;
otherleldtovLtch
this procedurevas quickly appliedvasprostttutton, because the
useolanthropometricprocedures on vomen tivolvedvl

atvas
considered an embarrassingpromiscuity, and anyvay, their long
Ientit without the Persol
hairrendered measurementsmoredilhcultto take

Itvas probably
reasoningolthis sortlinked in somelashiontoracial orsexual
prejudicesthatdelayed theapplication olCalton'smethodbe-
yond thecolonialrealm or, in thecase olthe Lnited States,be-
yond citizens ol^lrican or^sian descent. Butby the hrst tvo
decadesolthetventieth centurythesystemspreadthrougLoutthe
vorldand, beginninginthe:p:os,tendedtoreplaceortocomple-
mentBertiflolage.
Forthehrsttimeinthehistoryolhumanity, identityvas no
longer alunction olthesocial "persona

and itsrecognition by
others butratheralunction olbiol ogical data, vhich couldbear
norelationU it Humanbeingsremoved themaskthatlorcentu-
rieshadbeenthebasisoltheirrecognizabilityinordertoconsign
their identitytosomething thatbelongs to them in anintimate
andexclusivevaybutvith vhichtheycaninnovayidenti[.Mo
longerdo the"others," mylellov men, mylriends orenemies,
guaranteemyrecognition. Mot even myethical capacityto not
coincideviththesocial mask thatI havenevertheless taken on
can guaranteesud: recognition

Vhat nov dehnes my identity

and recognizabilityare thesenselessarabesquesthatmyinked-up
thumbleavesonacard insomepolice station.Jhisissomething
vithvhichIhaveabsolutelynothingtodo,somethingvithvhich
and byvhichIcannotin anyvayidenti|mysellortakedistance
lrom.nakedlile,apurelybiologicaldatum.'
^nthropometrictechniquesthathadbeendesignedlorcrimi-
nals remained their exclusive privilegelor some time. Lven in
:p( theI.S. Congress rejected theCitizensIdentihcation^ct,
vhichaimedatinstitutingmandatoryidentihcationcardsvith
hngerprintslorallcitizens.Mevertheless,bythe rule thatstipu-
lates that vhatvas invented lorcriminals

loreigners

or]evs
vill soonerorlater beinvariablyapplied toallhumanbeingsas
such, techniquesthathadbeendevelopedlorrecidivistcriminals
began to extend in the course olthe tventieth century to all
citizens.Jhe mugshot

accompanied at times byhngerprints

becamesuchanintegral partoltheidentitycard akind olcon-

Ientit without the Pmon

densedBertilloncard) thatitgraduallybecameobligatoryinev-
ery
stateinthevorld.
d d

`ll
l b l lyi nour ayan rsstr
Buttheextremestep .as eenta:enon
l`

Jh ls to thedevelopment
intheprocessolitslullrearzat|on. an

h dlyobtain hngerpnntsan
olbiometrictechnologrest atcanrapi

l
.
lscanners bumetncap-
retinalorrrrspatternsbymeansO opuca

d h statrons and rmmrgra-

p
aratusestend to move beyon t eporce
h h : ydaylile Jheentrance
tionolhcstopenetrate t esp ereO evet .

tothehighschool caleteria,even in elementaryschoolsU so

d
me
. .

l l b t ` sectot vhrchareun er-

countries ,themdustriesO te romenc

d

end thatcrtizensgetuse
goingalrenetrcdevelopment, recomn

l d
l h

uth) rsalreadyreguate
tothissortolcontrol romt errcaryyo

dl

.
hichstudentsdrstracte y
byanopucalbromencapparatus,onv
.
F d h rLuropeancountnesanev
placetheirhands

In rancean ot C
.

d IMLS) `

the making vhrch has an

biometncrdentrtycar rs rn
'

b lements olrdentrhcatron
electronicmicrochip contammg asrce

l
+

l h ) vell as a srgnature sampe
nngerpnnts and drgrta p otos , as
bl
to lacilitatecommercial transactions.^s partol

hcu

stop

a
h
e
.

d ernmentalrtyinvhrc a
driltrngolpolrtrcalpovertovar gov

l ith a statrst paradrgm

liberal paradrgm cunousy converges v

t stablish an archrve con-

Vestern democracres are preparrng O e

d
tainingtheLM^oleverycitizen,asmuch toensuresecuntyan
repressionol crimeastomanagepublichealth.

ll d ` uarterstothedangersem-
urattentronrsca e romvanousq
l
.
l lolapoverthathas
bedded in the absoluteand rmrtes: contro

d
.

rmationolallrtscru-
atitsdisposalthebiometncan genetrcU O
d h

tionolthe]evs ,and
zens.Vithsuchpoverathan , t eextermma
h
` d ) h`chvas undertaken ont e
everyotherrmagmablegenocr ev I

ldh
bl l lh ' d cumentatronvou ave
basis olincompara y esse crent O
beentotalandincrediblysvilt
l l b
Lvenmore serious, inasmuchas .thas beencom

etcy

no -
h h ocesses olbrometrrc and
served aretheconsequences t att epr

.

l h onstitution olthesubject.
brologrcalrdentrhcatron :aveont ec

t nthebasrs oldatat at Vhatkmd olrdentrtycanoneconstruc O

l rsonalidentrty,vhrchuse
ismerelybrologrca?Certaiiynotape
,z
Identit
with
out the Penon
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54
Ientity without the Person

eith

rgraciousnessnorreticence, butratherthroughabiolo ical

rdentrty`
g
^ndyet,lollovingtherulethatstipulatesthathistoryneverre-
turns toaloststate

ve mustbe prepared,vithneitherregretnor
hope, tosearchbeyondbothpersonalidentiqandidentityvith-
out thepersonlor that ne

hgure olthehuman. Cr, perhaps,

vhatve mustsearch orrssrmplythehgure olthe livingbeing
l

r that lace beyond themaskjust as much as itis beyond th

biometncfcteS. Ve st:lldonotmanagetoseethishgure, butthe
presentiment olrt suddenlystartles tis in ourbevildermentaI
d
n
our reams,1J ourunconsciotisnessasinourlucidity.
Nudit
). Cn^pril 8, 2005, a perlormancebyVanessa Beecrolt took
place inBerlin's eueationalgalerie.^hundred nudevomen
(ihough, in truth, they vere vearing transparent pantyhose)
stood, immobile and indillerent, exposcd to thegazeolvisitors
vho,alterhavingvaited on a long line, entered in groups into
avastspaceonthemuseum's groundloor.Jhevisitors, atonce
timidandcurious,begantocastsidelongglances atbodiesthat
vere, alterall,theretobelooked at.^ltervalkingaroundthem,
as iltheyvere conducting reconnaissance, thevisitors began to
distancethemselvesembarrassedlylromthealmost military ranks
olthehostile, nakedbodies

Jhe hrstimpressionolthosevho at-

temptedtoobservenotonlythevomenbutalso the visitorsvas
that this vas a nonplace. Something that could have and perhaps,
should have happened did not take place.
Clothed menvho observe nudebodies. thisscene irresistibly
evokes thesadomasochisticritual olpover. In thebeginningol
Iasolini`sSal? ,vhichmoreorlesslaithlullyreproducesdeSade's
One Hundred and Twent Days ofSod om), lourparty-olhcials are
aboui to lock themselves in theirvilla.Vhile they remain lully
clothed, theolhcials proceed toattentively inspect victims vhom
theycompeltoenternaked, soastoevaluatetheirmeritsandde-
lects.Clothed,too,verethe^mericansoldiersstandinginlrontol
apileoltheirtorturedprisoners'nakedbodies inthe^buChraib
))
Nudit
prison. ButnothingolthelikehappenedintheM ` ene.it+acertamsensethe
`
l
h

h
cuc
Matronalgal-

ieanons rp
ere
d
b sitce therevas nothing m
hd
seeme
to etnverted,

oreper
tousthan th b d
d per
tmentgazethatespeciall th

e ore an rrn-
tinuou
slycasting
tovardtl
y
d
you
l
ngestgirls
seemedtobecon-
e c enseessspect t
M
h supposed to happenand d'd
h
aors
O. v atvas
under
anycircumstaice a
t
d
not ap
h
e could nothave been,
, sa
omasoc tstrc
d aneven
more
impro
bable
orgy.
CLC, a pro
romeol
It seemed as ilevetone vas ex ccta
.
paintingoltheI+st] d
B
| nt, as ilthey
vere in a
h
u gment. tit on cl b
.
eretherolesverereversed
.
h

l
'

oscrO servatron,
even
t egtrsHpantyh
h

cableandsevereangelsth t h
.
.
oseveret eimpla-
a t e iconog
raph
d
l resentsasbeing
coveredb l
d
rctra rtronavaysrep-
h
y ong
resses Jh
.

and
hesitantand b dl d
. evtsttors, ontheother

un e -up as they
ve
h
d BerLn vinterp
ersort
h d h
te at t e en olthat
e t e
resurr
ected
.
h

ment,vhosedepictionin
d

avartii+g t errjudg-
l l

nu ttyeventhem

teoogrcal
traditioiha
h `
d
ostsanctriorrous
saut onze .
Vhat did nottake l
l
| ace vas, tcrelore, neithertorture nora
Nudit
,
7
c|uxc itvas, rather, simplenudity.Ireciselyinthisampleand
well-illumr atedspacevhere a hundredlemalebodtes olvari-
ousages, races

andshapesvereondisplay,vhichthegazecould
cxa
minevitheaseand indetailthereseemedto benouaceol
nu
dityJheeventthatvasnotproducedor,assumingthat this
vas the intention olthe artist, the event that tookplaceby not
happening) calledtheveiynudityoltLe human bodyunequivo-
callyintoquestion.
2. udity, inourculture, is inseparable lroma theologicalsig-
nature. Lveryone is lamiliarviththes:ory olCenesis, according
tovhichalter theirsinAdam and Lve realizedlor thevery hrst
time that theyverenaked: "Andtheeyes olboth vere opened,
and they knev that theyvere naked' Cen. :;).Accordingto
theologians thisdoes nothappenasaresultolsinhavingerased
theirsimple,previousunavareness.Jhoughtheyverenotcovered
byanyhumanclothingbelore the Fall, Adam andLvevere not
naked, rather,theyverecoveredbyclothingolgrace,vhichclung
tothemasagarmentolglory(the|evishversionolthisexegesis,
vhichcanbeloundlorexampleintheZohar,speaksaboutcloth-
ingollight") It is this supernaturalclothing that vas stripped
lrom the tvo alter their sin. Lenudcd, theyarehrstlorced to
cover themselvesvithaloinclotholhgleaves thattheylashioned
themselves ("theysevedhg leaves togetherandmadethemselves
vaistbands" Cen

:; ]) Iateron, atthe momentoltheir expul-

sion lromIaradise,they putonclothesmadelromanimalskins,
vhich hadbeen prepared lor thembyCod. All thismeans that
ourprogenitorsvere nudeinearthlyIaradiseonlyattvo points.
thehrst,inthepresumablyverybrielintervalbetveenperceiving
theirnudityandmakingtheirloincloths,thesecond,themoment
vhentheytakeohtheirhgleavesandputontheirnevgarments
olskins.Andevenduringthesetvo heeting instances, nudityex-
ists onlynegatively, sotospeak. as aprivation olthe clothing ol
graceandas apresagingoltheiesplendentgarmentolglorythat
theblessedvillreceiveinheaven. Ful'nudiqexists,perhaps,only
inthebodiesolthe damnedinhell,astheyunremittinglysuller
Nudit
the eternaltorm
ent old `
.
h

rvine
justrce l
h`

t atH
Christ
ianirytl
.
h
. 1 t rs sense rtcan
besaid
l
eiersnot eolo
l
d
o clothing
gyO nu ity,onlyathe
ology
}. 1his is the
reasonvhy
`
l
p
h I
.
ri: eterson on l h
t eo
ogians
vhohasren
d
, eO t erare
moden
h`
ecte on theg
.
l
rs article
Theologie des
Kleid
,1h I
uestion O
nudiq,
entitled
sential themes olthe th
:
s

eo ogy olClothing)1hees-
I d
eoogica
tradition ar
d

ev
ensepages. !irst
l I h

e summe up rn a
b
o a ,
t ere rs the r,_
m d
etveen
nudity
andsin.
e iate
connection
Nudi
?
, appears only
after
sin.
Before th F l
clothIng j Unb
cklc
drlcr| b h.
e a I there was an absence of
N d'
, 1 t IS was
not yet d`
u Ity
presup
poses the absellc.
f l h'
nu lty
k
rlcr
I
"
e 0 C ot Ing b .
d
WIt 1 It. The perception of 1 d'

'
ut It oes not coincide
11 Ity 1S Inked to the spiritual act that the
Nudiq
'9
Scriptures defne as the "opening of the eyes. " Nudity is something
that
one notices, whereas the absence of clothes is something that
re
mains unobserved. Nudity could therefore have been observed after
sin
only if man
'
s being had changed. This change, brought on by the
Fall,
must have entirely affected Adam and Eve's nature. There must
have been, in other words, a metaphysical transformation, affecting
man
's mode of being, rather than merely a moral change.l
JIis"metaphysicaltranslormation' consists, hovever, simplyin
dcnudation,inthelossoltheclothingolgrace:
The distortion of human nature through sin leads to the "discovery"
of the body, to the perception of its nudity. Before the Fall, man ex
isted for God i n such a way that his body, even i n the absence of
clothing, was not "naked. The human body
'
s state of "not being na
ked," despite its apparent lack of clothing, is explained by the fact
that supernatural grace enveloped the human person like a garment.
Man did not simply fnd himself in the midst of the light of divine
gloty: he was clothed in the glory of God. Through sin, man loses the
glory of God, and so in his nature a body without glory now becomes
visible: the nakedness of pure corporeality, the denudation resulting
in pure functionality, a body that lacks all nobility since its ultimate
dignity lay in the divine glory now lost.2
Ieterson triesto articulateinpreciseterms thisessentialconnec-
tion betveen the Fall, nudity, and the loss olclothing, vhich
seemstomakesinconsistinasimpleactolundressingandbaring
(Entblsung: "he'denudation' olthebodiesolthelrsthumans
musthave preceded theavarenessoltheii bodies' nudity. Jhis
'discovery' olthehumanbody, vhichallovs its`nakedcorporeal-
iry' to appear, this ruthless denudation olthe body vith all the
signs olitssexuality, vhichbecomevisible lor theeyes thathave
nov been 'opened'by sin, can only be understoodilvepresup-
posethatvhatvas'covered`beloretheFallisnovvhatis'discov-
ered,`thatvhatvasbeloreveiledanddressedis novunveiledand
undressed

A.Atthispointthemeaningolthetheologicalapparatusbegins
60 Nudit
to take slape, bysituating tle verypossibilityolsin in tle rela
tionsliptlatitestablislesbetweennudityandclotlingIeterson,
text appears, at leastat hrst siglt, to entailsome contradictio
ns.
Jle"metaplysicaltranslormation" tlatresultslromsin i:, inre-
ality, only tle loss oltle clotling olgrace tlatlid tle
corporeality' olthehrstcouple. Iogically, tlismeanstlatsin
at leasttle possibilityolsin) alreadyexisted in tlis "naked
cor-
poreality,"vlicl in itsellisdeprived olgrace. It meanstlattle
loss olclotlingnovmakes tlis "naked corporeality' appearin its
biological"purelunctionality,""vitlall tlesigns olitssexualiq,"
asa"bodytlatlacks anynobility " Ilalreadybeloresintlerevas
aneedtocoverup tlelumanbodyvitl tleveilolglory, tlentle
blisslulandinnocentparadisiacal nudityvas precededbyanotler
nudity, a"nakedcorporeality'tlatsin,byremovingtheclotlesol
grace, allovs,mercilessly, toappear
Jletrutloltlematteristlattleseeminglysecondaiproblem
conceuingtle relationslip between nudityand clotling coincides
vitlanotlerproblemtlattleologicallyis utterlynndamental. tle
linkbetweennatureandgrace. "|ustasclotlingpresupposcstlebody
tlatmustbecovered,"Ieterson vrites,'`sogracepresupposesnature,
vlicl must reacl its lulhllmentin glory.Jlis isvhysupernatural
graceisgrantedtomaninIaradiseasclotling.Man wa created with
out UotheJvliclmeans tlat le lad anature ollisovn,distinct
lromdivinenaturLbuthe was created with this absence ofclthing in
ordr to then be dressed in the superatural garment ofglr. "4
Jle problemolnudityis, tlerelore, tleproblemollumanna-
tureinitsrelationslipvitlgrace.
,. Ireservedin tleCollegiate ClurclolSan Isidoro inIecnis
an eleventl-centurysilver reliquary, on vlose sidessceneslrom
tle book olCenesis are sculpted in relieI Cne oltle panels
slovs^damandLveshortlybelore tleirexpulsionlromLden.
^ccordingto tle biblical narrative, tleylavejust realized tlat
tley are naked and lave covered tleir slame vitl hg leaves,
leldbytleirleltlands. Belore tlemstandstleirvexed creator,
vrapped i na sort oltoga, and making an inquisitivegesture to-
Nudit
61

(vlichisclarihedbytle
caption,
vard tlemvrtllisngltl

n
,
Cods+id to
^dam,
Vlere art
"Dixit Dominus Adam
ubI t!
dby tleright
landsol

) Jl
gesturetsmrrtote
tlou?
Cen..y . rs

ll
ttomakeexcuseslortlem
-
tle
culprits,astley
clildis y at
d
te
I
mp
po` rntsattleserpent.Jle
d

tLve an ve
selves.^ am
points a

l
'
l ts us illustrates tle
verse
l

l
ucuary tnteres ,
next
scene, vlC par

.
D
Adae et
mulieri eius
.
" Et fectt Dommus eus
lrom Cenesis . zI.

" d C d
de lor ^dam
and
ll

d It eos (^n
o ma
tunicas pe leeas ft, In
d l dtlem)

Jle
unknovn

` l

l skms an c ot c
.
lor lus ` e tumcs o
'
d d
d vitla posture
revealtng
^dam
alrea y resse ,
arttstrepresen
l deligltlul inven
tiveness, ledepicts Lve
great sadness,

rt,`t
ile tleord
appears to beputting
vitl lerlegs sttll
nakcd,vl
lose lace vecanjust

l l rce Jle
voman,v

tle turic on er +y o
ltle
dtess, resists tlis
divinevto-
barelysecabovetlenecklmeo
b
dbeyondalldoubt
not
lencevitlalllermiglt:tlrscan
ll
epov
s
e
and tle
grimaceoller
onlybytle unnaturaltorsror o er eg
Nuit
squintingeyes butalso by tlegestureollerrigltland, vhicl
desperatelygraspsatCcd's garment.
VlydocsLve notvant tovearler"lur coat":Vlydoessle
vantU remainnaked (itappearstlatshehaseitlertaken tlehg
lealollortlat, in tlevelemenceoltlescume,slelas lostit):
Clcourse, anancienttradition,vliclcanbetracedbacktoSaint
Milus,1leodoret olCyrus, and)erome, conceives olgarments
madelromanimalskins-tleSeptuagint`s chitonai dermatinoi
as asymbol oldeatl (indeed,petticcia, tle Italian vord lor lur
coat, vliclmaintainsasinlul connotationup to tlisday, derives
lromtunicae petticeae, theVulgate'srenderingoltlesameplrase)

1lis is tle reason vly, alter baptism, tlose tunics olskins are
replaced byagarmentmadeol vlitelinen |"Vlen,readylortle
clotles olClrist, velave taken ollourtunicsolskins,"|erome
vrites, "ve vill tlen puton linen clotling,vlicllas notlingto
dovitldeatl, butisvlollyvlite,sotlat,alterlavingbeenbap-
tized, vecangirdourloinsintrutl").` Ctlerautlors, like|oln
Clrysostom and ^ugustine, insist instead on tleliteral meaning
oltle episode.^nd itisprobable tlatneitlertle makeroltle
reliquarynoritsbuyersiitendedtogiveaparticularsignihcance
toLve's gesture

Yettlis episode acquires itspropersenseonlyil

ve remembertlattlis istle lastmomentoltlecouple'slilein
eartllyIaradise,tlelastmomentvlenourprogenitorscouldstill
benaked,belorebeingclotledinanimalskinsandexpelledlrom
Iaradiselorever. Iltlis is i ndeed tle case, tlen tle slim, silvery
hgure that desperately resists being clotled is an extraordinary
symbolollemininity.1lisvoman is tle tenaciouscustodian ol
paradisiacal nudity
6 1latgrace is sometlinglikea garment ,^ugustine calls it
indumentum gatiae)6 meais tlat,likeallgarments,itvasanad-
ditiontlatcanalso betakenavay. Butlor tlisveryreasonitalso
meanstlattleadditionolgraceconstitutedlumancorporeality,
originally, as "naked` andthatitsremovalalvaysreturnsanevto
tleexlibition olnudityas sucl. ^nd since grace, in tlevords
oltle apostle, "vasgiven tc us inClristbelore tle beginningol
Nudity
6}

"

'
as^u ustine
never tires oliepeatin, grve
"
tine, smce rt
vas,
g
b

verenotyetinexistence,

t asto egrven
vlen tlose tow+omi v
d

ted as
naled itis alvays
luman nature is alvays alrea yconstitu
'
already
"naked
corp
oreality

"
l
garmentvlile nature
tle ideat atgiace rs a
" Ieterson stresses

l b "Clotles
maketleman

d l d
Citmgt epiover ,
is a krn nu rty
.
"
eo le"
[Kleider machen
(

Ceiman
versron,
clothes ma^ p p
orii: rts
LeuteJ) , le
explainstlat
=
h is made by his clothes, since he IS
not only people, but mall
h
as SUC
H all nature
accordi
ng to its very
.
l l outt em. um
'
Ul11l1terpreta ) e wit
d ' f ll realized only through grace.
,
b d"
t grace an IS II y
d
goal, IS su or
mate
d"
'

crllatural J" ustice, innocence, an
d
. " lathe
Wlt l sup , '
,
d
'
.
Hence A am IS c
l

Id bestow on him hIS

IgnIty

l tch clot ling cou .
f
immo
rtalIty, lor ;.y Sl
d d ined him for through the gIft L
and thus
make
ViSIble what Go
est
Nudity

.,,
.
.

.
.
.
.
,
1
'
.
,

_
.

..

-,.
'
.1..

.
-
..
...-..-.......-

..,-.-,.
---...-1. A .

...-......-.....1.........,.-.

_ ......-....-.....,.-.-|..... -..
. .....-......-..-.....,-....
'
.---....--1, A!

-,-...,..,...-.--....-.-.-..1.-1-,1

..+
...-....,.--..-1...-,......,..-.....--1- -.
-... ..,.......-

...,.-.-......-. .. -
,
. I
. .- -.....,-.-.-.
..

.-
1
..,..

.. ..-,...

...1,-..-......+.-.-...-.-..-
.,.-. .,.. ...-... l l .

. . l
. ........ .-c.........1........
-
.

..., ..-,....,...-.......-.-.--..r..1.- 1I
.,.. . . 1
. ...

. o e....,.-- ..,...-,.-........,.,..,.......
..-..,..--l .
J
,
.-.- . . .

. -.,. .....,-.-....,.,-...-..,
. ...- .-....-

l
_
_
_

_
_ --.,..,......-,.--1..... -
.-..,L t . . .

.--..-.
_.L: .,.
..
...,...-,..
,
-..-..-1...-.-...
,. .- ...-,.-+..,...--..,1-.-1-1
CenesisdoesnotexplctI l
*

t y say anyverethathuman naturevas

pilect, unrt teretable, "orpotentiallycorruptedandinneed
gace

Byasserttngthenecessityolgrace, vhich likecl tl

must cover the nudityolthebody C` tl l h I
`
O ..1g,
l `
'
.a ..!C t eoogym+kestta
sortO tneluctable:upplementthat reci l l h

.
sup l
`
sey OJ t tsreason pre-
oses uman nature as itsobscure bearet " l d
`

" B h

'
na:e corporea
ny. utt ts oriinal nudt ` d` l d

-
tl l l

ty nnme tatey tsappears underneath

ecottnv . race to the
J l

n reappearas natura lpsa onlyatthe

noment O sm, thatt:, atthe momentoldenudatton | l
p t l
j

ustas;e
o.tca ryt O o?eeolhomo sacer postulatesasaprcsup osition
a r
l
al:e
d
d
l

tle thatts tmp

ue,sacred, and thuskillable ,thogh this

nae ttevasproduccd . l b l
l d

ny ymeansO suchpresupposition)
sote .e corporea

ltyolhtunannatureisonlythe. a ue re

......oltheongnaland luminous supplementh`t is

[
the
c
l
otmg
l
olgrace.Jhough the presupposition ishidden

behind
tesupp

emn

t,ttcomesbacktolightvheneverthecaesuraolsin
oncegatidtvtdesn

t-.eandgrace,nudityandclothin

Jlts means thatsm did not introduceevil into the-orld but

tC. el,ievealed

ttSmessentiallyconsists,atleastaslarasitsellects
aieconcerned, m tberemovingolclothing udit " l d . , na:e corpo-
Nudit
reality," is theirreducibleCnosticresidue thatimpliesaconstitu-
tiveimperlection increation,vhichmust,atallevents,becovered
up.evertheless, thecorruptionolnature, vhichhasnovcometo
light,did not existbeloresinbutvasitsellproducedbyit

7
. Ilnudityismarkedinourculturebysuchaveightytheologi-
callegacy, ilitisonlytheobscureandungraspablepresupposition
olclothing, thenonecomprehendsvlyit could nothavehelped
but miss its appointment in Vanessa Beecrolt
`
s perlormance.
Jo eyes soproloundly ,albeitunknovingly) conditionedbythe
theologicaltradition,thatvhichappearsvhenclothes (grace) are
takenohisnothingbuttheirshadov.Jo completelyliberate nu-
ditylrom the patterns olthought that permitusto conceive ol
it solely in a privative and instantaneous manner is a task that
requiresuncommonlucidity

Inourcultureoneoltheconsequencesolthistheologicalnexus
thatclosely unites natureandgrace, nudityand clothing,isthat
nudity is not actuallya state but rather anevent. Inasmuch as it
istheobscurepresupposition oltheaddition olapiece olcloth-
ingorthesuddenresultolitsremova|anunexpectedgilt oran
unexpectedlossnuditybelongstotimeandhistory, nottobeing
andlorm.Ve canthereloreonlyexperiencenudityas adenuda-
tion andabaring, neverasalormandastablepossession.Atany
rate, itisdilhculttograspand impossible toholdonto
It is not surprising, then, that in theperlormanceat theeue
ationalgalerie,justasin alltheprecedingones, thevomenvere
nevercompletelynakedbut alvays boresome trace olclothing
(shoesduringtheperlormanceattheCagosianCalleryinLondon,
shoesandasortolgauzemaskattheCuggenheimCollection in
Venice,ablackcache-sexe attheIalazzo LucaleinCenoa) Strip-
tease, thatistosay, theimpossibilityolnakedness,isinthissense
the paradigmlor our relationshipvith nudity As an event that
never reaches its completed lorm, asa lorm that does not allov
itselltobe entirelyseized as it occurs, nudityis,literally, inhnite.
itneverstopsoccurring.Inasmuchasitsnatureisessentiallydelec-
tive,inasmuch as itis nothingotherthantheeventolthelackol

Nudity
grace, n
d
u
l
dityca

ieversatiatethegaze to vhichitisollered Jh gazeavr ycontinuestosear ht d

. e
pieceolclothinghas been r
c oi nu ity, evenvhenthesmallest
verehdd l b

emoved, evenvhen all thepartsthat

r en ave eenexlub d b
Il h b
rtc rna arcacedmanner.
,att e egmnir+golth

h
C
etventtct century, therespreadt
ermanyto the restolLuro

rom
a nev
social
ideal thatcoul

e
_
t
_
l

v
[
r
r
e
tl
a

c
o
hing
h
nudismas
tu '
. ur uman na-
rc, rtrsnosurprisethatthisvas osiblco

obscenenudityolporno ra h
p
nlybyopposrngthe
Lichtkleid ,clothes ol
_ g p yandprostittttionvith nudityas

h l
rght), thereby unknovingly evoking the ancient t eoogicalc

l
grace Vh l
oncepn

n o innocent nudityas clothing ol

att:osen+tunstsdisplayedvastherelorenotnudi b ratherclothrngnotnatureb h
ty U
^

.
titiat ergrace
n investrgation th

olnuditymttsth
a
d
tts es tosenouslyconlront the problem
istan ioremost b l h l
sourceolthethe l

go acarc aeoogrcallyto the

n
d
o ogtca oppositionbetveennudityandclothing atutcan grace.Jleaimher
.
'
[riortoth

'
b
eisnotto taprntoanongmalstate
cscpatatrcn utto
l d d
paratusthatpro! d l

compre.en an neutralizetheap-
L tice t:isseparation
Nudity
. ^ugustine's The Cit of God is, inevery sense, a decisive
momentlortheconstructionolthetheologicalapparatusolna-
ture,nudity)|grace,clothing).^ugustinehadalreadydeveloped
the conceptual loundations lor his viev on the subject in the
polemics againstIelagius thatcan belound in On Nat",
.
e and
Grace. ^ccordingto Ielagiusonc olthe most integral hgures
amongthosevhom thedogmaticorthodoxyendedup pushing
tothemarginsoltheChristiantraditiongraceisnothingother
thanhumannaturejustas Codcre+tedit,vithlreevill(nulam
dicit dei gatiam nisi naturam nostram cum Libero arbitrio)
.
9 ^s a
result thepossibilityolnotsinninginheres in human nature in
an inseparable vay (^ugustine uses in his critique olIelagius
thevord inamissibile, that vhich cannot be lost) and vithout
theneedlor lurther grace. Ielagiusdoesnotdenytheexistence
olgracebutidentihes itvith Ldenic nature, vhich he in turn
identihesviththesphereolpossibilityorpotentiality(posse) that
precedesboth vill (velie) and action (actio) . ^dam'ssinvhich
is a sinolthevilldoes not necessarilysignily, therelore, the
loss olgrace, vhich is in turn passed on as a curse to the entire
humanrace("per tmiversam massam/' as^ugustinevrites). Cn
thecontrary, thoughitis agiven thathumanshavesinned and
continuetosin, itnevertheless remainstruethat, atleastde soLa
possibilitate, every manjustlike^dam in Iaradiseis capable
olnotsinning.
ltisthis identihcationolnaturevithgrace that^ugustine re-
jectssotenaciouslyinhis anti-Ielagianvritings,alhrminginstead
theirirreducibledillerence

^tstakeinthedillerencebetveenthe
two is nothingless thanthe discoveryolthedoctrineolCriginal
Sin, vhichvouldbeolhciallytakenupby the Church onlytvo
centurieslater, at theSecondCouncilolCrange. lt isenoughlor
novtoobservethatthe interpretationoltheLdenicconditionand
^dam'sFallin The Cit ofGod isbasedonthisoppositionbetveen
nature and grace. ^dam and Lveverecreatedvith animalrather
thanspiritualbodies, but theirbodiesvereclothedvithgraceasil
ithadbeenagarment.Consequent|y,justastheyknevneitherill-
ness noideath, likevise, theydidnotknovthe libido, thatis, the
uncontrollable excitation oltheir private parts (obscenae) . Libido
68 Nudit
is thetechnicaltermin^ugustinethatdehnestheconsequenceol
sin n thebasisolapassage lromIaul (" Caro enim concupiscit
advmul' Cal. 5'17]) , libido is dehnedas a rebellion olthelesh
andits desires againstthespirit, asan irremediable split bctwcen
Lesh(caro-sarx-is thetermbyvhich Iaulexpressesthesubjec-
tionolmantosin) andvill^ugustinevritesthatbeloresin,
as the Scriptures say, "man and his wife were both naked, and were
not ashamed." This was not because they did not see their nudity;
rather, their nudity was not yet indecent, because the libido did not
yet arouse their members against their will. . . . Their eyes were open,
but not in order to recognize what was granted to them under the
clothing of grace, since their members did not yet know how to rebel
against their will. When this grace was stripped from them, in order
to punish their disobedience with a commensurate punishment, a
new impudence was awakened in the urges of their bodies. The con
sequence was that their nudity became indecent, thus making them
aware of their condition and dismayed by it.

Jhepartsolthebodythatcouldoncebelreelyexposed intheir
glory(glorianda) thusbecomesomethingthathad tobehidden
(pudend) . Hencetheshamethatdrives^damandLve tocover
themselves vith hg leaves, andvhich becomes lrom that dayon
suchaninseparableelementolthehumanconditionthat,^ugus-
tine vrites, "even in the darksolitudesollndia, even thosevho
ate accustomed to philosophize in the nude (and are therelore
calledgymnosophists),covertheirgenitalsinordertodillerentiate
themlromtheotherpartsoltheirbody

"'
. ^tthispoint^ugustinepresentshissurprisingconceptionol
Ldenicsexuality, or at least vhat this sexualityvould have been
hadhumans not sinned lltheposdapsarian libido is dehnedby
theimpossibilityolcontrollingthegenitals,then thestateolgrace
thatprecededsin consists in thevill'sperlectcontroloverthesex-
ual organs.
In Paradise, if culpable disobedience had not been punished with an
other disobedience, marriage would not have known this resistance,
Nudit
this opposition, this struggle between libido and will. On the con
trary, our private parts, like all the other parts of the body, would
have been at the service of the will. That which was created for this
end would have sown the field of generation, as the hand sows the
earth . . . . Man would have sown his seed and woman would have
received it in her genitals, only when necessary, and to the degree nec
essary, as a result of the will's command, and not due to the excitation
of the libido."12
Jo substantiatehishypothesis,^ugustinedoesnothesitatetoturn
toasomevhatgrotesqueexampleolthevill`scontroloverthose
bodilypartsthatseemtobeuncont:ollable.
We know of mcn who sct themselves apart from others, by their
amazing ability to achieve with their body things other men are abso
lutely incapable of. There are those who can move their ears, one at a
time or both together. Others arc able to move their hairline, shifting
their scalp back and forth at will. Still others can vomit on command
everything that they have devoured by slightly pressing on their belly,
as if it were a bag. Some can imitate the cries of birds and beasts, as
well as the voices of other men, so perfectly that no difference can be
detected. And fnally, there are those who can voluntarily emit from
their anus a variety of sounds without any unpleasant odor, to the ef
fect that they appear to be singing from that region
.

lt isonthe basis olthis notvery edi|ing model thatvemust
imagineLdenicsexualityundertheclothesolgraceVithasignal
olthevill, thegenitalsvouldhavebeen aroused, just aseasilyas
ve might raise a hand, and the husband vould impregnate his
vilevithouttheburningstimulationolthelibido: "ltvouldhave
been possible lor man to transmithis seed to his vilevithout
harmingherphysical integrity,justasnovthelovolthemen-
strualbloodcancomelorth lromthevombolavirginvithout
compromisingherintegrity. "'
Jhischimera (''^t present,"^ugustinevrites, "there is noth-
ing thatvould enable us to demonstrate hov this is possible")
olanatureperlectlysubmissive tograce rendersthecorporeality
olmankind altertheFall evenmoreobscene

Jheuncontrollable
Nudit
nu

lityofthe
"
enitalsis

heciphetofnatute'scottuptionaftetsin,
wl.:chhumanityttansm:tsthtoughptocteation
O. ltiswotthemphasizingthepatadoxical conceptionofhu
man na

ute

.:t liesatthefoundationoftheaboveclaims. This

conceptionis:na
"
teementwiththedoctiineofOtiginalSin,even
though the techn:cal tetm peccatum originat is stillmissing)th
A

ugust:neespouses,centtatytolelagius.ConhtmedbytheCoun-
cilofOtangein ,:
)
, .twouldachieveitsfullelabotation onl
S h l

y
u
c O ast:c:smAccotd:ogto thisdocttinehumannatutewascor-
tupted byAdam's sin ,thtough which all have sinned " Ro
) d
'
m.
,.::,

n without theaidofgtacehumanbeingsbecame abso-

lutelyiicapableofdo.nggood. Butifwe nowaskoutselveswhat
the natute

hatbecamecottuptedis, theanswetis notsosimple.

A

dam
"
asU factcteated ingtace, andthetefotehisnatute,like
h:s nud:ty, wascloakedwithdivinegifts tightftomthestatt. Be-
causemanabandonedGod,aftetsinhewasabandonedtohimself
andleftentitelytothemetcyofhisnatute.Nevettheless, theloss
ofgtacedoesnotsimplyallowapteviousand,fotthatmattet,un-
knownn

atutet

appeat
,
lnstead,whatappeatsisonlyacottupted
na

u:e ,mdetenus commutata) thattesultsftomthislossofgtace.

Withthetei

valofgaceanotiginalnatutecomestolightthatis
nolonge:org:nal, becauseonlysinisotiginal,andsothisnatute
hasbecomemetelyadetivation ofthissin.
ltis not a coincidence that inhis commentatyonThomas
Aquinas'sSumma Theologica, ThomasCajetan,apetceptivetheo-
logianwhoopposed MattinLuthet in :,:at the behest ofthe
CatholicCh

tch)founditnecessatytomake useofacompatison
w:thnud:tyiiotdetteillusttatethispatadox.Thediffetence,he
says,beteen<supposedly"pute"humannatute,thatwasnotcte-
ated in gtace) and an eriginallygtaceful natute thatwasthenlost
isthesameasthediffetencebetweenanudepetsonandapetson
whohasbeendenuded (expolta) . This analogyis illuminating
notonlyintegatd tonatutebutalsointe-atd tonudity andit
alsoclatiuesthesenseofthetheologicalstitegyd.atstu-botly
luksclotl.:ngw:thgtace,natutewithnudity. |ustas the nudity
Nudity
y)
cfa
petsonwhoissimplynudeisidenticalto-andnevettheless
diffetentftom-the nudity ofa petsonwho hasbeendenuded,
soh
umannatute,whichhaslostwhatwas notnatute,gtace) , is
diffetentftomwhat itwasbefotegrace h+dbeenaddedto it. Na-
tuteisnowdehnedbythenon-natute,gtace) thatithaslost,] ust
as n
udityisdehnedbythenon-nudity .clothing) thathasbeen
sttippedfromit.Natuteandgtace,nuditvandclothing,constitute
asingulataggtegatewhoseelementsatesepatateandautono
'
uous,
thou
gh-atleastwithtegatdtonatute-theydonotr

ema::.un-
changedaftettheitsepatation
Butthismeansthatnud:tyandna-
tuteate-assuch-impossible.theteis,instead,onlybatng,only
cottuptednatute.
.TheBiblenowhetestatesthatAdamandLveweteunableto
seetheitnuditybefotetheyhadsinnedbecauseitwascovetedby
theclothes ofgtace. Theonlythingcettainis that in thebegin-
ningAdam and Lvewetenakedandfelt no shame ,'And they
wetebothnaked,the manandhiswife, andwetenotashamed"
_Gen.:.:
]). Aftetthelall,byconttast,theyfelttheneedtocovet
themselveswithhgleaves.The ttansgtession ofthe divinecom-
mandentails,then,apassageftom nuditywithoutshametonu-
ditythatmustbeconcealed.
Thenostalgiafotnuditywithoutshame,theideathatwhatwas
lost thtough sin isthepossibilityofbeing nudewithout blush-
ing,fotcefullytesutfacesintheGospelsaswella

inexttacan

nical
texts ,whichweunteasonablyconunuetocall apoctyphal, that
is,'hidden") ln The GaspelAccording to Ihomaswetead

Hisdis-
ciplesasked: 'Whenwillyoutevealyoutselftous,andwhenwill
weseeyou?'|esusansweted. 'Whenyouundtessw:thoutshame,
whenyoutakeoffyoutclothesandttampleonthemwithyout
feetlikechildten,thenyouwillbeholdtheSonofthelivingGod,
lh
`\J
andyouwi avenoeat
lnthettaditionofthe Chtistiancommunityofthe htsttwo
centuties,theonlyoccasioninwhichonecouldbe nudewithout
shamewasthebaptismaltitual,whichwasnotusuallypetfotmed
onnewbotnbabiesbutmainlyonadults,thebaptismofinfants
,z Nudity
becameobligatoryonlyalter thedoctrineolCriginaloi:
.
`
ceptedbytheentrreChurch)

ltentailed the immersionin

olthenakedcatechumen inthepresenceolmembersolth
munity,itisto this ritualisticnudityolthe baptizedthat
e
l l
ve
t1C reatrveandotherviseunexplainabletoleranceinourCH| r-
tovardbeachnudity).The Catechetical Lectures byCyril
lem comments on this rite in the lollovingvay. "^ssoonas
enter, immediatelytakeollyourclothes, inorder to
tLe
removtngolthe oldman and his sins . . . . HovMarvelous'
a

renudeinhont

leveiyone'seyes, andtheydonotleelash

amed,
stncetheyare the tmageol^dam thehrst-lormed man vh

'
, ovas
nakedtnIaradtseandvasnotashamed. "'
Jhe clothes,vhich thebaptized trampleonviththeirleet
"h l h l "
} are
t cot eso shame, heirsolthe"tunicsolskins"thatourpro-
ger:rtors vore at the moment they vere expelledlromIaradise.
Jhese are the clothes that getreplaced alter baptism bythegar-
men
'
m

de olvhite lmen

Butvhat is decisive in the ritualof

baptismtsprecisely itsevocationol^damicnudityvithoutshame
asa symbol andpledg

olredemption ^nd itis lor thisnudity

that, on thereltquarytn Sanlstdoro, Ivelecls nostalgia, asshe
relusestoputon theclothesthatCodislorcingher tovear.

z. "Iikechildren". thatinlantilenudityis the paradigmolnu-

:tyvrthut shame is a very ancient motil, notonly in Cnos-
trctextslike The Gosel According to Thomas butalso in]evish
and Chnstran docume

uts. Lven though the doctrine according

tovhtchCngtnal Sm ispropagatedthroughprocreationimplies
the rejectron oltrlantile innocence ,henceasve haveseen-
thepracticeolbaptizingnevborns), thelactthatchildrenarenot
ashamedbytheirnudityisolten linkedintheChristian tradition
vithparadisiacalinnocence

^svereadinaSyrian textlromth
hlthcettury, "vhen theScripturessay that theyvere bothnaked
andverenotashamed,'thismeansthattheyvereunavareoltheir
nudity, justlikechildrer. "'ThoughmarkedbyCrigiralSin,chil-
dren, msolarastheydoiotperceivetheirnudity,dvellirasortol
l

mbo, unavareoltheshamethat, according to^ugustine,sanc-

uonstheappearanceolthelibido.
Nudit
;}
Itistothisideathatveovethepractice ,attested tothough
clusivelyby sources up to the stxteenth century) olre-
not
i
lorboys (pum) the privilegeolsingingduringreligious
scrv
g
" h "
.
( b'
)

d
; s almostasiltheir v ite votce voce lanca contaire ,
n
ctro
,
.
trasttothe"mutated"voicesalter puberty(voces mutatae) ,
!D
con
h

l
thesi
gnatureolprelapsarianinnocence. C

ndld, o

v rte,ts ie
olthe linen clothitg that the baptrzed recetve alter they
removedtheclothesthatsymbolizedsiianddeath. "Vholly
white, "vrites|erome, "because it bears no traceoldeath, and
so,alter havingbeenbaptized,vecangirdourloi

sintruthand
coveralltheshameolourpastsins. utalreaytntherstcen-
Quintilian uses thevord candida todescnbean attnbuteol
uy
l
thehumanvoice,though,naturally,hedoesnotrelertoc1! rens
voices). Jhus, in thehistoryolsacredmusicve see theattempt
toensure thepersistenceoltheyoungvoicebymeansolthecas-
u

ationolthe choirboys (pueri cantores) beloretheyhave reached

berty.Jhe"vhitevoice"isthecipherolthis nostalgialoralost,
pu

d`
Ldenic innocencelor somethmg that, lrkeprelapsanan nu rty,
venolongerunderstand
}. ^perspicuousexampleoltheologicalcategoriespersistiigin
placesvhereveleastexpecttoen

ounterthe

moccursmSartr

. ln
thechapterlrom Being and Nothmgness dedtcatedtotherelation-
shipviththeCther,Sartredealsviththesubjectolnudtty con-
nection vith obscenityand sadism. HedoessoU termssoclosely
resembling^ugustiniancategories thatvere theproximitynot
explainablebynotiigthecommon theological inheritaicethat
inlusesourentirevocabularyolcorporealttyvemtghtconclude
thattheconnectionvasintentional
Lesire, accordingtoSartre,is above alla strategydirected to-
vardmakingthe"Lesh" [chair inIrench, care inItalian| appear
in the bodyolthe Cther lmpedingthis "incarnation" ,another
theologicalterm)olthebodyarenotsomuchthematerialclothes
andthemakeupthatusuallyconcealitbut ratherthelactthatthe
bodyoltheCtheris alvays "insituation". itis alvays alreadyU
theprocess olcompletingthisorthatgesture, thtsorthatmove-
74
Nudit
ment,vithsome goal inmind:"JheCther
`
sbodyis originally
a

bodyinsituation, lesh, onthecontrary, appearsasthepure con
tingency ofpresence. Crdinarily, it is hidden bymakeup, clothes,
andso lorth, butabove all it ishidden by movements; nothing
s
less' inthelesh
`thanadancer, evenilsheisnudeLesireisanat-
tempt tostrip thebodyolitsmovementsasolitsclothes in order
to make it existas pure lesh, it is an attemptto achieve an incar
nation oltheCther
`
sbody

"'
Jhisbeingalvaysalready"insituation"oltheCther
`
sbodyis
vhat Sartrecalls"grace".
In _ucc, the body appears as a psychic being in situation. It reveals
above all its transcendence, as a transcendence-transcended; it is in
act and is understood in terms of the situation and of the end that
it pursues. Each movement is apprehended in a perceptive process
that goes from the present to the future, . . . It is this image of neces
sity and freedom in movement . . . that, strictly speaking, constitutes
grace . . . . In grace the body is the instrument that manifests freedom.
The graceful act, insofar as it reveals the body as a precision instru
ment, furnishes this body at each instant with its justifcation orex
isting.2o
Lventhetheologic+lmetaphorolgraceasclothingthatimpedes
the perceptionolnudityappears at this point. "Iacticity, then, is
clothed and disguisedbygrace. the nudityolthe lesh isvholly
present, but it cannot be seen. Jhus the supreme coquetry, the
supreme challengeolgrace, is to exhibitthe bodyunveiledvith
noclothing, vith no veil except grace itsell. Jhe most gracelul
bodyis the naked body vhoseacts surround it vithan invisible
garment, hiding itsleshentirely, though itiscompletelypresent
tothespectators' eyes."'
It is against thisgarment olgrace thaithesadistdirects his
strategy. Jhe special incarnation that hevants to bring about
is "the obscene,"vhich is nothingotherthan thelossolgrace.
"Jheobscene isaspecies olBeing-lor-the-Cthervhichbelongsto
thegenus oltheungracelul [disgracieuxl . . . . Jhe ungracelul ap-
pears . . . vhenoneoltheelements olgraceisthvartedin itsreal-
Nudit
75
.
h nthebodyadoptspostures thatentirelystripitol
`t+ev.altheinertiaolitslesh."'Jhisisthereasonvhy
thesadist tries, ineverypossiblevay,to maketheleshappear,to
lorcethebodyoltheCtherintoincongruousposuonsthatreveal
itsobscenity, that is, itsirreparablelossolallgrace.
A that havedeepevenilunintentionaltheologi-
q. nayses

enre ol
cal rootsareoltenverypertinent. In manycountresa ?
h
_
sadomasochistic publications has recently spr

ead, vhtc

rtst
resenttheluturevictimelegantlydressed and

erusua con-
ext: smiling, strolling vith het lriends, ot lrpptng
d
ro
l
ug
e
,

e Jurningalev pageslorvard, thereadersu eny

magaztn

d
themot
thesamegirlundressed,tied up, anc

orce to assume
e
unnaturalandpainlul positions,removmgallgraceevenrmt_
-
lineamentsolhetlace,vhicharedelotmedandontorte ysp
s

.
1`he sadistic apparatusvith its straps,whi
}
'
cia instruments.

a l

andpoires d&ngoi:s( ishetetheperlect prolaneequiv entO sm

vhich,accordingto theologians, removestheclotheso g

a
es
brusquelyliberates inthe body the absence olgracet a
Nudity
naked
corp
oreali `
h d
`
l

att esa isttnesto

h t:anthe
emptyshell cl l l
setzeisnot
mgother

"
gracc, t:cs+adowthatn b
.
tton
,thedressed
gii1inthe
hoto r h
:e
emgtnsitua-
clothing ollight,
cast ontIbc+
a
.u
on thenextpage),orthe
the
desireoltles:dtst
o
I
prectselylor thts reason
-as artreL
l

lorlailure, sinceheneve
oesnot at tonotcts
destined

t managestotrulygr

b l h rt+carnation' thathe! l
.
ll '
aspH ot andsthe
d

:ec+anrca ytrtestoprod
C
.
esried
result
seems to b l
d
uce.
crtamly the
cac:teve :the body olthe
Ctheris now
Nudity ,,
entirelyobsceneandbreathless Lesh,docilelyholdingtheposition
dictatedbythetorturer [carnefcel; itseemstohavedehnitivelylost
bothlreedomandgrace. Butitisexactlythislreedomthatnecessar-
ily remains unobtainable. "Jhemorethesadistpersists in treating
theCtherasaninstrument,themore:hislreedomeludeshim."'`
Jhe nudity, the "ungracelulness' that the sadisttriesto seizein
hisvictim,is,like^dam's nakedcorporeality, accordingtotheolo-
Nudit
gians) nothingotherthan thehypostasisandtheevanescentsup-
ponollreedo andgrace
,
Mudityisthatthingthatmustbepre-
supposedaspnortograceinorderlorsomethinglikesintooccur.
Makedcorporeality, likenakedlile,isonlytheobscureandimpal-
pablebearerolguilt. Intruth, thereisonly baring, onlytheinh-
nrteges:tculatrons that remove clothingandgracelromthe body.
Mudttyii: our culturc ends uplookinglikethebeautilulleminine
nudethatClementeSusinicreated invaxlortheCrandLukeol
Juscany`sMuseumolMatural History. Cnecanremove thelay-
ers o

lthisanatomicalmodel one at a time, allovinghrst theab-

domii:alandpectoralvallstoappear, thenthearrayollungsand
vtscerastillcoveredbythegreater omentum, then theheartand
Nudit 79
theintestines, untilhnally, insidethevomb,onecanmakeouta
smallletus Butnomatterhovmuchveopenthevaxmodeland
scrutinize itvith ourgaze, thenaked bodyolthebeautilul,dis-
emboveledvomanremainsobstinatelyunobtainable Iencethe
impurity,almostthesacredness, thatseemstoinhere inthisvax
model. Iikenature, nudityis impurebecauseitisaccessibleonly
bytheremovalolclothes (grace).
,. InMovember t
9
81 HelmutMevton published adiptych in
_ucthatvouldsoonbecomelamous underthe title"Jhey^re
Coming" Cn the magazine's leltpagevesee lourcompletelyna-
kedvomen,apartlromtheirshoes,vhichthephotographerappar-
entlycouldnotdovithout)valkinginacoldandstiumanner,like
modelsinalashionshov1heIcingpageU therightdisplaysthe
samemodels in theverysame positions, but this timetheyareim-
maculatelydressedinelegantclothes.Jhesingulareuectprocuced
o
Nudit
by tlisdiptycl is tlat, contrarytoall appearances, tle tvo images
are actuallytlesameJlemodelsvear tleir nudityin exactlytle
same vaytlat, on tle opposite page, tleyveartleirattire. Iven
ilit is not likely tlat tle plotograpler lad a tleological intent,
certainlytle nudity/clotlingapparatus seems to beevoked lere
and,perlaps unintentionally, called intoquestion.^ll tlemoreso
vlen,republislingtlesamediptycl tvo yearslaterin Big Nudes,
Mevtonreversed tleorderoltleimagesso tlattledressedvomen
precedetle nudevomen, just as inIaradisetle clotlingolgrace
precedes tledenudation. But even in tlisreversedordertleellect
remains unclanged. neitlertleeyesoltlemodels nor tleeyes ol
tlespectatorlavebeen opened, tlereis neitler slame norglory,
neitlerpudnda norglorianda. Jleequivalence oltle tvo images
is lurtlerenlancedby tlelacesoltlemodels,vlicl expressas
is tleconventionamonglaslionmodelstlesame indiuerencein
botlplotos.JlelacevliclintlepictorialdepictionsoltleFall
istleplacevleretleartistrepresents tlesorrov, slame, anddis-
mayoltlelallencouple,onetlinks,aboveall,olMasaccio'slresco
intleBrancacciClapel in Florence)acquiresleretlesame gelid
inexpressiveness. itisnolongeralace.
ln anycasetleessentialpointis tlat in Mevton`sdiptycl,asin
Beecrolt'sperlormance,nuditylasnottakenplace.ltisasilnaked
corporealityand lallen nature, vlicl ladlunctionedas tletleo-
logicalpresuppositions olclotling, lave botl been eliminated,
andsodenudationnolongerladanytlinglelttounveil.Jleonly
tlinglelt istlelaslionclotling,tlatis, anundecidableelement
betveenleslandlabric, natureandgrace.Faslionistleprolane
leiroltle tleologyolclotling, tle mercantilesecularizationol
tleprelapsarianIdeniccondition.
6. InCenesistle!ruittlatIvegivesto^damcomeslromtle
treeolknovledgeolgoodandevilandismeant,accordingtotle
temptingvords oltleserpent,to"opentleireyes" andcommu-
nicatetotlemtlisknovledge ("Vlenyou eatlromit,youreyes
villbeopened,andyouvillbe likeCod,knovinggood and evil"
Cen. 3: 5]). ^nd indeed, tleeyes ol^dam and Ive are opened
Nudity
8
immediatelyaltervard, butvlattley tlen cometo knovisdes-
ignatedbytle Bibleonlyas nudity. '7nd tle eyes olbotlvere
opened, and tley knev tlat tleyvere naked."Jle onlycontent
oltleirknovledgeolgoodandevilis,tlerelore, nudity. Butvlat
istlishrstobjectand contentolknovledge,tlistlingtlatvecall
nudity:Vlatdovecometoknovbyknovingnudity:
Commenting on tlebiblicalpassage inquestion, Raslivrites:
"Vlatdoes itmean'tley knev tlattleyverenaked': ltmeans
tlattleypossessedasinglepreceptlromCod, andtleystripped
tlemselves olit. " Genesis Rabbah explains tlat^dam and Ive
vere deprived ol tle justiceandglo:ytlatcamevitl tle obser-
vance olCod`s commandment. ^ccording to tleapparatustlat
slouldbe lamiliar to us by nov, tle knovledge olnudity leads
back, onceagain, to a privation. tle knovledge tlatsometling
invisibleandinsubstantial(tleclotlingolgrace, tlejusticetlat
comesvitltleobservanceoltlecommandments)lasbeenlost.
ltispossible, lovever, tooller adillerentinterpietationoltlis
absenceolcontentollumanity`s hrstknovledgeJlattlishrst
knovledgeisdevoidolcontentcar,inlact, meantlatitisnottle
knovledgeolsometlingbutratlertleknovledgeolpureknov-
ability

ltmeanstlattoknovnudityisnottoknovanobjectbut
onlyanabsenceolveils, onlyapossibilityolknoving.Jlenudity
tlattlehrstlumanssavinIaradisevlentleireyesvereopened
is, tlen, tle opening oltrutl, ol"disclosedness" (a-letheia, "un-
concealment") , vitloutvliclknovledgevouldnotbepossible

Jleconditionolnolongerbeingcoveredbytleclotlingolgrace
does not revealtLe obscurityollesl and sinbutratler tleliglt
olknovability Jlere is notling belind tlepresumed clotling
olgrace, anditispreciselytLisconditionolnotlavinganytling
belindit, tlispurevisibilityandpresence, tlatisnudity.Jo seea
body naked meansto perceive itspureknovabilitybeyondevery
secret, beyond orbeloreitsobjectivepredicates.
Iy. Jlis kind olexegesisis notcompletelyunlamiliarto Clris-
tian tleology. ln tle Iastern tradition, represented by Basil tle
Creat and|oln olLamascus, tleknovledgeolnudity ,etg:i:
Nudity
te r;n71

otitos) signihesthelossoftheconditionof ecstasyandthe

bl|ssful ignotanceofselfthatdehnedtheLdeniccondition,aswell
:5 the

conse

:|e

t
,
:metge:

ce in manofhiswicked yearningto
flllsdehciencies (tOll !opontos anap!erosis) . Beforesin,thehtst
humanbeingslivedinastateofidleness (scho!e) andfullnessThe
truesignihcanceoftheopeningoftheeyesisthe closingofthe
eyesofthesoulandthepetceptionofone'sownstateoffullness
andbeatitudeasastateofweaknessandatechnia ,thatis alackof
appliedknowledge). Sin, then,does nottevealalack..adefect
inhumannatute,whichtheclothingofgtacecoveredup.On the
conttaty, sin consistsU petceivingthe fullness that dehned the
Ldenicconditionasalack
l fman had remained in laradise, Basilwtites,hewouldhave
owedhisclothesneithetto natute,as animals do) notto atech-
nical abilitybut onlyto the divinegtace that tesponded to the
love hehad fot God. Bycompellinghumans to abandon their
blissful Ldenic contemplation, sin plunges them into thevain
seatchfotthe technical knowledgeandthesciencesthatdistract
themftom the contemplation ofGod. Accotdingto this ttadi-
t

on,nuditydoes nottefet tocotpoteality, as itdoes inAugus-

tineandthetestoftheLatin ttadition, buttathettothelossof
con

emplationthat.s, the knowledge ofthe pureknowability

ofCodand itssubst:t.t|onbyappliedandeatthlyknowledge.
ln fact,when Godma|esAdamfallasleepinordertoremovehis
rib,Adamenjoysastateofperfectcontemplationthatculminates
necstasy ,'Through ecstasy, "Augustinewrites,

hepaiticipated
iitheangeliccouttanc,bypenettatingthesanctuaryofGod,he
undetstoodthemysteties").TheFallistherefotenotafallofthe
neshbutofthemind.Atstakeinnudityandthelossofinnocence
isnotthisotthatothetwayofmakinglovebutthehietatchyand
modal|tiesofknowledge.
:

Nudityot tathet denudationasa ciphetofknowledge,

belongsV thevocabulayofphilosophyandmysticism.T|isisthe
case

ot

onlybeca

|se
"
ittelatestotheobjectofsupremeknowledge,
that is, naked beug (esse autem Deu1J esse nudum sine velamine
Nudity
est), butalsoinsofatas it telatesto the etyprocessofknowledge.
ln medieval psychologythemediumof|nowledgeiscalledanim-
age,or'phanta

m,"orspecies.hepto:essthatrings

boutpe.

fectknowledge:stherefotedesctbedasaptogressivebatngofth

phantasm,"which-passingftomthesensestotheimagin

t:onto
memory-issttippedlittlebylittleofitssensibleelementsotder
to ptesentitself,oncethedenudtio perfcta hasbeencompleted,as
anintelligiblespecies,"apureintentionorimage.Throughtheact
ofintellection,theimage becomespetfectlynude,and-Avicenna
wtites'ifitwetenotalreadynaked,itwouldatanyratebecome
so,becausethecontemplativefacultysttipsthisimageinsuchaway
thatno materialaffectioncanremaininit."Completeknowledge
iscontemplationinandaboutnudity.
.
lnoneofLckhart'ssetmonsthisconnectionbetween:mageand
nudityisfurtherdevelopedinawaythattutnstheimage,identi-
fedwith'nakedessence") intosomethinglikethepureandab-
solute mediumofknowledge. 'Theimageisasimpleandformal
emanationthattransfusesin its totalitythenakedessence,which
is howit is conceivedbythe metaphysician. . . lt is alife [ vita
quaedam] thatcanbeconceivedassomethingthatbeginst

swell
and ttemble [intumescere et bullire] initselfandbyitself,w:thout

k h
.
b outwards
howeveruin ugatt esame t:mea outitsexpans:on
[necdum cointel!ecta ebullitione] ."`lnLckhart'sterminologybul
litio signihes the tremblingot the internaltension ofthe obj

ct
inthemindofGodorofman(ens cognitivum), whereas ebuluttO
signihestheconditionoftealobjectsoutsidethemind(

ns extra
anima). Theimage,inasmuchas itexptessesnakedbeug,.s a

er-
fectmediumbetweentheobjectinthemindandthetealthing.
Assuch, itisneithetamerelogicalobjectnotarealentit

.:t

is
somethingthatlives,

alife");itisthetremblingofthe
.
thtngin
themediumofitsown knowability; itisthequivetnginwh.ch
theimageallowsitselftobeknown.'Thefotmsthatexistinmat-
ter,"wtites oneofLckhart'spupils,

trembleincessantly (coltm

e
tremant] , likeanebullientstraitbetweentwo seas [ tamqua1

eurippo, hoc est in ebullitione]

+ . Thisisthereasonwhynothing
f

bl "

aboutthemcanbeconce:vedO asce:ta::otsta e.
Nudit
Jlenudityoltleluman bodyisitsimage-tlatis, tletrem-
blingtlatmakes tlis bodyknovablebuttlatremains, initsell,
ungraspable. Hence tle uniquelascination tlat images exercise
over tle luman mind Irecisely because tle image is not tle
tling, buttletling
`
s knovability(itsnudiq),itneitler expresses
nor signihes tle tling. Mevertleless, inasmucl as it is notling
otler tlan tle giving olthe thingoverto knovledge, notltng
otlertlan u+estrippingolloltle clotles tlatcover it, nudityis
notseparatelromtletling.itistletlingitselI
I. ^nattemptto tlinkaboutnudityinall itstleologicalcom-
plexityand,attlesametime,tomovebeyondtletleologicalper-
spective isaccomplisled in \alterBenjamin
`
s vork. Jovard tle
end ollis essay on Coetle`s Etectiz;e Afnities, le examines tle
relationslip in beauty betveen tleveil and tleveiled,appearance
and essence, in connection vitl tle character olttilia ,vlom
Benjaminsavasahguration ol|ula Coln,tlevoman vlomle
vasin lovevitl attletime). In beautytleveilandtleveiled,tle
envelopment and tle objecttlatit envelops, are linked byanec-
essaryrelationslipilat Benjamincalls "secret" ( Geheimnis) , Jle
beauttlul, tlen, istlat objectlorvlich tleveil isessential. Jlat
Benjaminisavareoltle tleological deptl oltlis tlesis, vlicl
irrevocablylinks tleveil totleveiled, issuggested bya relerence
totle"age-oldidea"tlattleveiledistranslormedbyitsunveiling,
sinceitcan remain"equalto itsell' onlyunderneatl itsenvelop-
ment^saresultbeautyisinitsessenceanimpossibilityolunveil-
ing, itis "non-unveilable" [ullenthallbdlj:
Unveiled, the beautiful ob jeet would prove to be infinitely inappar
ent [un:rlcnbur|. + , Thus, in facing whatever is beautiful, the idea
of unveiling becomes the idea of its non-unvcilability . . . . If only the
beautiful, and nothing outside of it, can exist essentially as veiled and
remain veiled, then the divine ground of beauty would lie in the se
cret. In beauty, appearance is JUSt this: not the superfuous envelop
ment of things in themselves, but rather the necessary envelopment of
things for liS. Such veiling is divinely necessary at certain times, just as
i t is divinely established that an unveiling that takes place outside of
Nudit
rime leads the inapparent to vanish into nothing, whereupon revela
tion dissolves all secrets,29
Jlislavtlatinseparably unites vei| and veiledvitlin

tlesplere
olbeautycomesupunexpectedlyslortpreciselyvlenitconlronts
lumanbeingsandtleirnudity

Lue to tle unitytlat islormed

b
tveen tleveil and tle veiled, Benjaminclaims thatbeauty can
e.istasessence onlyvlere tle dualityolnudity and clotling no
longerexists. in artand tleplenomenaolnaked nature |bloKen
Matur|: "ntlecontrary, tlemoreclearlytlisdualityexpresses

lin order to hnally be conhrmed at its liglest level in tle

itse
l
d'

l
luman being,tlemore it becomescleart at in nu rtyvit out
veils tleessentiallybeautilul lasvanisled, andtlenaked body
ltlelumanbeingaclievesanexistencebeyondallbeauty-tle
ublimeandavorktlatgoesbeyondall creationstlat oltle
:t
creator

l
In tlelumanbody,andparticularlyinCoetlesLttriav O
is, in tle novel, tle patadigm oltlis pure appeaiance-beauiy
beapparent Hence,vlileinvorksolartandolnature
canony
l " b

licable principle istlatC uon-unvera I ity, m t+e iv-

te a
b
[
o
p
dytle opposite principle isimplacablyalhrmed: "notling
mg
l b1 l
mortalisnon-unveilable."''Motonly,tlen,doest e[ossi I uyO
being denuded condemn luman beauqto appearance, but un-
veilabilityconstitutes insomevayI,S cipler. I tlelumanbody
beauty is essentially and inhnitely unverlable , itcanalvaysbe
exlibitedasmereappearance.Jlereis, lovever,alimit,

beyond
lclexistsneitleranessencetlatcannotbelurtlerunveilednor
w
,.atura lapsa, Here one encounters onlytleveil itsell, appear-
a
tsell vlicl is no longer tleappearanceolanytlingJlis
ance ! ,
l
indelibleresidueolappearancevlere notlingappears,tlisc ot

-
ing tlatno bodycanvearanymore-tlis isluman nudtty. Itis
l
vlenyuuremovetleveillrombeauty. Itissublme
v atremams
=
because, as Kant claims, tle impossibilityolpresentrtgtleidea
tlrougltlesensesisreveisedatacertainpointb

apresentation
ola liglerordervlerevlatis beingp

esented is, so to spe

k,
presentation itsell Itis intlisvaytlat, m nudityvitloutveils,
86 Nudit
appearanceitsellappears anddisplays itsellas inInitelyinappar-
ent, inhnitelylreeolsecret.Jlesublime, tlen, is anappearance
tlat exlibits its ovn vacuity and, in tlis exlibition, allovs tle
inapparenttotakeplace
^sa result, attleendolBenjamin's essay, itis preciselytoap-
Nudit
pearancetlat"tlemostextremelope" is entrusted,andtleprin-
cipleaccordingtovlicl it is absurdto desire tleappearanceol
tle good "sullers its unique exception"`' llbeauty, in its most
intimatecondition,vasoncesecrettlatistosay, tlenecessary
relationolappearance and essence, tleveil and tleveiledtlen
lere appearance untiesitselllrom this knotand slines lor a mo-
mentbyitsellas tle "appearance oltlegood

"^ccordingly, tle
ligltlromtlisstarisopaque, tobeloundonlyincertainCnostic
texts. nolongeranecessaryand"non-unveilable" envelopmentol
beauty, itis novappearance, to the extent that nothing appears by
means ofthis appearance. Jleplacevleretlisinappearancetlis
sublime absence oltle secret olluman nuditymost promi-
nentlyleavesitsmarkistlelace
zO. ^ttleendoltlezO andtlebeginningoltleOs Ben-
jaminassociatedvitl a group olveryattractivelemaleltiends.
^mongtlemvereCert\issing, aIarem, andLvaHermann,
vlomletlougltallslared tlesamespecial relationslip toap-
pearance.IntlediarieslekeptduringlisstayontleFrenclRiv-
ierabetveen Mayand]une ol, Benjaminsouglt iodescribe
tlis relationslip,linkingitvitltletlemeolappearancetlatle
ladconlrontedsomeyears beloreinlisessayon Coetle's novel
"Speyer`svile,"levrites,
reported this astounding statement by Eva Hermann, from the period
of her greatest depression: "The fact that I am unhappy doesn't mean
that I have to run around with a face fll of wrinkles. " This made many
things clear to me, above all that the rudimentary contact that I have
had in recent years with these creatures-Gen, Eva Hermann, and so
on-is only a feeble and belated echo of one of the most fundamental
experiences of my life: the experience of appearance [Schein] . I spoke
yesterday with Speyer about this, who for his part also contemplated
about these women and made the curious observation that they have
no sense of honor, or rather that their code of honor is actually to say
everything they think. This is a very true observation, and it proves
the profundity of the obligation they feel toward appearance. For this
"saying everything" is meant above all to destroy what has been said; or
Audi
rather, once it has been destroyed, to turn i t into an object. Only inso
far as it is apparent _schenh] arc they able to assimilate ir.:13
Onccoulddchncthisattitudcas thc 'nihilismofbcauty," com
monto manybcau:ifulwomcn,whch conssts n tcducingonc's
ownbcautytoputcappcatanccandthcn cxhibitingthisappcat-
anccwith asort oftcmotc sadncss,stubbotnlydcnyingthcidca
that bcautycansigni[somcthingothctthan itsclf. 8uttsptc-
cisclythcvctylackofillusionsaboutitsclf-thisnuditywithout
vclsthatbcautythusmanagcstoachicvc-thatfutnishcsthcmost
ftightfulatttaction.Thisdiscnchantmcntofbcauty,thisspccialn-
hilism,tcachcsitscxttcmcstagcwiththcmanncquinsotthcfash-
ion modcls,wholcatnbcfotcallclsctoctascallcxptcssonftom
thcitfaccs. lnsodoing, thcitfaccsbccomcputccxhibitionvaluc
and,asatcsult,acqaitcapatticulatallutc.
2. ln out cultutc, thcfacc-bodytclationship ismatkcdbya
fundamcntalasymmctty, inthat our faccs tcmain fotthc most
pattnakcd,whilcoatbodicsatcnotmallycovctcdCottcspond-
ingto thisasymmcttyisthcptimacyofthchcad,whichmaybc
cxptcsscdnmanyways buttcmainsmotcotlcssconstantin all
hclds.ftompolitics(whctcthchighcstpowctis usuallycallcdthc
'hcad")to tcligion (laul'sccphalicmctaphotofChtist),ftomatt
,whctconccantcptcscntnapotttatthchcadwithoutthcbody
butnot,asiscvidcntftom"nudc

dcpictions, thcbodywithout
thchcad) tocvctydaylifc,whctcthchcadisthclocusofcxptcs-
sivcncss patcxccllcncc.Thslastpontsccmstobcconhtmcdby
thcfact thatwhilcthcbodics ofothctanimalsoftcncxhibitvcty
lvclyand cxptcssivcsigns ,thc pattctn ofthclcopa:d'sskin, thc
hctycolotsofthcmandtill'sscxual otgans, butalsothcbuttcthys
wings andthcpcacock'splumagc),thchumanbodyissingulatly
dcvoidofanycxptcssvcfcatutcs.
Thiscxptcssivcsuptcmacyofthcfacchndsitsconhtmation,as
wcllasitspointofwcakncss, in thcunconttollablcblushingthat
attcsts to thcshamcwc fccl atbcng nudc.Ths spcthaps thc
tcasonwhythc asscttionofnuditysccms to callthc ptimacy of
thc facc into qucstion.Thatthcnudityofa bcautiful bodycan
Audi(y
cclipscthcfacc, ot makcit invisiblc, is statcdwith

tcatclatityin
Charmide:, thcdialogucllatodcdica:cstothcsub]cctofbcauty.
Chatmidcs, thcyoungmanwholcndshs namc to thcdialoguc,
hasabcautifulfacc, but, as oncofthcintctlocutotscommcnts,
h bodyissobcautifulthat 'ifhcwctc to undtcss,youwould
is
"
bclcvcthathchadnofacc" ,thathcwouldbclitcta y taccss,
.
aro:o:, i,|d).Thcidcathatthcnudcbodycan

ontcst

thcpt-
macyofthc facc,tothcnoffct itsclfas afacc, :simplciti:.thc
tcsponscthcwomcnaccuscdof

itchctaftg

vctothoscwho

wo

-
dctcdwhythcyhadkisscdSatansanus dutngthcSabbath. thc:r
dcfcnscwasthatcvcnthctc, thctcsafacc. Simlatly, in thchtst
stagcsofctoticphotogtaphy,modclshadtoaffcctatomanttcand
dtcamycxptcssion,asifthcunsccnlcnshadsutptscdthcm thc
ntmacyofthcitboudot. 8utnthccoutscoft:mcthisptoccdutc
wasinvcttcd,tothccffcctthatthcfacc'sonlytaskbccamcthccx-
ptcssionofthcshamclcssawatcncssthatthcnakcdbodywasbc:t:g
cxhbtcdtothcgazc.8atcfaccdncss:cciata_ne,ctymologically,
thc loss ofthcfacc isnowthcncccssaty countctpatttonudity
withoutvcilsThcfacc, nowanaccompliccofnudity-asitlooks
into thclcnsotwinksatthcspcctatot-lctsthcabsc

ofscctct
bcsccn,itcxptcsscsonlyalctting-bc-sccn,aputccxhibition.
zz. Aminiatutcinoncofthcmanusctiptsofthc tlavi:h:i-
caebyHonotiusofAutunshowsachatactct,pcthapsthcauthot)
holdnga tibbon on whch s wtittcn: ''nvo/ucrum rerumetit
i: :i/i}ericlarum" (Hcwho tticsto c|at[thc cnvclopmcntof
things)
,
`Onccoulddchncnudityasthccnvclopmcntthattcachcs
apointwhctc itbccomcsclcatthatclatincationisnolo

gctp
.
os-
siblc.

tisinthisscnscthatwcmustundctstandGocthcsmaxim,
accotdingtowhich'bcautycan nc\ctclat[tsclf."'`Onlybc-
causcbcautytcmainstothccndan"cnvclopmcnt,'onlybccausc
it tcmains 'incxplicablc" _ctymologically, thatwhich cannot bc
unfoldcd , ca:. appca:ancc-whch tcachcs tssuptcmcstagc H
nudity-bc callcd bcautiful.That nudity andbcauty cannot bc
clatihcddocs notthctcfotc mcan that thcycontainascctct th

t
cannotbcbtoughttolight.Suchanappcatanccwouldbcmytct-
Nudity
ous,butpreciselylorthisreasonitvouldnotbeanenvelopment,
sinceinthiscaseonecouldalvayscontinuetosearchlorthesecret
that ishiddenvithii it In the inexplicableenvelopment, on the
otherhancl, thereis nosecret, denuded, itmanilestsitsellas pure
appearance.Jheonlythingthatthebeautilullacecansay,exhibit-
ingitsnudityvith asmile, is,"Youvanted toseemysecret:You
vanted to clari[myenvelopment:Jhen lookrightatit, ilyou
can Iook atthis absolute, unlorgivable absence olsecrets!"Jhe
mathemeolnudityis, inthissense,simplythis. haccccthereis
nothingotherthanthisYet itis preciselythedisenchantmentol
beautyintheexperience olnudity, thissublime butalso miser-
ableexhibitionolappearancebeyondallmysteryandallmeaning,
thatcan somehovdeluse thetheologicalapparatusandallovus
tosee,beyondtheprestige olgraceandthechimerasolcorrupt
nature,asimple,inapparenthumanbodyJhedeactivationolthis
apparattis retroactivclyopeiates, therelore, as muchonnatureas
ongrace,asmuch onnudityasonclothing,liberatingthemlrom
theirtheological signature.Jhissimpledvellingolappearancein
theabsenceolsecretsisitsspecialtremblingitisthenuditythat,
likethechoirboy's"vhite" voice, signihesnothingand, precisely
lorthisreason,managestopenetrateus
o The Glorious Body
I. Jhe problem olthe glorious body, thatis to say, the nature
and characteristicsand more generally thelileolthe bodyol
theresurrected in Iaradise, istheparamountchapter in theology,
and is classihedinthe literatureundertherubric dc}ncultimc
Mevertheless, theRomanCuria, in ordertosettleonitscompro-
misevithmodernity,decidedtocloseinaratherhastymannerthe
eschatological door thatleads to the discussion concerning "last
things,' orrather, itlrozethisilnotobsolete,thenatleastcer-
tainlycumbersomediscussion.Butas longas thedogmaolthe
resurrectionolthe lesh persists as anessential part oltheChris-
tian laith, this impasse cannot bur remain problematic. In the
pagesthatlollovvevillrevive thislrozen theological themeand
thus examinea problem that is equallyinescapable. that olthe
ethical andpoliticalstatus olcorpoteal lile ,thebodies oltheres-
urrectedarenumericallyand materiallythesameasthe ones they
had duringtheirearthlyexistence) .Jhismeans that theglotious
bodyvillserveasaparadigmthatvillallovustomeditateonthe
hgures,andthepossibleuses, olthehuman bodyassuch.
z. Jhe hrst problem that theologianshave to conlrontis the
identityoltheresurrectedbody. Supposingthatthesoulvillhave
to take on thesamebodyonceagain, hov then can its identity
and integrity be dehned: ^ preliminary question involves the
1
z
1cOloriou:Bod
age oltheresurrected. must theyrise again at theage atwhich
theydied,decrepitasdecrepit,babyas baby, adultas adult`Man
Jhomas^quinas responds, must beresurrectedwithnonatura.
delects But the nature olan individual can also be delectiveas
ate

ultolnothavingyetreached itsperlection (ashappenswith

babres)orasaresultohavingleltitsperlectstatebehind(ashap-
penswrth theelderly). !heresurrectionwilltherelorebringever

bodybacktotheperlectionthatcoincideswiththeiryouth,thats
to say

Cristsagewhenhewasresurrected ,circatrigintaanno:).
Iaradrse rs aworldlorthosein theirthirties, invariablybalanced
betweengrowth anddecay.^partlromthis, however, the bodies
will maintain the dilerences thatoncedistinguished them lrom
oneanother,hrstandloremost(contrarytothosewhoclaimthat
sincetheleminineconditionisimperlect, the resurrectedwoul+
allbemales) theirsexualdierences
3 Much more insidious is Ue question olthematerialidentity
betweenthebodyoltheresurrectedandthebodythatdwelledon
earth. Howisonetoconceiveoltheintegrated identityoleach
andevery last particle olmatter between the two bodies`Vill
eachspeckoldustthatthebodyhasdecomposed intoreturnto
the same place it used to have in the living body: Here is pre-
cisely where the dilhcultybegins.Ve could certainlygrant that
theamputated hand ola thielwho later on repented and was
redeemedwouldrejoinhis bodyatthemomentolresurrection.
Butwhatabout^dam'srib,whichwasremovedlromhisbodyin
ordertolormLve'sbody.willitberesurrectedinhisgloriousbody
orhers:^ndwhataboutthecaseoltheanthropophagus.willthe
humanlesh that hehas eaten and assimilatedintohisownbody
beresurrectedU thebodyolhisvictimorhisown:
Cne olthehypothcses thatput thesubtletyoltheChurch Fa-
therstothegreatesttestdealtwiththescenario olananthropoph-
aguswho eats nothing but human lesh, oreven onlyembryos,
and then begets a son ^ccording to medieval science, semen is
generateddc:ucduoalimcnti,byanexcessorsurplusoldigested
lood.Jhtsmeans thatthesameleshwillbelongtomorethanone
ThcGloriou:3od 93
body(thatolthedevouredandthatoltheson)andwilltherelore
havetoberesurrected, impossibly, indillerentbodies.Ior^quinas
thesolutiontothis lastcasegivesrisetoaSolomonicsplit.
The embryos as such will not take pare in the resurrection if they did
not frst live as rational souls. But at this stage the materna! womb
already adds new nourishment to the substance of the semen. Con
sequently, assuming that someone were to cat such human embryos,
and then procreate by means of the surplus of such food, the sub
stance of the semen would rise again in him who was begotten by it,
unless this semen did not contain elements belonging to the substance
of the semen of those whose fesh was devoured, as such elements
would risc again in the former and not in the latter. The remainder
of the eaten fesh, which was not transformed into semen, will clearly
rise again in the frst individual, while the divine power will intervene
in order to supply the missing parts.l
A. Crigen ollers a more elegantand less muddledsolution to
theproblemoltheidentityoltheresurrectedhatwhichremains
constantin each individual,hesuggests, istheimage ,cido:) that
wecontinuetorecognizeeverytimeweencotrntertheindividual,
despite inevitablechanges.Jhis sameimage will also guarantee
theidentityolthe resurrectedbody. "^s our cido:remains iden-
ticallrominlancyto oldage, even thoughour material leatures
undergoacontinuous mutation, sointhesamemanner, it isthis
cidc:thatwe had throughout our earthlyexistence thatwill be
resurrectedandremain identicalintheworldto come, though it
hasbeenchangedlorthe betterandbecome moreglorious."Jhe
ideaolsuchan "imaginary' resurrection, like many otherolCii-
gcis themes,was suspectedolheresy. Mevertheless, theobsession
withanintegralmaterialidentitywasprogressivelyreplacedbythe
ideathateach partolthe humanbodyremains immutable aslar
as its aspect ,:ccic:) is concerned, though it is ina continuous
ebbandlow fucr

cctrcucrc) aslar asitsmaterialcomposition

isconcerned.'ndso inthepartsth+tcomposea man,"^quinas
writes, "thesamethinghappensthatoccursinthepopulation ol
acity,wheresingle individuals dieandotherscome to taketheir
)| 7hcOloriou:Bod
place. Fromamateralpointofview, thecomponentsthatcom
posethepopulacesucceedoneanother,butfo:mallythepopulace
remainsthesame. . . . lnlikemanne:, inthehuman bodythere
arealsopartsthat,in theirebb,arereplacedbyothersthattakethe
sameshape and postion,and somateriallyall theparts ebb and
dow, whilenumeric+llyman remainsidentical '' The paradigm
ofparadsiacaldentitysnotmaterialsameness,whichpolicede-
partmentsaroundt|eworld try to set todaythrough biometric
apparatuses,butratherthemage,thatistosay,thebody'slikeness
U itself.

.Oncethesharedidentityofthegloriousbodyandtheearthly
bodyisguaranteed,itremainstobeascertainedwhatdistinguishes
theonefromtheother.Theologiansenumeratefourcharacteristics
ofgory:mpassblty, subtlety,aglity, andcarity.
Thatthebodyoft|eblessedisimpassibledoesnotmeanthatit
hasnocapacitytosense,whchsaninseparablepa:tofthebody's
perfectionWithoutthiscapacity, thelifeoftheblessedwouldre-
sembleakndofsleep,thatstosay, twouldbehalfofaufe,vttac
dtmtdtum). lmpassibilitymeans,rather, thatthe bodywillnotbe
subjectedto thosedisorderedpassionsthatwrestitfromitsperfec-
tion.All thepartsofthegloriousbodywillbe, infact,submissive
to the dominionoftae :ationalsoul,whchwill n tun beper-
fectlysubmissivetothedivinewill.
Sometheologans,however,scandalizedbytheideathatthere
couldbesomethingto smell, taste, or touch in laradise,exclude
allthesensesfromtheparadsacalcondtonAquinas,alongwth
the majorityoftheChurchlathers, rejectssuch an amputation.
Thesense ofsmell oftheblessedwouldnotbedeprivedofan
object.'DoesnottheChurchsayinitssongsthatfromthebod-
iesofthesaints emanate agentlescent?`' ln tssublimestate, the
odorofthegloriousbodywillbe, in fact,deprivedofanymaterial
humidity, as happensintheexhalatonsofdstilledfumes ,:icut
odornalt: cvaorattont:) And so the nose ofthe blessed, not
hindered byanysuchhumidity, wll thenperceive thesmallest
nuances,mtntmaodorumdy rcntta:)Tastewillalsobeexercised,
7hcOloriou:Bod
)
thoughtherewllbeno needforfooc,perhapsbecause'onthe
tongueoftheelecttherewillbeadeli:ioushumor."And t

uch
willperceiveparticularqualitiesinbodies thatseemtoa

t:ci

ate
thoseimmaterialpropertiesofimagesthat modernarth:stonans
call''tactilevalues

'
6. Howarewetounderstandthe'subtle"natureoftheglorious
body?AccordingtoapositionthatAquinasdeemsheretical,sub-
tlety-asasortofextremerarefaction-rendersthebodiesofthe
blessedsimilarto airorwindandthuspenetrablebyotherbod-
ies.Theyareso impalpablethattheyareindistinguishablefrom
abreath oraspirit Such abodycouldtherefore simultaneously
occupythespacealreadyoccupiedbyanotherbody,whetherthis
otherbodyisgloriousornot. Againstsuchexcessestheprevalent
opiniondefendstheviewthatthe perfect bodyhas

anextended
andpalpablecharacter'TheLordwillberevivedw:thaglottous
body,buthewillstillbepalpable,as itswrttennthe Gospel.
'feel me,a[atc andseeme,forasp.ritdoesnothavedeshand
bones.'Andsothegloriousbodeswllalsobepalpable.'' Never-
theless, sincethey arefullysubjectedto thespirit, they can also
decidenottoimpressthertouch and,byasupernaturalvrtue,
remainimpalpabletonongloriousbodies.
;. Agileisthatwhichaptlymoveseffortlessly and uninhibit-
edly. lnthissensetheglorousbody, perfectlysubmissivetothe
glorihedsoul,willbeendowedwithagilty,

and'inallitsmov

mentsandnallitsactstwllbereadytoswiftlyobeythesp:::t.
Onceagain,contrarytothosewhocontendthatthegloriousbody
canmovefromoneplacetoanotherwthoutpassingthroughthe
spaceinbetween,thetheologiansreamrmtheirpositionthatthis
wouldcontradctthenatureofcorporealty. Butaganstthosewho
conceiveofmovementasa kindofcorruption

asalmostanim-
perfectonofthebody,asfarastsplacesconcerned),andthus
endorsetheimmobilityofthegloriousbodies,theologiansvalotze
agltyas asort ofgrace thatcarrestheblessed almost instantly
andeffortlesslywherevertheywanttogo.Likedancers,whomove
7hcOloriousBod
in space vitl neitleraim nornecessity, tle blessedmovein tle
leavensonlyinordertoexlibittleiragility.
. Clarity,c/ritas)canbe tlougltolintvo vays.liketleslim-
merolgold ,duetoitsdensity) orliketlesplendorolcrystal ,be-
cause olits transparency)^ccording to Cregory tle Creat, tle
bodies oltle blessed possess clarity in botl senses. tley are di-
aplanouslikeacrystalandimpervioustoligltlikegoldltistlis
laloolliglt, vliclemanateslromtlegloriousbody, tlatcanbe
perceived bya nongloriousbody,and its splendor candiller ac-
cordingtotlequalityoltleblessedJlegreaterorlesserclarityol
tlelaloisonlytleoutermostindexoltleindividualdillerences
betveentlegloriousbodies.
>
. lmpassibility, stibtlety, agility, andclarityas claracteristics
and almostornamentsoltleglotiousbodydo notpresentany
particulardillculties.^tstake in eacl case istle assurance tlat
tle blessed lave a bodyand tlat tlis body is tle same as tle
one tlattleindividual ladoneartl,evenilitisincompatably
betterJlelar moreatduousanddecisiveproblem istlevayin
vlicl tlisbodyexercises itsvitallunctions, tlatis to say, tle
articulation ola plysiologyoltleglorious body Jle body, as
ve lave seen, is resurrected as a vlole, vitl all tle organs it
possessedduringitseartllyexistence.Jlerelore, tleblessedvill
lorever lave, accordingto tleirsex, eitleravirilememberora
vagina and, in botl cases, a stomacl and intestines. But vlat
lor, il, asseemsobvious, tleyvillneed neitler to reproducenor
toeat`Certainlybloodvillcirculateintleirarteriesandveins,
butisitpossibletlathairvillstillgrovontleirleadsandlaces
or tlat tleirhngcrnailsvillgrov, asvell,pointlesslyandirritat-
ingly: lnconlrontingtlesedelicatequestions, tleologianscome
up againstadecisiveaporia, one tlatseemstoexceed tle limits
oltleirconceptualstrategybuttlatalsoconstitutestlelocusin
vliclvecantlinkoladilletentpossibleuselortlebody
c. Jle problem ol tle tesurrection ollair and nails ,body
7hcOloriou:Bod
>
patts tlatlev tleologians, itvouldseem,consideredsuitable to
tle paradisiacal condition) istreated by^quinas just belore le
conlrontstleequallyembarrassingproblemoltleresurrectionol
tlebodilylumors,blood, milk, blackbile,sveat,sperm,mucus,
urine,andsolortl).Jleanimatebodyiscalled"organic"because
tlesoulmakesuscolitsvariouspartsas iltleyvereinstruments.
^mongtleseparts,somearenecessaryinordertoexercisealunc-
tion ,tle leart, tleliver, tle lands), vlile otlers are meant to
preservetlenecessary organs Lxamplesoltle second kind are
lairandnails,vliclvillberesurrectedin tlegloriousbodysince
tleycontributeintleirovnvayto tleperlectionolluman na-
ture.Jleperlectlydepilated bodyoltlelaslionmodelandtle
porn staris extraneous to glory

Mevertleless,since it isdilncult
toimaginecelestiallairandnailsalons, vemustassume,tlougl
tleologianslail toaddresstlematter) tlatjust as tle age oltle
blessed vill lorever remain tle same, sovill tle lengtl oltleir
lairandnails.
^slortlelumors,^quinas`ssolutiondemonstratestlatalready
in tle tlirteentl century tle Clurcl vas trying to larmonize
tleologicalandscientilcdemands.Someoltlelumorsinclud-
ing urine, mucus, andsveatare inlactextraneoustotleper-
lectionoltle individual, insolar astleyare residues tlatnature
expels iniiacorrutioni: tleyvill iot, tlerelore, beresurrected.
Ctlers are uselul onlyinordertopreservetlespecies in anotler
individual, bymeansolprocreation,sperm)andnutrition,milk).
ltisnotexpectedtlattleseLumorsvillberesurrected,either.Jle
otlerlumorslamiliartomedieval medicineaboveall tle lour
tlatdelnetlebody`s temperaments. blood, blackbileormelan-
cloly, yellov bile, andpllegm, vlicl verelaterjoined by ros,
cam/ium, andlutCnvill be resurrected intle glorious body,
since tleyarc directed tovard its natural perlection and arc in-
separablelromit.
. lt is vitl regard to tvo principal lunctions olvegetative
lilesexualreproductionandnutritiontlattleproblemoltle
plysiology oltle glorious bodyreacles its critical tlresLold ll
7he Olo.ou:Bod
tle organs tlatexecutetleselunctions testi I

b
.
- ces, pems vagi voin ,stomacl, mtestmesvill neccssaril b
.

`
na,
uiicction, tlenvlatlunctionIC tl
y e
[
d
icsentU tle
res-
d l
.
eysuppose to lave` Jl en o

ocr

ation is tomultiplytle luman race, vlilet-e

e
olnutrition is tle restoration oltle d'
d I
end

l
in ivi ua . ^ter tle res recnon, ovever, tleluman race vilI reacl tl
ur-
l l d b

eperrectnumb t at a eenpreordained byCod d I b d

er
undergoeitlerdiminutionor
, an tc o yvill no longer
villtl I I
grovtl. Irocreationandnutrition

reoreno onger aveanyreasonlor bein

Itisimpossible,tlougl,tlattlecones ondin
g.
pletelyuseless and superLuous :uoer
p

gorgansa
l
recom-
ol {

vaanet, siice in t e state perect nature notlmgexists in v I I

l

l I
am tis ere t attle
tiono t +ebody`sotlerusehndsit h
ques-
^qui `
I
s rst,stammennglormulation
nass sttategy iscear. to se
.

l
.
I

paiateorganslromtleispecihc p ysioogica iunctions. Jlepurposeoleacl I k l

any

oigan, i e t atol
irstittment, is its opciatioi:

but I d
l
`
tis oesnotm l
l t eoperationlails,tlcntleinstrumentbecome I
e
,
a

n t at

t
) JI
suseess u:tra:tt rumentum e organ orinstrumeittlat
d

vasseparate irom itsoperation and remains, so to speal

. , ina state olsuspensio acquires,preciselylortlisreason anost

' *
n,
I
ensiveunction

ite l b

tevirtuecorrespondingtotlesuspendedoperatioi "J
`
l
i its
ment se
l
einstru-
slo

rv
'
s notonyto execute tleagent`
s operation, butalso to

vitsvirtue _ado:tendendamvirtutemio:iu: "` |

d
tisementsor or l l
ustasH a ver-
b d

l
[
I
nograp y,v eretlesimulacraolmerclandiseor o iesexa tt eiiappeal

I
I
b d b I

preciseyto teextenttlattleycannot euse , utonyexlibit d

l
organsvill d I I
e , s

U t eresurrectiontle idlesexual
is
[
ay!C potentiality l
.
Jl I '
b d
. `
or! evirtue, olprocreation
egoiio us o y is+n ostensive bod vl
.
executed butratlerdi:played. Clor
.
y
l
ose unct

onsre not
vitl '
. .
}, U t issense,isU solidarity
ii:operativity.
tl
,

it_osib_e,tlen,toseakoladillerentuseoltle body, on

iso

t egonousbodysuselessorunusableor ans`InBe and7nne,ii:strumentstlatareoutolu

g
l
tng
I

serorexampe al
tatis broken, andtlus inoperative-l

, amtner
Z h d h
eave teconcretesplereol an en t!f olbeing-at-land l l
`
v eiet eyarealvaysreadylora
7heOloriou:Bod pp
possibleuse, andentertlesplereolrhandenheit,olmereavail-
abilityvitlnoaim.Jlis,lovever, does notimplyanotleruselor
tleinstrument, itsimplysuggestsitsbeingpresentoutsideolany
possibleuse,vlicltleplilosoplerlikensto analienatedconcep-
tionolBeingtlatisdominantinourday. Iiketloselumaninstru-
mentsscatteredaroundtleleetoltlemelanclolicangelinLrer
`
s
engraving, liketoysabandonedbyclildrenalterplaytime, objects
separatedlromtleirusebecomeenigmaticandevenunnerving. In
tlesamevay, tleeternallyinoperativeorgansintlebodiesoltle
blessedeven iltleyexlibittleprocreativelunctiontlatbelongs
to lumannaturedo notrepresentanotleruse lortloseorgans.
Jleostensivebodyoltleelect, nomatterlov"organic" andreal
itmaybe, isoutsidetlesplereolanypossibleuse.Jlereisperlaps
notlingmoreenigmatic tlanaglorious penis, notling morespec-
traltlanapurelydoxologicalvagina.
:}. Betveen tle years :p:( and ::6 tle plilosopler^llred
Soln-Retlel lived in Maples. Byobservingtle belaviorolnsl-
ermengrapplingvitl tleirlittlemotorboats,anddrivers trying
to start tleir run-dovncars, le cameto lormulate a tleoryol
teclnologytlatlecalledinjest"
}
lilosoplyoltleBroken` ,Phi-
lo:ohiede:Kautten) "^ccordingtoSoln-Retlel,a tlingbegins
tolunctionlor aMeapolitanonlyvlen itis unusable.Bytlisle
meanstlataMeapolitanonlybeginstoreallyuseteclnicalobjects
attle moment vlen tley no longer lunction. ^n intact tling
tlatlunctionsvellonitsovnirritatesMeapolitans,sotleyusually
avoid it. ^nd yet, by sloving a piece olvood intle riglt spot,
orby making a sliglt adjustmentvitl a smackoltle land at
tlerigltmoment,Meapolitansmanagetomaketleirapparatuses
vorkaccordingtotleirdesires

Jlisbelavior, Soln-Retlelcom-
ments, containsaliglerteclnologicalparadigmtlanouicurrent
one. trueteclnologybeginsvlenmanisabletoopposetleblind
andlostileautomatismoltle maclines andlearnslovto move
tlem intounloreseen territoriesand uses, like tlatyoungman on
tlestreet inCaprivlotranslormedabrokenmotorcycle engine
intoadevicetlatmakesvlippedcream.
IOO 7heOloriou:Bod
lnthisexampletheenginecontinuestospin onsomelevelbut
lromtheperspectiveolentirelynevdesiresandnevneeds.lnop-
erativityisnotleltheretoitsovndevicesbutinsteadbecomesthe
opening,theopen-sesame, "thatleadstoanevpossibleusc.
'4. In thegloriousbodyitbecamepossiblelorthehrst timeto
conceive the separation olan organ lrom itsphysiologicallunc-
tion. Butthepossibilityoldiscoveringanotheruseolthebody
vhich this separationallovs ustoglimpsehas remainedunex-
plored. Initsplacevehndglory, understoodas theisolation ol
inoperativityinaspecialsphere.Jheexhibitionoltheorgansepa-
ratedlromitsexerciseortheemptyrepetitionolitslunctionhave
no aim other than theglorihcationolCod`svork, exactlyasthe
arms and insigniasexhibitedbythevictorious general inthe Ro-
mantriumpharethesigisand,atthesametime,theellectuation
olhisglory. JhesexualorgansandtheintestinesoltLeblessedare
onlythe hieroglyphsorthearabesques that divinegloryinscribes
onto itsovn coat olarms.Jhe earthly liturgy, like thecelestial
one,doesnothingotherthanincessantlycaptureinoperativityand
displaceitintothesphereolvorshipadmaioremDeigloriam,lor
thegreaterglory olCod)
I,. Inhistreatise 7he //timatendo{HumanIja tventieth-
centuryFrenchtheologianposesthequestionolvhetheritispos-
sible toattrbutetothebessed thelull exerciseoltheirvegetative
lile. Forunderstandablereasonsheis particularlyinterested inthe
nutritive lacultyoteta: ie:cendi) Heargues thatcorporeal lile
essentiallyconsistsinthelunctionsolvegetativelile.Jheperlect
restitution olcorporeal lile thatvill take place in the resurrec-
tion cannotlailtoentail,therelore,theexerciseolsuchlunctions.
"Indeed,' hevrites, "itseemsreasonablethatthevegetativepoten-
tialitynotonlylailstobeabolished among the elect, butthatin
somemarvelous, mira/iliter]vayitactuallyincreases."'Jhepara-
digmolthis persistence olthe nutritivelunction intheglorious
bodyisthemealthattheresurrected]esussharesvithhisdisciples
,Iuke24:42-43) . Vith their usual innocentpedantrytheologians
7heOloriou:Bod IOI
askthemselvesvhetherthebroiledlshthat]esusatevas also di-
gestedand assimilated andvhether the residues olhisdigestion
vereeventuallyevacuated lromhis body. ^ tradition thatdates
backto Basil olCaesareaandtheFathersoltheLastern Church
albrms thattheloodeaten by]esusduringhislileandalterthe
resurrectionvassocompletelyassimilatedintohisbodythatno
eliminationolitsresiduesvasnecessary.^notheropinion asserts
that in the glorious body olChrist,just as in the bodies olthe
blessed,loodisimmediatelytranslormedintoaspiritualnatureby
means olasortolmiraculousevaporationJhis,hovever,implies
,and^ugustinevasthehrsttodravthisconclusion)thatglorious
bodiesbeginningvith]esus`svhilenotrequiringnutritionol
anykind,maintaininsomevaytheircte:ta:ie:cendi lnasortol
gratuitousact,orakindolsublimesnobbery, theblessedvilleat
anddigesttheirloodvithouthavinganyneedtodoso.
Inreplytotheobjectionthat,sinceexcretion,dea::imilatio) is
asessentialasassimilation, therevill bea conversionolmatter
lrom one lorm to another in the glorious bodyand therelore
also a lorm olcorruption and vileness ,turitudo)-the above-
mentioned theologian alhrms that there is nothing in itsellvile
intheoperationsolnature: '7s nopartolthe human bodyisin
itsellunvorthyolbeingelevatedtothelile olglory,sonoorganic
operation needs to be considered as unvorthyto participatein
suchalile . . . ltisaproductollalse imagination to believethat
ourcorporeallilevouldbemorevorthyolCodtotheextentthat
itdillerslromourpresentcondition. Coddoesnotdestroynatural
lavsbymeans olhissupremegilts, rather,vithhis inellablevis-
dom, hecompletes andperlects these lavs. "'Jhereisaglorious
delecation,vhichtakesplaceonlyinordertoshovtheperlection
olnaturallunctions.Butaslarasitspossibleuseisconcerned, the
theologiansremainsilent.
i6. Cloryis nothing other than the separation olinoperativ-
ityintoa specialsphere. that olvorship orliturgy In thisvay
vhatvas merelya threshold thatgranted access to a nevuscis
translormedintoapermanentcondition.^nevuselor thebody
IOz 7hcOlortou:Bod
is thuspossibleonlyilitvrests theinopeiativelunctionlromits
separation, onlyilitsucceeds in bringingtogether vithin asin-
gleplace and inasinglegesture bothexercise and inopetativity,
economicbodyandglorious body, lunctionand its suspension
Ihysiologicallunctioi,inoperativity,andnevuseallpersistinthe
body'ssinglebeld oltension, a heldlromvhich theycannotbe
separated.Jhis isbecauseinoperativityis not inert, on thecon-
trary,itallovstheveiypotentialitythathasmanilesteditsellinthe
acttoappear. Itisnotpotentialitythatisdeactivated in inopera-
tivitybutonlytheaimsandmodalitiesintovhichitsexercisehad
been inscribed and separated

^nd it isthispotentialitythatcan
novbecomethe organolanevpossible use, theorganolabody
vhoseorganicityhasbeensuspendedandiendeiedinoperative.
Jo useabody,andtomakeitserveasaninstrumentlorapar-
ticularpurpose, are not thesamething. Morareve dealing here
vith asimple and insipidabsenceolapurpose,vhich olten leads
to a conlusion olethics and beauty. Rather, atstake here is the
renderinginoperativeolanyactivity directed tovard an end, in
ordertothendisposeittovarda nevusc,onethatdoesnotabol-
ish the oldusebutpersists initandexhibits it.Jhisisprecisely
vhatamorousdesireandso-called perversionachieveeverytime
they use theoigans olthe nutritive and reproductive lunctions
andtun themintheveryactolusingthemavaylrom their
physiologicalmeaning,tovardanevandmorehumanoperation.
rconsiderthe dancer, asheorsheundoesanddisorganizesthe
economyolcorporealmovementstothenrediscoverthem,atonce
intactandtranshgured, inthechoreography
Jhe naked, simplehuman body is notdisplaced here into a
higher and nobler reality, instead, liberated lrom the vitchcralt
that once separated it lromitsell, it is as ilthis body vere nov
abletogainaccess toitsovntruth lorthebrsttime. In thisvay
themouth truly becomesamouthonlyas it is abouttobekissed:
themostintimateandprivatepartsbecomeaplacelorshareduse
andpleasure,habitualgesturesbecometheillegibleviitingvhose
hiddenmeaningthe dancerdecipherslor all. Insolaras anorgan
andanobjecthavepotentiality, theiruse canneverbe individual
7hcOlortousBod O
andprivatebutonlycommon

^ndjustas,accrding t Benja-
min,thesexuallulbllmentthatrendersthebodymoperativesevers
the bondthatties mantonature,so the bodythatcontemplates
andexhibits its potentialitythrough itsgestures enters

asecond,
hnal natute (vhich is nothingother thanthetruth olttslormer
nature)Jhegloriousbodyisnotsomeotherbody,moreagileand
beautilul,moreluminousandspiritual, itisthebodyttselIatthe
momentvheninoperativityremovesthespelllromitandopensit
uptoanevpossiblecommon use.

Hunger of an Ox: Considerations on
the Sabbath, the Feast, and
Inoperativity
.Jhatthereis aspecialrelationshipbetveentheleastandin-
operativityis evidentin the|evishSabbath' Jheleastdaypar
excellenceolthe]evslorvhomitistheparadigmollaithyc:od
ha-cmunah) andH some vaythearchetype lorevery day olcel-
ebrationhndstts theological patadigminthelactthatitis not
thevorkolcreation,butratherthecessation olallvorkthatis
declaredsacred.
On the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and on
the seventh day he ceased from all his work. God blessed the seventh
day and consecrated it, because on this day he ceased from all the
work of his creation. (Gen. 2:2-3)
Remember the Sabbath day to sanctif it. For six days you shall labor
and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord
your God. (Exod. zo:-io)
Jhecondition olthe|evs duringthecelebrationoltheSabbath
is thus called mcnuchah(in theCreekoltheSeptuagintand ol
Ihilo,

anaau:t:orkataau:i:), thatistosay, inoperativity Jhis

condttton does ot concern only humans, rather, it is ajoyous
and
,
er_ect reality d

;at dehnes the veryessenceolCod ,"Cnly

Cod, Ihilovrtes, IS truly an moperative betng . . JheSab-
bath,vhichmeansinoperativity, isCod'sSabbath') Vhen|eho-
16q
Hungcro{anOx
o;
vah evokestheobjectoleschatologicalavaitingintheIsalms, he
says olthe impiousthat "theyshall not enterintomyinoperativ-
ity` (Is. p;. :).
^sa resultthe rabbinical traditionhasdevoted itsell(vith its
usual meticulousness) todebningthe types olvork that are not
permissible during the Sabbath.Jhe Mi:hnahlists thirty-nine
suchactivities ,mc/chot)lromvhich]evsmusttakeeverycareto
abstain. lromreapingandsovingto bakingandkneading,lrom
veavingandunravelingthreadstotanninghides,lromvritingto
lightingbres, lromcarryingthingsto untyingknots.^sa matter
ollact, according to theextensiveinterpretation oltheoral tradi-
tion, the mclachotcoincide vith the entire sphere ollabor and
productiveactivity.
z.Jhisdoes notmean thathumanbeings mustabstainlromev-
erysortolactivityduringthe celebrationolthe SabbathJhe de-
cisivequestionisvhethertheactivityaims tovardproductionIn-
deed,accordingtothe]evishtradition,anactolpuredestruction
thathasnoconstructiveimplicationdoes notconstitute mc/chah
and is notconsidereda transgression olthe Sabbath repose (lor
thisreasonlestivebehaviors, even beyond]udaism, olten involve
ajoyous and, at times even violent, exercise oldestruction and
squandering).^ndso,illightinghresandcookingareprohibited,
thespiritolmcnuchahnonethelessbnds aparticularexpressionin
theconsumptionolmealsanactivitytovhich,asvithanyleast
day, vegive averyspecialattention and care (the Sabbathcon-
sistsolatleastthreelestivemeals). Cenerallyspeaking,theentire
sphere ollicit behaviors and activitieslrom the mostcommon
everydaygesturestohymnsolcelebrationandpraiseisinvested
viththatindebnableemotivetonalitythatvecall"lestiveness

In
the]udeo-Christian tradition thisparticularmodeolshareddoing
and living isexpressedin the commandment(vhosesignihcance
veseemtohavecompletelylorgotten inourday)tosancti[the
leasts."`Jheinoperativitythat dehnes theleastisnotmereinertia
orabstention,itis,rather,asanctihcation,thatistosay, aparticu-
larmodalityolactingandliving.
O Hungcro{anOx
}. Despitethcfaintairofnostalgiathatstillsurroundsthcfeast
day, it is all too
.
obvioas that itcannotbecxpcticnccd todaycn
ttreyingoodfaith.lnhisspiritKc:enyicomparcdthclossoffcs-
tivityto thcconditionofapcrsonwhowantstodanccbutcanno
longcrhcarthcmusic.Wc continuctopcrformthcsamcgcsturcs
our grandparcntstaug|

us-toabstainmorc orlcss complctcly

fromlabor,toprcparcwithmorcorlcsscarcthcChristmasturkcy
or thcLasterlamb, tosmilc,givcgifts, andsing-but in rcality
'C :

o longcrhcarthcmusic,wcnolongcrknowhowto 'sanc-
tif
.
Andyctwcarcnotablctogivcup ourcclcbrations,sowc
cont

nucto pursuc

oncvcrypossiblcoccasion ,cvcnbcyondthc
ofhcialholidays) thispcculiarandlost-modalityofactingand
livingthatwccall'cec|rating"Wc insistondancing,makingup
forthclossofmus:cwiththcnoiscofdiscosandloudspcakcrs,wc
c

on

uucto squandcranddcstroycvcn,andincrcasinglyoftcn,
me itsef-thoughwc arcno longcrablc torcach mcnuchah, thc
simplc,butforusu.practicable,inopcrativitythatcouldaloncrc-
storcmcaningtothcfcast. Butwhyisinopcrativitysodifhcultand
soinac

csstblcforus?Andwhatisthisattributcofhumanliving
andact::.gthatwccallfcstivcncss?
q. ln his ConititalQuc:tton:llutarch rclatcs havingwitncsscd
atChcroncaa fcastcal|cd cxpulsion ofbulimia." 'Thcrcisan
anccstral fcast.'hc

r.tcs, "

c|cbratcdbythcarchonatthcpublic
altarandbyall;hcc:tt

cnsU thcirownhomcs.ltiscallcd'cxpul-
sion ofbulimia _/ou/imou cxcla:t: .Thcychascawayfromthcir
homcsoncofthcirslavcs bystrikinghimwithastaffmadcfrom
thcchastctrcc,whilcsheuting. 'outwith bulimia, inwithwcalth
andhcalth '

`oultmo:mcans in Grcck 'hungcrofan ox."llu-

archuformsusthatasimilarfcastalsocxistcdatSmirnc,whcrc
ii. ordcrtochascawaythc /ou/ro:tt:,'catinglikcanox"),ablack
bullwassacrhccdcomp|ctcwithitscntircskin.
To undcrstandwhatwastrulyatstakc inthcscfcasts, itishrst
ncccssarytofrcconcsclf!romthcfalscassumptionthatthcscwcrc
att

mptstopropitiatcthcgods in ordcrtoachicvcmatcrialpros
pcttyandabundanccoffood.Thatthis hasnothingatall to do
Hungcro{anDx
io,
withthcmcaningofthcabovcfcasts.sprovcdbcyondalldoubt
bythcfactthatwhatischascdawayisnothungcrandfa

t|.cbut
rathcrthc"hungcrofanox".thcbcasts'continuou

andinsauablc
cating,symbolizcdbythcox,withitsslowandun:i.tcrruptcdru-
mination)
Chasingawaythc'bulimic"slavcmcans

thc,cxp

l-
lingaccrtainform ofcating,dcvoutingorengo

gt:.glkcwild
bcastsinordcrtosatiatcahungcrthatisbydchniuontttsauablc),
andthusclcaringaspaccforanothcrmodalityofcatin

,onct|at
ishumanandfcstivc,oncthatcanbcginonlyonccthc hungcrof
anox"hasbccncxpcllcd,onccthcbulimiahasbccnrcndcrcdU
opcrativcandsanctihcd.Lating,inthisrcspcct,is

tamc/chah,
anactivitydircctcdtowardanaim,butaninopcratvityandmcou-
chah,aSabbathofnourishmcnt.
,. lnmodcrnlanguagcsthcGrccktcrmforthch

ngcrofanox
hasbccnprcscrvcdinmcdicaltcrminology,whcrcithascomcto
dcsignatcancatingdisordcrthat,sin:cthccndofthci,,os,has
bccomccommoninopulcntsocictics.Thcsymptomologyofth:s
disordcr,whichappcarsattimcsinconncctionwithitssy

mctri-
cal oppositc,anorcxiancrvosa) ischaractcrizcd by

rccurtn

or-
gicsofcating,bythcscnsationoflosingcontrolduringthcbugc,
andbyinduccdvomitingimmcdiatclyaftcrthcbulimiccp:sodc.
Latingdisordcrs,whichcomcto bcsporadicallyobscrvcdi

thc
sccondhalfofthcninctccnthccntury, acquircthccharactctst:cs
ofancpidcmiconlyinourtimc.Yct:thasbccnnotcdthat,i nthc
rcligioussphcrc,thcscdisordcrshndthcirprccu

sors ttuafast-
ing,thc mcdicval'anorcxicsaints") ,aswcllasH thcopositcof
ritualfasting.banquctsthatarclinkcdtofcasts,thcLnglishphrasc
'catingbingcs,"which thcDSMuscstodchncbulimiccp:sodcs,
originallyrcfcrrcdtocxccssivccatingduringfcstivccclcbrations,
andthcrcarccclcbrations,suchasRamadan,thatsccmtoconsist
ofapurcandsimplcritualaltcrnationbctwccnanorcxiaandbuli-
mia,fastingandfcasting).
.
lrom thispcrspcctivcitis possiblctovicwbulimiancrvosaas
linkcdinsomcfashiontoitscponymousfcstivaldcscribcdbyllu-
tarch.|ustas thcslavc, chascdawayfrom thchomcwithastaff
io8 Hungcro{anOx
madelromthechastetree,personihedwithhisownbodythe hun-
gerolanoxakindolhungerthathadtoberemovedlromthe
city in order to makewaylor lestiveeatingso bulimics, with
theirinsatiableappetite,livein theirverylesh the hungerolan
oxthathasbecomeimpossibletoexpellromthecit. ltenobese,
insecure, incapableolsell-control,andlorthisreason ,unlike the
anorexic) subjected to the condemnationolsociety, the bulimic
istheuseless scapegoatlortheimpossibilityolan authenticles-
tive behavior in our timethe unusable residue ola puri|ing
ceremony, themeaningolwhichhasbeenlosttocontemporary
society

6. Jhere is, howeveran aspect olthe bulimic

`
s behavior that
seems to attest,atleast inpart, to the memoryolacatharticde-
mand lamrelerringtovomiting,anactthatthebulimicperlorms
eithermechanically, byinsertingtwohngersdownthethroat,orby
takingemeticsandpurgatives,itispreciselythislatterpracticethat
can put apatient`s lile at risk, as inthe lamouscaseolthesinger
KarenCarpenter, who ciedas aresultolabusingemetics) From
theveryhrststudiesonbulimia,therecoursetovomitinghasbeen
considered an integral part olthe diagnosis, even though asmall
percentage olbulimics ,around 6 percent) do not resort to this
practice

Attributingthissell-willednauseatoapreoccupationwith
gainingweight,chielyamonglemalepatients)doesnotseemasat-
islactoryexplanation. lnreality, bythrowingup whatwas eaten a
momentpriorduringthebinge,bulimicsseem toundoandrender
inoperative their hungerolanox, thereby in some waypuri[ing
themselves olit Fora momenteven ilall alone, andwith the
absolute incomprehensionolother human beings, intheeyesol
whomvomitingseemsevenmorereproachablethanbinge-eating-
thebulimicseemsto unconsciouslytakeonthecatharticlunction
thattheslavehappilyperormedlorthecitizensolCheronea,andit
ispreciselyinrelationtothisregulatedalternationolexcessiveeating
andvomiting,sinandexpiation,thatinabooksignihcantlyentitled
Rc:on:t//Bultmta, theauthorcouldclaim tohavepracticedbuli-
mia"consciouslyandsuccesslully" loragoodnumberolyears).
Hungcro{anOx iop
;. Animalvoracityandhumandining,which ritualbehaviors
necessarilyrepresentas two distinctmoiuents, are in reality in-
separable. llatSmirnetheexpulsionolthe/ou/ro:tt:,oleating
like anox) coincidedwith thesacriIce oltheox and the ritual
meal,soalsoatCheroneathesacrihce ,Ilutarchcallsit th:ta)
insolaras itwas lollowed by apublicbanquetseemsessentially
to have consisted olthehuntolthe /oultmo:, that is tosay, ol
renderinginoperativethehungerolanoxthatundeniablyoccurs
inthehumanbodyitsell. ln asimilarmanner itisasilthebulimic
patientvomitingloodimmediatelyalter havingswallowed it,
almostwithoutrealizingitwere reallyvomitinganddevouring
atthe sametime, vomiting and renderinginoperative thesame
animalistichunger.
Jhisinterminglingbetweenanimalandman,betweenthehun-
gerolanoxandlestivenourishment,containsapreciousteaching
about the relationship between inoperativityandtheleast that I
haveproposedtomake intelligible.lnoperativity ,this,atleast, is
the hypothesis that l intendtosuggest) isneitheraconsequence
noraprecondition,theabstentionlromlabor)oltheleastdaybut
coincideswithlestiveness itsellinthesense that it consists pre-
cisely inneutralizingand rendering inoperative humangestures,
actions, andworks, which inturncan becomelestiveonlyin this
way ,celebrating r]:ta , inthis sense, literallyinvolveskilling
jrc /a]:taJ , consuming, deactivating, andhnally, eliminating
something)
.Jhatthe Sabbaththateveryleastis notsimplyadayol
reposethatisaddedtotheworkweek,asourcalendarswouldhave
it), butsignihes a special time and aspecial activity, is implicit
in theverynarration olCenesis, where repose and completion
olworkcoincideontheseventhday ,"on theseventhday Cod
hnished the workthathehaddone, and ontheseventhdayhe
ceasedlromallhiswork' ) . Ireciselyinordertounderlinetheim-
mediatecontinuityand, atthesametime, theheterogeneity
between workandrepose, the authorolthecommentaryknown
as Ocnc:t:Ra//ahwrites. "Man ollesh and blood, who knows
O Hungero{anOx
notlstmes,lsmoments, andlslours, takessometlnglrom
prolanettmeandaddsttosacredtme,buttleHolyCne,blessed
be ls name,vlo knovs ls tmes, ls moments, and ls lours,
entered tle Sabbatl by alar'sbreadtl. "`^nd tsn tlesame
sense tlat one mustread tleasserton olanotler commentator
accordngtovlcl"tlepreceptoltleSabbatlsequvalenttoal.
tlepreceptsoltleJoral,"andtlattleobservanceoltleSabbatl
"brngsabouttlecomngoltleMessal."^lltlsmeanstlattle
reposeoltleSabbatls notasmpleabstenton, unrelatedtotle
preceptsandactonsoltleotlerdays oltleveek,tcorresponds,
ratler, totleperlecttullllmentoltlecommandments,tlecom-
ngoltleMessalsgnlestledelntvelullllmentoltleJoral
ts becomngnoperatve). !or tls reason tlerabbncaltradto
seestleSabbatlasasmallpartoltlemessanckngdom andan
antcpatonolt.JleJalmudexpressesvtltsusualbluntness
tlsessentalknslp betveen tleSabbatl and tle olamha//ah
tle tmeto come. "Jlree tlngsantcpate tle tmetocome. tl
sun, tleSabbatl,andta:hmi:havordtlatsgnlesetlersexual
unonordelecaton|-
Hovslouldveuncerstand,tlen,tlerelatonslpolproxmty
andalmostrecprocalmmanencebetveenSabbatl,vork,andn-
operatvty:I nlscommentaryonCeness,Rasllarkensbackto
atradtonaccordngtovlclevenontleSabbatlsometlngvas
created.

7ltertlesxdaysolcreaton,vlatvasstllmssnglrom
tleutitverse`Menuchah jnoperatvty, rest|.JleSabbatl came,
tle

enuchahcame,andtleunversevascomplete."vennop-
eratrvttybelongsto creaton, tsavorkolCod Buttsavery
specalvork,as tvere,vlclconsstsn renderngnoperatve,n
puttmgtorestall tleotlervorks Rosenzvegexpressestlslet-
erogeneouscontgutybetveentleSabbatlandcreatonvlenle
vrtestlattsatoncebotltleleastolcreatonandtleleasiol
redempton or, moreprecsely, tlatntleSabbatlvecelebratea
creatontlatvasdestnedlor redempton ,tlats,lornoperatv-
ity)lromtleverybegnnng
y. Jleleastdays not delned byvlat s not done n t but
Hungero{ao Ox

nsteadbytlelacttlatvlatsdonevlcl ntsellsnotun-
lkevlatsaccomplsledeverydaybecomesundone,rendered
noperatve, lberated and suspendedlrom ts "economy," lrom
tlereasonsandamstlatdelnetcurngtleveekdays ,andnot
dong, ntls sense, sonlyan extreme case
'
ltlss

spenson).
Iloneeats, t s notdone lortlesakeolbemg led, ilonegets
dtessed, ts not donelortlesakeolbengcoveredup or takng
slelterlromtlecold, lonevakes up, ts not donelortlesake
olvorkng,lonevalks,tsnotdonelortlesakeolgongsome-
place,lonespeaks,tsnot done lortlesakeolcommunicaung
nlormaton, loneexclanges objects, t s not donelortlesake
olsellrgorbuyng.
Lveryleastdaynvolves, nsomemeasure,tls elementolsus-
pensonandbegnsprmarlybytenderngnoperatvetle,orks
olmen. In tle Sclan least oltledead descrbed by Iue, tle
dead ,or an oldvomancalledStrna, lrom:trena, aIatn name
lortleglts exclanged durngtlelestvtesoltle begnnng ol
tle year) steal goodslromtalors, merclants,andbakers to
.
tlen
bestovtlemonclldren ,sometlngsmlartotlslappens! all
leaststlatnvolveglts,lkeHalloveen,vleretledeadaremper-
sonatedbyclldten). Iresents,glts, andtoysareobjectsvtluse
and exclange value tlatarerendered noperatve, vrested lrom
tlereconomy. In every carnvalesqueleast, suclastleRoman
saturnala, exstngsocalrelatonsaresuspendedOI nverted. not
onlydoslavescommandtlermasters, butsoveregnty s placed
ntlelandsolamock-kng(:atua/iciu:rince:) vlotakestle
placeoltlelegtmatekng

In tlsvaytleleastreveals tsellto
be lrst and loremosta deactvaton olexstngvalues and pov-
ers. "Jlere are no ancentlcastsvitloutdance," vrtes Iucan,
butvlatsdanceotlertlantlelberatonoltlebodylrom ts
utltaranmovements, tleexlbtonolgesturesn tlerpure n-
operatvty:" ^nd vlatare masksvlcl play a role n varous
vays n tleleasts olmanypeopleslnot, lrstandloremost,a
neutralzatonoltlelace:
O. Jls doesnot mean tlattlelumanactvtestlattleleast
TI2 Hungcro{anOx
hassuspended andrendered inoperativearenecessarilyseparated
andtiansportedintoamoreelevatedandsolemnsphere. Itispos-
sible,inlact,thatthisseparationoltheleastintothesacredsphere,
which certainlycame aboutata certain point,was the worlol
theChurch andtheclergy. Ve should,perhaps, trytoinvertthe
lamiliarchronologyaccordingtowhich ieligiousphenomenaare
placed atthe origin, only to besecularized lateron, and instead
hypothesizethatwhatcomeshrstisthemomentinwhichhuman
activitiesaresimplyneutralized andrendered inoperativeduring
theleastVhatwecall"religion"(atermthat,initscurrentmean-
ing,ismissinglromancientculture)intervenesatthatmomentby
capturingtheleastinaseparatesphere.Icvi-Strauss'shypothesis
whichreadsthelundamental concepts bywhiclwe usuallythink
olreligion(mana, uakan,orcnda, ta/oo, andthelike) asexcessive
signibersthatareinthemselvesempty, and preciselylorthisreason
can be laden with anysortolsymbolic contentgains, lromthis
petspective,anevenwidermeaning. Signiherswith"zerosymbolic
value
,,
maycorrespondto humanactionsandobjectsthattheleast
emptiedoutandrenderedinoperativeandthatreligionthencame
toseparateandrecodi(throughitsceremonialapparatus '
^tanyrate, whetherlestive inoperativityprecedes religionor
results lromtheprolanationolitsapparatuses, whatisessential
hereisadimensionolpraxis inwhich simple, quotidianhuman
activitiesareneitheinegatednorabolishedbutsuspendedandren-
deied inoperative in order to be exhibited, assuch, in a lestive
manner.Jhus, theprocessionandthedanceexhibitandtranslorm
the simplegaitolahumanbodywalking, thegilt reveals an un-
expected possibilitywithin the productsoleconomyandlabor,
andthelestivemealrenewsandtransbguresthehungerolanox.
Jheaimis nottoiendertheseactivitiessacredanduntouchable
but,onthecontrary, toopenthemtoanewormoreancient-
possible use in thespirit olthe SabbathJhe bluntand deiisive
languageoltheJalmudwhichspeaks inthesame breatholthe
Sabbath andsexualunionordelecation)asapledgeolthetimeto
come-demonstrateshereits utterseriousness
1L The Last Chapter in the History
of the World
In the marionette, or in God.
-Heinrich von Kleist, " The Puppet Theatre"

h h donotknowthingsarejustasimportant
Jheways mw ic we

k
and erha sevenmoreimportant)astheways inwhr

hwe

ow
[
l
[
l otknowingcarelessness, mattentron,
them.JerearewaysO n

l h tlead toclumsinessanduglriess, butthereare
iorgettrnesst a
,
h
othersthe unsellconsciousness olKleists young man,t e en-
.
l inlantwhosecompletenesswenever
chantmg:rczzaturaC an

l d

ntheonehand,repressionisthenamepsyc O
trreO a miring.
d

ayolnotknowinthatoltenpro ucesmauspi-
anaysisgivestoa` O
h
.

thel`rle oltheonewhodoesnotknow. But,ont e
ciouse ectsm .
h ` l
h h d llbeautilulawomanwhosemindseems appry
ot er an

weca
Jh
l th therbodyisperlectlyattunedto ereare,
unawareO asecret a

I
then,successlulwaysolnotknowingonesell,andbeautyisoneO
I
bl ` act thattheway in whichwe are able to
them t is [
ossi e, ,
bl

l hatdebnestherankolwhatwearea e
beignorantis preciseyw
d

k d thatthearticulation olazoneolnonknowle geis

to now an
ch l ll
h d`

datthesametime the tou stoneo a our

t econ rtronan

l h d
knowledge. Ilthisistrue, then a cataloguc rat:onncC t emo

s
d
l

ewouldbej

ustas uselul as thesystematic

an typesO ignoranc

classihcationolthesciences on whichwebase the transmission

l l d ^ndyet while humans have reLected lorcentu-
o uowe ge.
,

k l d

h
i mprove andensuretheir nowe ge,we
neson owtopreserve,
,

L `
lackeventheelementaryprinciplesolan artolignorance
,
prs-
d h ` lmethod investigateandestablish the
temologyan t escienceO
11j
II@ hcJa:! Cha[!crtn !hc1t:!ot o!hc vr!
condtons,patadgms, andstatutes olknowledge,buttleres no
recpelorartculatngazoneolnonknowledge. lndeed,artculat-
ngazoneolnonknowledgedoesnotmeansmplynotknowng;
ts not onlya queston ollackordelect. lt means, on tle con-
trary,mantanngone:ellntlergltrelatonslpwtlgnorance,
allowngan absence ollnowledge to gude and accompanyour
gestures, lettngastubbornslenceclearlyrespondlorourwords.
r, to useanobsoletevocabulary, wecouldsaytlatwlatsmost
ntmate and nourslngdoes not take tlelormolscence and
dogmabutolgraceandtestmony.Jleartollvng s, n tls
sense, tlecapactytokeepourselvesnlarmonous relatonslp
wtltlatwlclescapesus
Lvenknowledge, ntle lnalanalyss, mantansarelatonslp
wtl gnorance. But tdoesso tlrougl represson or, n an even
moreellectveand potentway, presupposton Jle unknown s
tlatwlclknowledgepresupposesastleunexploredcountryto
be conquered, the unconscous s tle darkness nto wlcl con-
scousnesswlllavetocarrytslgltlnbotlcasessometlnggets
separated n order to tlen be permeatedandattaned.Jle rela-
tonslp wtl azone olnonknowledge, on tle otlerland,keeps
watcl over tlszoneso tlat t wIl remanas s. Jls sdonenot
byexaltngtsdarknes: ,asnmystcsm), notbyglor|ng tle
arcane,asnlturgy),aidnotevenbylllngtwtlplantasms,as
npsycloanalyss).^tssueleres notasecretdoctrneoralgler
scence, noraknowledgetlatwedo not know. Ratler, tspos-
sbletlattlezoneolnonknowledgedoesnotreallycontanany-
tlngspecalatall, tlatlonecouldlooknsdeolt, onewould
onlyglmpsetloughtlssnotcertananoldandabandoned
sled,onlyglmpsetlougltlssnotcleartlepetulantlntng
olalttlegrlnvtngustoplay. Ierlapsazoneolnonknowledge
does notexstatall;perlaps onlytsgesturesexst.^sIlest un-
derstoodsowell,tlerelatonslpwtlazoneolnonluowledges
adance.
Notes
Cha[!cr 1
1. 1hc Jo:ca./a:htn, trans. ]. Neusner (New York: Ktav, 1979), 201.
M h mibn 'Abd aI-Karim Shahrastani, Ltvrc dc: rclt_tcn: ct
. u
l
dc: :crtc:,ol. 7) trans. ]. ]olivet and G. Monnot (Paris: Peeters Unesco,
199))
'
1)0-)1.
3. ShahrastanI, Lvrcdc: rcL_ion:ctde: :crtc:, 13I.
q. Dante Alighieri, Lavta nuova, trans. B. Reynolds (London: Pen-
guin, 1969), 7
+
.
. _
. Friedrich Hblderlin, Wcr/c undr1c, vol. 2, ed. Belssnel and ].
Schmidt (Frankfurt: Insd, 1969), 880.
Cha[!cr.
1. This essay takes up a text prepared for the inaugural lecture of a
course in Theoretical Philosophy, 2006-7, the Faculty of Arts and De
sign, the University IUAV of Venice,
+ :
. Friedrich Nietzsche, "On the Uses and Abuses of HIstory to Life,
in UntincI 1cdtation:, trans. R. ]. Hollingdale (Cambridge, UK:
Cambridge University Press, 1997), 60.
. .
3, Translators' note: Here and elsewhere Agamben uses nanncqumtn
the less familiar sense of "living fashion model," though the more com-
mon sense of "dummy" is quite suggestive,
.
q. See Walter Benjamin, 1hc Hrradc: 1roc

t, t

ans

H. Erland and
K. McLaughlin (Cambridge, M: Harvard Ul1lvers1ty I ress, 1999) , 66.
11
tt6
Aotcs
Chatcr,
1. Franz Kafka, 1lc 7tal, trans. B. Mitchell (New York Sch k
1998), 3.
.
oc en,
2. Davide Stimilli, "Kafka's Sho h d "
at the Warburg Institute in lond
rt
M
an , a conference paper delivere
d
, on, ay 20, 2006
3 Kafka, 1lc !tal, 14: "I can
'
t re orr that
"
anythio
?
, Or more accurately, I don't kow i f yo

,
een accused
of
4 Ibid., 224.
.
5 Franz Kafka, 1lc Orcat Vullo[Cl d
.
Muir and E. Muir (London'
M S l
tnaan Ctlcr:crc:, trans.
6 Kafka 1 (
+ . ec <er, 1933), 245-46.
.
, c rta 213.
7 Ibid., 94-
8. Franz Kafka 1l C l
8)
, c a:t c, trans. M. Harman (New York- S h k
2
. c oc
9 Kafa, 1lc 1ta/ 106.
10. Franz Kafka, carv:t1atlcr tortc: d Cl
. .
Kaiser and E. Wilkins (New Y I S
'
h k
an t cr Wttm_:, trans. E.
F
or . c oc en, 1954) 308
II. [anz Kafka L t

S
_ ctcr: ro cna trans B h (N chockeo, 1990), 214-15.
'
. . oe m cw York:
12. Ibid., 201.
13 Ibid., I98.
14. Franz Kafka, 1lc Conlct
.
d
Schocken, 1988), 156.
torc:, e . N. Glalzer (New York:
r5 Ibid+ )50.
r6. Ibid., 145.
17 Ibid., 165.
18. Kafka, Tlc1rtal 226.
19 Ibid., 230.
20. Ibid.
21. Ibid., 213.
22. Kafka, carc:t1atlcr, 87.
23 Kafka, 1lc 1ta/ 215.
24- Ibid., 215, 217.
25 Ibid., 216.
26. HygilluS Gromaticus "D I' " b
.

'
e ImItI us cOnstltue d' "
.
cn dcr rnt:clcn 1/d
I
n o In tc
c nc::cr, vo l ed F BI K L h and A. Rudorff
(Berlin'
G R
'
8

)
' '
.
ume,
. ac mann,
, . elmer, I 48 166
27 Kafka, 10cCa:tlc, 8.
, .
28. Ibid., 4.
Aotcs
II)
29 Franz Kafka, 0c tartc: o[!ranz 1aa, vol. ed. M. Brod
(New York: Schocken, I949), 202.
30. Ibid., 202-3.
31. Ibid., 218-19.
32. Kafka, 1lc Cutlc, 59: "The boundaries of our small holdings have
been marked out, everything has been duly registered. "
33. Isidore of Seville, 1lc 1Qnolo_tc: c!:tdrc o[cvtl, ed. S. A.
Barney and V ].Lewis (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press,
2007), 3II.
34. Ibid.
35. Ibid., 172.
Chatcr4
I. Manfredo Tafuri, "Le forme del tempo: Venezia e ia modernita,"
in Unvcr:tta !UHVdt nczta, nau_urztontarrantrlc, !'!.0
(Venice: IUAV, 2006).
2. S0ren Kierkegaard, Vor|: o[Lovc, trans. H. V Hong (Princeton,
Nl: Ptinceron University Press, 1995), 358.
ChatcrQ
I. Translators' note: We follow here Daniel Heller-Roazen's more pre
cise but less natural renditions of otcnzaas "potentiality" and notcnza
as "impotemiaHty," though it is helpful to bear i n mind the simpler no
tions of "power" and "powerlessness."
Chatcro
I. Epictetus, 1lc andboo|, trans. N. IWhite (Indianapolis: Hack
ett, 1983), 16.
2. Epictetus, 1lct:rout:c:, trans. R. Dobbin (London: Penguin,
2008), 72.
3. Translators' note: Although Daniel Heller-Roazen's rendering of
nudvttaas "bare life" is certainly warrantable, we translate it hereafter
as "naked life" for reasons that the next chapter will make dear.
Chatcr
1. Erik Peterson, "Theology of Clothes," clcrtton,vol. 7j cd. C. Hast
ings and D. Nicholl (Lndon: Sheed and Watd, 1954), 54-55.
!I
2. Ibid., 56.
3 Ibid., 55.
4 Ibid. , 57-58.
Aote:
5 Saint Jerome, Epistle
64.19; see Jonatha
n Z. Smith, "The Garm
ents of Shame," in Map Is Not Territory (Leiden: Brill, 1978), 17.
6. Saint
Augustine, The Cit of God against the Pagans, ed. R. V Dy son
(Cambri
dge, UK Camb
ridge University
Ptess, 1998), 615.
7 2 Timothy 1:9; Saint
Augustine,
Christian Instruction, in The Pa thers of the
Church:
Auustine, vol. 4, trans. J. J. Gavigan
(New York: CIMA,
1947), 159.
8. Peterson, "Theology of
Clothes," 56-57.
9 "The
gl"acc of God is nothing at all except our own nature with free will" (Saint Augustine,
Foul'
Anti-Pel
agian
W'itings, trans. ]. A. Mourant and V]. Collinge [W"hington, DC: Catholic Un
iversity of America Press, 1992], 154).
ro, Saint
Augustine, The Cit of God against the Pagam, 615.
11. Ibid., 617.
12. Ibid., 624-26.
13 Ibid., 626-27.
14 Ibid., 629.
15 The Gospel According to Thomas, trans. A. GuiIlaumont et at (Leiden: Brill,
2001), 23.
16. Saint
Cyril of Jerusalem,
"Mystagogical Lectures," in The
Wnks of Saint Cyrilof
Jellm, vol. 2, tlans. L. IMcCauley and A. A. SIephenson (Washington,
DC: Catholic University of America Press, 1970),
161-62. 17 Theodore of Mopsuestia;
quoted in Smith, "The Garm
ents of Shame," 19.
18. Quoted in Smith, "The
Garments of Shame," 17.
19 }ean-Paul
Sanre,
Being and
Nothingness: A Phenom
enological Elsay on Ontolog, traIls. H. E. Barnes
(New York: Simon and Schuster, 1992), 506.
20. Ibid., 519.
21. Ibid., 520.
22. Ibid., 519-20.
23 Ibid., 525.
24 Pentateuch
with
Rashis
Commentary: Genesis, ed. A. M. Silber mann (Jerusalem:
Rourledge, 1973), 13.
25 Saint
Augustine, "The Literal Meaning of Genesis," in On Gen esis, Irans. E. HilI (New York: New Ciry Press, 2002), 396-97.
Aote:
26. Aviccnna, Liber de anima, seu, Sextus de natura/ibus, vol. y ed. S.
van Riet (Louvain: Peeters

1972),
.d lteinischen Werke: Die /ateil'- 27 Meister Eckhart, Dle dettsc
Kohlhammer, 1994), 425-26 (Latin ischen Wrke, vol. 3 (Stuttgart. `
Sermon 49)
c l c ative et connaissance de Dieu 28. See Vladimir Lossky, ogle n
chez Maitre Eckhart (Paris: J. Vnn
;
1
p
97
1
3)
'
I1
7
A
n
6
3
r
'
,r'ties " in Selected Writ-
.
.
"G ethe s .. ecttve : 29 Walter Benpmrn, D
W J
.
(Cambridge, M.Har- ings, vol. cd. M. Bullock and M. . ennlllgs
vard University Press, 2004), 351.
30. Ibid.
31. Ibid., 353.
32. Ibid., 355.
. .
June 19 1 Selected Writings, vol. 2, part 33 Walter Benpmrn, MaY-
d d
'
Smith (Cambridge, M. Har- d M W Jenn1l1gs, H. Erlan , an . 2, e . . .
Vard Universit Press, 2005), 480.
1l d P Lucentini d
.
ClavlS 'Ystcae, e . . H rius Augusto unenS1S,
.
34 ono
+
9 4) illustration . (Rome: Edizioni di stona e letteratra,
7
's and Refections, trans. E. 35. Johann Wolfgang von Goet 1e,
SIO
PP
(London: Penguin, 1998), 29.
Chateo
.
Th lgica 5 vols. (Westminster, S . t -[homas AqUinas, Summa eo : 1 am
.
.
8 MD: Chrisrian ClaSSICS, 1981), ) 87.
2. Ibid.
3 Ibid., 2897.
4- Ibid., 2899.
5. Ibid., 2906.
6. Ibid., 2907.
7 Ibid., 2891-92.
8. Ibid., 2882.
ld '"utten (Bremen: Wassmann, 9. Alfred Sohn-Rethel, Das " ea es ar
1990).
.
d B ' I' D fne ultimo humanae vitae (Paris: Beauchesne
JO. ViruS e ID_Ie, e
et ses fls, 1948), 285.
11. Ibid., 293-94-
zO orc:
Cld[rcr
. Translators
'
note: The Italian :taencompasses a broader semantic
feld than any of the comparable English terms: _a:t,_:tiua/ lolida,
arq, or rclcbraton.In this contextfastshould bring to mind a periodic
and ritualistic celebration rather than a sumptuous meal.
2. Philo, "On the Cherubim," in 1lilo, voL 2, trans. H. Colson
and G. H. Whitaker (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1929),
61.
3. Translators' note: The commandment, "Remember the Sabbath
day, to keep it holy" (Exod. 20:8), is rendered in its mnemonic Italian
version as "Ricordari di santifcare Ie feste."
q Plutarch, 1oraua, vol. 8, trans. A. Clement and H. B. HoEeit
(Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, r969), 495-97.
5. Gcnc:i: Kabbal. 1lcudair Conncntui to tlcoo/o[Gcnc:i:: H
/cuHncriran 1an:lation, vol. y trans. J. Neusner (Atlanta: Scholars
Press, 1985), I07.
6. 1lczolar, vol. 4, trans. D. C. Matt (Stanford, CA: Stanford Uni
versity Press, 2007), 504.
7. 1lc 1alnudo[abloniaHnHradcnirConncntm, vol. 1, trans. ]'
Neusner (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1994), 338.
8. cbrcu/n_L:l/dition o[tlcablonian 1alnuJ 1c_ilbl, lrans.
M. Simon (London: Soncino, 1984), 9a.
9. Lucian, "The Dance," in Lurian, vol. 5, trans. A. M. Harmon
(Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1936), 229.
10. Claude Levi-Strauss, 1ntrodurtion totlc Vor/: o[1arrcl1au::,
trans. I Bajer (London: Routledge, 1987), 64.
p. 61
p. 63
p. 66
Credits
6 VB 43 Gagosian Gallery,
Vanessa Beecroft, VB43- 9re,
f G II `
London. 2009 Vanessa Beecroft, Courtesy D a erIa
Lia Rumma CMassimo Minini
Fl
CI iesa di Santa Maria del Carmine, Cappella
orenee"
M
'
I' Adam and Eve in Earthly Paradise,
BrancaCCl aso mo,
. .
i
affresco. With the permission of the ServlZlO Muse
Comunali.
From: 1lcHrto[1cdicualain,H00!200,The
Metropolitan Museum of Art, N.Y. I993
/rul:ionn1atdisc,Mosaic in the Cattedrale
di Monreale, Palermo, Italy, Wikimedia Commons,
anonymous photographer.
d VB 7 Peggy Guggenheim
Vanessa Beecroft, VB4734I. r, 4
f
C II
.
"el,' Ice 2009 Vanessa Beecroft, Courtesy L
o eetlon, v'
. . .
Galleria Lia Rumma CMassimo M1Dlnl
PP
76-
77 C
f the Museum of Natural
History,
University
ourtesy D
I B b' M seo di Storia
of Florence. Photo credit: Sau D am 1 u
Naturale/Firenze
The Helmut Newton Esrate / TDR
pp. 78-79
p. 86
From 1arbarlcr1a_rzinc55, 1990
121