The Work of Mourning
The Work of Mourning is a book written by Jacques Derrida. The book was published in 2003 and is listed under the Literary Criticism category. For readers who want to quickly understand what this title offers, this page gives a clear overview of the book, including its description, author information, page count, ratings, and ISBN details.
The full title of the book is The Work of Mourning. When available, the subtitle is , which gives extra context about the theme, focus, or main idea behind the book. According to the available description, Jacques Derrida is, in the words of the New York Times, “perhaps the world’s most famous philosopher—if not the only famous philosopher.” He often provokes controversy as soon as his name is mentioned. But he also inspires the respect that comes from an illustrious career, and, among many who were his colleagues and peers, he inspired friendship. The Work of Mourning is a collection that honors those friendships in the wake of passing. Gathered here are texts—letters of condolence, memorial essays, eulogies, funeral orations—written after the deaths of well-known figures: Roland Barthes, Paul de Man, Michel Foucault, Louis Althusser, Edmond Jabès, Louis Marin, Sarah Kofman, Gilles Deleuze, Emmanuel Levinas, Jean-François Lyotard, Max Loreau, Jean-Marie Benoist, Joseph Riddel, and Michel Servière. With his words, Derrida bears witness to the singularity of a friendship and to the absolute uniqueness of each relationship. In each case, he is acutely aware of the questions of tact, taste, and ethical responsibility involved in speaking of the dead—the risks of using the occasion for one’s own purposes, political calculation, personal vendetta, and the expiation of guilt. More than a collection of memorial addresses, this volume sheds light not only on Derrida’s relation to some of the most prominent French thinkers of the past quarter century but also on some of the most important themes of Derrida’s entire oeuvre-mourning, the “gift of death,” time, memory, and friendship itself. “In his rapt attention to his subjects’ work and their influence upon him, the book also offers a hesitant and tangential retelling of Derrida’s own life in French philosophical history. There are illuminating and playful anecdotes—how Lyotard led Derrida to begin using a word-processor; how Paul de Man talked knowledgeably of jazz with Derrida’s son. Anyone who still thinks that Derrida is a facetious punster will find such resentful prejudice unable to survive a reading of this beautiful work.”—Steven Poole, Guardian “Strikingly simpa meditations on friendship, on shared vocations and avocations and on philosophy and history.”—Publishers Weekly
This book has 272 pages, making it useful for readers who want to know the approximate length before starting. It has an average rating of 4.22, based on 163 ratings, which can help readers understand how other people have responded to it.
For cataloging and reference purposes, the ISBN-13 is 9780226142814, while the ISBN-10 is 0226142817. These numbers are helpful when searching for the exact edition of the book online, in libraries, or in bookstores.
The book cover image can be viewed here: http://books.google.com/books/content?id=LZkLGvApTZkC&printsec=frontcover&img=1&zoom=1&edge=curl&source=gbs_api.
Overall, The Work of Mourning by Jacques Derrida is a title that may interest readers looking for books in Literary Criticism. Whether you are researching new books, comparing editions, or building a reading list, this page gives you the most important details in one place.
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