Re: A Preface to Transgression

On Sun, 23 Feb 1997, malgosia askanas wrote:

> Date: Sun, 23 Feb 1997 21:14:13 -0500 (EST)
> From: malgosia askanas <ma@xxxxxxxxx>
> To: foucault@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: A Preface to Transgression
>=20
> I have been struggling now for a while with the "Preface to Transgression=
"
> essay in LCP, and would love to discuss it with someone. The problem is
> that I don't even know how to formulate cogent questions about it.
> Let me put forth the folowing as a first attempt. How do you interpret t=
he
> connection drawn in this essay between sexuality and philosophy?
> Between the death of God and the replacement of the dialectical method
> by the transgressive method? Am I even right in ascribing to this essay
> a formulation of something like "the transgressive method of philosophy"?
>=20
> Or maybe I should just ask: what do you-all make of this essay?=20
>=20
>=20
> -malgosia=20
>=20
It may be that Foucault isn't really proposing a transgressive method,=20
but rather a language of transgression. For example, he speaks of "the=20
impossibility of attributing the millenary language of dialectics to the=20
major experience that sexuality forms for us." It is possible, however,=20
to speak of sexuality in the language of transgression because, as=20
Foucault contends, the appearance of sexuality marks the transformation=20
of man as worker into man as one who speaks.=20
The language of transgression is a way of speaking of the way philosophy=
=20
"experiences itself and its limits in language and in this transgression=20
of language which carries it...to the faltering of the speaking=20
subject." In short, a "communication with communication" rather than a =20
philosophical method per se.=20
Then again, it's been a while since I've sat down and read "Preface to=20
Transgression" thoroughly. I just thought I'd flip through it and throw=20
out what I could muster. It is quite likely I have no idea what I am=20
talking about.

=9A~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"A man without God is like a fish=20
without a bicycle."
=09=09- Bob Black
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~






Folow-ups
  • Re: A Preface to Transgression
    • From: Stephane Charitos
  • Replies
    A Preface to Transgression, malgosia askanas
    Partial thread listing: