Overview

"Following on from his hit book on the horror of philosophy (In the Dust of This Planet, 2011) and his popular New School course on mysticism, Eugene Thacker has assembled a ""nihilist's devotional."" Comprised of short meditations on the universe's ""looming abyss of indifference,"" Thacker explores the pessimism of a range of philosophers--from the well-known (Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, and Camus), to the lesser-known (Nicholas Chamfort, E.M. Cioran, and Fernando Pessoa). Readers interested in religion will find food for thought in Thacker's handling of a range of Christian apologists--Dostoyevsky, Pascal, Catharine of Sienna--whose pessimism about the world inspires (depresses?) Thacker as much as those with a more atheistic bent. Darkly funny, (""Birth is a metaphysical injury - healing takes time - the span of one's life""), many will find Infinite Resignation a welcome antidote to the exuberant imbecility of our times. ""Scholarly advice for dark times."" -The New Yorker ""Provides a metric ton of misery and a lot of company."" -New York Times ""Probably philosophy's only beach read."" -Vice A 'nihilist's devotional,' this collection of aphorisms, fragments, and observations on philosophy and pessimism offer a raw look at the human condition Dark times lie around us and ahead of us, and what better way to survive the coming Apocolypse than by immersingyourself in some of the greatest thinkers on pessimism, brought together with his own thoughts on the subject by Eugene Thacker, author of the contemporary classic, In the Dust of This Planet. Comprised of aphorisms, fragments, and observations both philosophical and personal, Infinite Resignation traces the contours of pessimism, caught as it often is between a philosophical position and a bad attitude. Reflecting on the universe's ""looming abyss of indifference,"" Thacker explores the pessimism of a range of philosophers, from the well-known (Nietzsche, Schopenhauer, Camus), to the lesser-known (E.M. Cioran, Lev Shestov, Miguel de Unamuno). Readers will find food for thought in Thacker's handling of a range of themes in Christianity and Buddhism, as well as his engagement with literary figures (from Dostoevsky to Thomas Bernhard, Osamu Dazai, and Fernando Pessoa), whose pessimism about the world both inspires and depresses Thacker. By turns melancholic, misanthropic, and darkly funny, Infinite Resignation isa welcome antidote to the exuberant imbecility of our times."

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9781912248193

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Scholarly advice for dark times. --The New Yorker Provides a metric ton of misery and a lot of company. --The New York Times Teeming with aphorisms and hilarious one-liners... probably philosophy's only beach read. --Vice Belongs on the shelf next to the likes of Nietzsche and Schopenhauer... Thacker's voice is quiet, a desperate whisper into the void that is both haunting and heartbreaking. --Into the Void When life gives us lemons, Thacker refuses to make lemonade. Rather he adds lemon juice to the ink pot, and proceeds to write with an acerbic clarity - and touches of black humor - about the predicament of being human. --Dominic Pettman, author of Human Error: Species Being and Media Machines

When life gives us lemons, Thacker refuses to make lemonade. Rather he adds lemon juice to the ink pot, and proceeds to write with an acerbic clarity - and even touches of black humor - about the predicament of being human. Infinite Resignation is an extended and eloquent sigh; not only for the absurd state of things, but also for the misfortune of being able to perceive these in such stark and fluorescent detail. In darkly dwelling with the essential antagonisms of existence, Thacker channels the spirits of Schopenhauer and Cioran, and in doing so, obliges us all to face the profoundly prosaic horror of persisting. -- Dominic Pettman, author of Human Error: Species Being and Media Machines

Author Information

Eugene Thacker is the author of several books, including In the Dust of This Planet. He is Professor at The New School in New York City.

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