Art, Origins, Otherness

William Desmond, Art, Origins, Otherness: Between Philosophy and Art
State University of New York Press | ISBN 079145746X | 2003 | PDF | 2 MB | 319 pages

Art, origins, otherness—but why bring philosophical reflection to bear on these three concerns together? The connection may not be immediately selfevident. The themes of otherness, origin, art may have been a continuing preoccupation in some of my previous works, but what of the matter itself? First, questions concerning origins have marked a set of essential perplexities for philosophy since its beginning. Then, questions about art have contributed to new forms of perplexity, not least since philosophy has taken on new questions about its own tasks, especially since Kant. Finally, questions about otherness have assumed an evident prominence in our time, witnessing to our sense of distance from former, seemingly less self-lacerated practices of philosophy.