Bare life — and the danger of losing it — is not something that unites people, but blinds and separates them. Other human beings, as in the plague described in Alessandro Manzoni’s novel, are now seen solely as possible spreaders of the plague whom one must avoid at all costs and from whom one needs to keep oneself at a distance of at least a meter. The dead — our dead — do not have a right to a funeral and it is not clear what will happen to the bodies of our loved ones. Our neighbor has been cancelled and it is curious that churches remain silent on the subject. What do human relationships become in a country that habituates itself to live in this way for who knows how long? And what is a society that has no value other than survival?
Friday, April 03, 2020
Indeed …
… Giorgio Agamben on coronavirus: “The enemy is not outside, it is within us.” | The Book Haven.
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These are strange times indeed when Frank Wilson links approvingly to a piece by a Marxist philosopher. I'll send you a link to a response to Agamben from Alan Jacobs, a fellow conservative.
ReplyDeleteMy Jesuit mentor taught me not to think in categories. Was I to say, well, this can't be so, It was written by a Marxist philosopher? As for Alan Jacobs, I find myself agreeing with him less and less. Also, I was a McGovern supporter and was classified 1-O by my draft board. Maybe your categorization of me is imprecise.
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