Benjamin in Palestine: On the Place and Non-Place of Radical Thought
“Benjamin in Palestine” has three main components, all taking place in Ramallah: an opening event on Dec. 6 at 19:00 at the Khalil Sakakini Cultural Center, a three-day reading workshop on Benjamin’s writings at the International Academy of Art (Dec. 7-9) and an international conference (Dec. 9-11) at Birzeit University and Khalil Sakakini Cultural Center. The conference program includes lectures and presentations by distinguished international scholars from the fields of Benjamin studies and critical theory, among them
- Susan Buck-Morss
- Rebecca Comay
- Slavoj Zizek
- Judith Butler (skype/video)
The reading workshop, which is the heart of this event, will focus on the key texts of Walter Benjamin that speak to the current situation in Palestine and the Middle East. The aim of the workshop is to bring together readers of Benjamin as well as activists working in the context of the Palestinian struggle to discuss and learn with each other. The workshop texts that have been selected include Benjamin’s “Critique of Violence”, “Theses On the Concept of History”, “The Task of the Translator”, “Capitalism as Religion” and the “Kafka” essay.” We encourage all participants to read these (or some of these) texts in preparation of the workshop. We will make these texts available to all participants.
Please find the travel and accommodation information online.
If you want to register as participant, please send an email to benjamininpalestine@gmail.com before Nov. 15, 2015.
Benjamin in Palestine 