Slavoj Zizek

A philosopher and cultural critic discusses the diverse ways in which violence is perceived and misperceived in the world, addressing such provocative issues as whether or not capitalism, or even civilization, causes more violence than it prevents, and the inherent violence of globalization, fundamentalism, and language. Original. 30,000 first printing.

Violence

Nicholas Hanemann

Feels sorta like those rappers who try to fit in as many syllables into a line as they can. There's style here, but that rhetorical profile is far more unified than the argument/arguments itself. He doesn't stay on any point long enough to really shake the foundations of what he is questioning, and the case studies don't cohere into anything beyond a set of remarks around the theme. I'm willing to give him another shot for sure, but I just didn't find this one convincing or even intellectually provocative.

Ronas K

I have been reading and re-reading parts of this book for around 3 years now and only just finished it today. At times it’s a cogent socio-political analysis from the late 2000s (it exists firmly within that edgy vaguely leftist space of the 2000s), and at times it’s wholly incomprehensible, it’s Zizek, what do you expect. His conclusion is so detached from the rest of the book, which didn’t annoy me as much as having the entire plot of Jose Saramago’s Seeing spoiled right at the end - a book that I was looking forward to read. That reminds me, make sure to watch all the movies you’ve been meaning to watch before you read the book because Zizek is on a mission to spoil them all with some strange, meaninglessly contrarian and contrived take.

Kasia Chodzinska

Luis Ponce

Slavoj Žižek

Zizek argues that the physical violence we see is often generated by the systemic violence that sustains our political and economic systems. With the help of eminent philosophers like Marx, Engel and Lacan, as well as frequent references to popular culture, he examines the real causes of violent outbreaks like those seen in Israel and Palestine and in terrorist acts around the world. Ultimately, he warns, doing nothing is often the most violent course of action we can take.

Violence

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