Breathing the Aura -- The Holy, the Sober Breath Export

@article{citeulike:4061308, abstract = {Benjamin's famous description of the aura in the `Small History of Photography' starts: `What is aura? A strange texture of space and time...', and ends with: `That means breathing the aura of these mountains and this branch'. Until now, the meaning of `breathing' has hardly been subject to interpretation. In this article it will be shown that Benjamin refers to Goethe's `diastole/systole', and to Holderlin's concept of the unity of antagonistic dispositions, for example the paradoxical constellation of the sacred/sobriety (das `heilig nuchterne'). To Benjamin `breathing' means the original, prehistorical, situation of harmony and peace. Together with the decline of bourgeois society, parallel to the development of a new technology in photography and film, the aura disappears. In its place we find the dialectical image (`dialektisches Bild'). Benjamin tries to show that the decline of the aura is not just some aesthetic question, but that it is connected to the traditional philosophical problem of defining the truth and the relation between myth and rationality. Referring to Benjamin's cosmological speculations, as well as to his references to Baudelaire, it can be argued that, notwithstanding his lyrical description of the aura, Benjamin was in favour of the destruction of the aura. Under the conditions of a capitalist economy and a malfunctioning republic, a society which can be defined as `false', the traditional idea of aura, being the `shine' of a true society, cannot be taken for granted. The `dialectical image', showing that antagonistic forces hide behind a `shine' of unity and harmony, enables us to see that the traditional idea of truth is obsolete and to look for a new solution. 10.1177/02632760122052039}, author = {van Reijen, Willem}, citeulike-article-id = {4061308}, citeulike-linkout-0 = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/02632760122052039}, citeulike-linkout-1 = {http://tcs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/18/6/31}, day = {1}, doi = {10.1177/02632760122052039}, journal = {Theory Culture Society}, keywords = {aura, benjamin, dialectic, image}, month = {December}, number = {6}, pages = {31--50}, posted-at = {2009-02-16 20:36:16}, priority = {2}, title = {Breathing the Aura -- The Holy, the Sober Breath}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/02632760122052039}, volume = {18}, year = {2001} }

TY - JOUR ID - citeulike:4061308 L3 - citeulike-article-id:4061308 N2 - Benjamin's famous description of the aura in the `Small History of Photography' starts: `What is aura? A strange texture of space and time...', and ends with: `That means breathing the aura of these mountains and this branch'. Until now, the meaning of `breathing' has hardly been subject to interpretation. In this article it will be shown that Benjamin refers to Goethe's `diastole/systole', and to Holderlin's concept of the unity of antagonistic dispositions, for example the paradoxical constellation of the sacred/sobriety (das `heilig nuchterne'). To Benjamin `breathing' means the original, prehistorical, situation of harmony and peace. Together with the decline of bourgeois society, parallel to the development of a new technology in photography and film, the aura disappears. In its place we find the dialectical image (`dialektisches Bild'). Benjamin tries to show that the decline of the aura is not just some aesthetic question, but that it is connected to the traditional philosophical problem of defining the truth and the relation between myth and rationality. Referring to Benjamin's cosmological speculations, as well as to his references to Baudelaire, it can be argued that, notwithstanding his lyrical description of the aura, Benjamin was in favour of the destruction of the aura. Under the conditions of a capitalist economy and a malfunctioning republic, a society which can be defined as `false', the traditional idea of aura, being the `shine' of a true society, cannot be taken for granted. The `dialectical image', showing that antagonistic forces hide behind a `shine' of unity and harmony, enables us to see that the traditional idea of truth is obsolete and to look for a new solution. 10.1177/02632760122052039 IS - 6 JF - Theory Culture Society EP - 50 TI - Breathing the Aura -- The Holy, the Sober Breath VL - 18 SP - 31 KW - aura KW - benjamin KW - dialectic KW - image AU - van Reijen, Willem PY - 2001/12/01/ UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/02632760122052039 ER -