Gesturing Toward Reality: David Foster Wallace and Philosophy

Häftad, Engelska, 2014

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Asked in 2006 about the philosophical nature of his fiction, the late American writer David Foster Wallace replied, "If some people read my fiction and see it as fundamentally about philosophical ideas, what it probably means is that these are pieces where the characters are not as alive and interesting as I meant them to be."Gesturing Toward Reality looks into this quality of Wallace's work—when the writer dons the philosopher's cap—and sees something else. With essays offering a careful perusal of Wallace's extensive and heavily annotated self-help library, re-considerations of Wittgenstein's influence on his fiction, and serious explorations into the moral and spiritual landscape where Wallace lived and wrote, this collection offers a perspective on Wallace that even he was not always ready to see. Since so much has been said in specifically literary circles about Wallace's philosophical acumen, it seems natural to have those with an interest in both philosophy and Wallace's writing address how these two areas come together.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2014-08-14
Mått138 x 214 x 18 mm
Vikt360 g
FormatHäftad
SpråkEngelska
Antal sidor296
FörlagBloomsbury Publishing Plc
ISBN9781441162656

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Litteraturvetenskap inom Skönlitteratur

AcknowledgementsNotes on ContributorsIntroductionScott KorbChapter One. How We Ought To Do Things With WordsAlexis BurgessChapter Two. The Subsurface Unity of All Things, Or David Foster Wallace’s Free WillLeland de la DurantayeChapter Three. A Less ‘Bullshitty’ Way To Live: The Pragmatic Spirituality of David Foster WallaceRobert K. BolgerChapter Four. This is Water and Religious Self-DeceptionKevin TimpeChapter Five. Inside David Foster Wallace’s Head: Attention, Loneliness, Suicide and the Other Side of BoredomAndrew BennettChapter Six. The Lobster ConsideredRobert C. JonesChapter Seven. The Terrible Master: David Foster Wallace and the Suffering of Consciousness (with Guest Arthur Schopenhauer) Blakey VermeuleChapter Eight. Philosophy, Self-Help and the Death of David WallaceMaria BustillosChapter Nine. Untrendy Problems: The Pale King’s Philosophical InspirationsJon BaskinChapter Ten. The Formative Philosophical Influences of David Foster Wallace With Special Reference to The Broom of the System Tom TraceyChapter Eleven. Beyond Philosophy: David Foster Wallace and the Dangers of TheorizingRandy RamalChapter Twelve. Good Faith and Sincerity: Sartrean Virtues of Self-Becoming in David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest Allard den DulkChapter Thirteen. Theories of Everything and More: Infinity Is Not The EndRyan David MullinsChapter Fourteen. Does Language Fail Us? Wallace’s Struggle with Solipsism Patrick HornIndex

Wallace’s deeply influential postmodern pragmatism was not the casual by product of his novelistic vision. Rather, it was the distillation of a lifetime of urgent and rigorous philosophical engagement. Unfortunately, that deeply informed background is often obscured by the white light of his intimate, inimitable voice. Gesturing Toward Reality refracts that light to reveal the colorful spectrum of his sources. The essays assembled here are as lively as they are entertaining, and provide an accessible introduction to some of the most complex ideas in Wallace’s already challenging oeuvre .