Confronting the ruputures of event
A Levinasian interpretation of Paul Auster’s invisible
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 20252557 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Ying Cheng (0000-0001-7732-9806, Yangzhou University, corresponding author), Ting Yang (0009-0008-0157-6411, Yangzhou University) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 13 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2026-12-31 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Cogent Arts and Humanities (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2331-1983 • E-ISSN: 2331-1983 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/23311983.2026.2651504 |
| OpenAlex | W7152702475 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 7 |
This analysis bridges Žižek’s event theory with Levinas’ ethics to explore Paul Auster’s fifteenth novel, Invisible, in which the encounter with the Other’s face disrupts the event’s symbolic hold and compels ethical action. This paper examines these ruptures from multiple perspectives and posits that war and violence are not merely disruptive forces that dismantle societal order; rather, through mechanisms of power, they become phenomena that are normalized, socialized, and institutionalized. Building upon this foundation, Auster advocates for a Levinasian approach to resistance: When the Other emerges in a violent event in a manner that is both strange and sublime, the goodness should be internalized by the subject, enabling them to embrace responsibility. The ‘non-indifference’ relationship between the Other and the subject embodies the author’s vision for ethical interactions, highlighting that ethical subjects must confront the obligation of choice and actively work to alleviate the adverse effects of violent occurrences. Invisible not only elucidates the author’s perspectives on violence and war but also emphasizes the potential of events to reshape humanity
Causation · Hermeneutics and Narrative Identity · Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy · Philosophy, Ethics, and Existentialism
| Highly cited | No |
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