Gods, German Scholars, and the Gift of Greece

Friedrich Kittler’s Philhellenic Fantasies

Bibliographic Data

ID2351983
AuthorsClaudia Breger (0000-0003-0418-6028, Indiana University Bloomington, corresponding author)
Year2006
Volume23
Issue7-8
Pages111-134
Publication date2006-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueTheory Culture & Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0263-2764 • E-ISSN: 1460-3616
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/0263276406069886
OpenAlexW2118633025
LanguageEN
Citations received13
References cited32

This article argues that the abundance of Greek figures and scenarios in Kittler's recent work points to a shift in his oeuvre, which, however, does not represent a radical break with his 'hardware studies'. At the turn of the 21st century, Kittler champions an emphatic notion of culture as a necessary supplement to science and technology. This conceptual marriage mediates grand historical narratives of cultural identity. Specifically, Kittler's texts provide us with narratives of Greek origin which serve to re-capture collective identities in the age of globalization. On the explicit level, this identity is predominantly European, but the search has national components as well. With his turn to culture, the organizing trope of 19th-century German nationalism, Kittler has also embraced the legacy of German philhellenism, which articulated national identities through the theme of 'elective affinity'. Kittler's Greece occupies the very structural place it had in 19th-century German philhellenism: It stands in for both the foundation of European civilization and its virtual better self, a realm of sensual culture untainted by modern capitalism and Empire. Most of the figures inhabiting this realm are familiar from 19th-century discourse as well, but these discursive loops are fueled by contemporary feedback. Kittler's Greek narratives have developed out of postwar academic discourses and connect to other post-unification Greek fantasies

Aesthetics · Ancient history · Art · Capitalism · Civilization · Empire · German · Globalization · Identity (music · Literature · Long nineteenth century · Narrative · National identity · Nationalism · Political science · Politics · Realm · Sociology · Theme (computing · Art, Technology, and Culture · Cybernetics and Technology in Society · History · Law · Philosophical and Theoretical Analysis · Philosophy