CPF | Rivista di estetica | The Paradox of Witness
Tiziana Andina
December 2010: The Paradox of Witness
Advisory Editor: Daniela Padoan
Deadline for submission: February 2009
While, unavoidably, the witnesses of Shoah pass on, �the tension
between the witness and the historian� increases. �A rivalry� - ten
year ago Annette Wieviorka wrote in The Age of Witness � �and even a
fight for power, which is at the centre of the present debates on
history of our time�.
How such a �fight for power� is to be construed, who supports it, and
what are its outcomes, are questions that suggest an inquiry on the
rhetoric of thinking about the possibility for experience to be turned
into a historical narration. At the same time, such a rhetoric also
comprises reports of direct experiences in extermination camps, and it
thus leads to a reflection on the notion of respect, not as a kind of
feeling, but as a political category.
What can a society incapable of respecting the witnesses of its own
extreme limit produce? The supremacy of specialisations (from
historiography to philosophy) aspires to be a form of knowledge about
the Shoah, in either benevolent or tensed conflict with the role of
witnesses. However, where does this supremacy originate from? Does
someone who is not a witness really know what they are talking about
when they talk about Auschwitz? Can there be an ethic without
witnessing? And what is the relationship between stories and history?
Can there be a history without there being stories?
We invite scholars to submit papers discussing all these and related
topics. The deadline is February 27, 2010.
Rivista di Estetica
Edited by Maurizio Ferraris The Rivista di Estetica publishes thematic
issues on particular philosophical topics, and each issue is a
collected anthology of continuing interest. It is one of the oldest
philosophy journals in Italy, established in 1960 as a quarterly
journal of the philosophy and aesthetics.
The Rivista di Estetica, practices double blind refereeing and
publishes both in Italian and English.
The editor of Rivista di Estetica is Maurizio Ferraris, professor of
philosophy at the University of Turin, Italy. The managing editor is
Tiziana Andina, assistant professor of philosophy at the University of
Turin, who follows the day-to-day functioning of Rivista di Estetica
as well as the contact with authors and referees. All editorial
correspondence should be addressed to tiziana...@unito.it
Tiziana Andina
_____________________
Assistant Professor
Department of Philosophy, University of Turin,
Via S. Ottavio, 20 - 10124 Turin, Italy
email: tiziana...@unito.it
Office: +39.011.670.3733
homepage: www.labont.it/andina
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