Summary
Slavoj Žižek: Like a thief in the night
This is the best Žižek, the Žižek who approaches the concept and philosophical interpretation with full seriousness, while at the same time remaining witty, jovial, playful. The concept of excess will serve him to guide us through Marx's complex constructions (you - handful of value, excess of work) and Lacan's linguistic stunts (you - handful of pleasure, excess of knowledge), with the assistance of Hegel, Jung and Freud. The concept of phantasm will be connected to the logic of work and money - the doxical demands of contemporary culture, while it will unconsciously touch - not at all expected - Hegelian speculation (which is similar to trying to touch the soup with a fork, but Žižek simply manages it). This is why the transition to speculative capital seems so natural and self-evident in this book, except that it is not. And, of course, film as an obsession of the Slovenian philosopher. The analysis of the film To be or not to be is not only a hilarious ending to a demanding philosophical text, but also a dedication to that philosophical gesture that knows that play is possible only if it is approached with the greatest possible seriousness.
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