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total transcendence in the here and now”. He means it
denies mortality. And that means such transcendence
is pure violence: “Sci-fi is thus essentially nihilistic”
because it cannot accommodate bodily death on the
level of its narrative. He urges us to read and re-read
Blanchot in order to hold off such nihilism. This is
how we can learn from Blanchot. There is no need to
adopt his style. Blanchot himself did exactly that in
his own learning.
Mark C. Taylor remarks on Blanchot’s neglected kinship
with an earlier enigmatic philosopher-writer: “It
was … Kierkegaard” he writes “who first realised that
philosophy can be itself only by becoming literature;
and it was Kierkegaard who insisted that the only way
to be truly in the world is to withdraw from it.” Taylor
asked for a meeting to discuss it but got a note saying:
“Though I might wish it otherwise, the conditions of
BUY Maurice Blanchot books online from and
my work make it impossible for us to meet”. Still, he
confirmed to Taylor that Kierkegaard was indeed a secret
sharer. He helped Blanchot find his own way. This
collection, modest in size and character as it is, offers
Blanchot as a guide to us, placing the emphasis firmly
on the writing:
“I have long thought that some things are so intimate
that they can never be said but must be written. Writing
does not merely create distance but also allows one
to draw closer than any spoken word. This closeness
must not be confused with presence. Writing brings
the remote near by allowing presence to withdraw. The
lasting lesson of Blanchot is that withdrawal opens
up the space-time of desire whose absence is death.
Though he has been taken from us, he will continue to
give what is never ours to possess.” �
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