During this third session we’ll read passages from the third and last part of the book. In it, Arendt breaks with many of her contemporaries, who approached violence from the perspective of animals, and linked humans’ aggressiveness to animals’. Also, she breaks with views on what kind of action is rational or irrational, emphasizing that in certain situations, rage can be a very rational thing; and likewise an inability to be ‘moved’ – emotionally – can be irrational. The question remains: what’s the rightful place of violence in the world?
“In order to behave reasonably one must first of all be ‘moved,’ and the opposite of emotional is not ‘rational,’ whatever that may mean, but either the inability to be moved, usually a pathological phenomenon, or sentimentality, which is a perversion of feeling.” [Hannah Arendt, On Violence (Boston/New York: Mariner Books, 1970): p. 64.]
Have a cup of tea or coffee with us, and join for a conversation on violence. There’s no preparation whatsoever; just read along as we go. We’re happy to have you.