The One and Only Law: Walter Benjamin and the Second Commandment

by James Martel

Book Overview

Walter Benjamin's "Critique of Violence," widely considered his final word on law, proposes that all manifestations of law are false stand-ins for divine principles of truth and justice that are no longer available to human beings. However, he also suggests that we must have law--we are held under a divine sanction that does not allow us to escape our responsibilities. James R. Martel argues that this paradox is resolved by considering that, for Benjamin,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0472052306
• ISBN13: 9780472052301
• Release Date: September 2014
• Publisher: University of Michigan Press
• Length: 264 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.9" x 8.9"