Badiou and Communicable Worlds: A Critical Introduction to Logics of Worlds

Description

Logics of Worlds stands as one of the most important texts in contemporary thought. Conceived as the sequel to Alan Badiou's Being and Event, the book expands upon and elucidates the questions that were posed in the first book. As a complex theory of worlds, the text has, for the most part, been misunderstood, but in William Watkin's diligent and critical close reading of the book, he makes the case for Logics of Worlds being the essential Badiou book for anyone interested in existence, meaning and the potential for radical change. For Watkin, this recasting of ontology is followed by a transformation of logic, which is not only a theory of being, but of appearing and allows Badiou to give new meaning to the object, body and relation. To do this, he explores these concepts through architecture, astronomy and renowned thinkers such as Kant, Hegel and Kierkegaard. For students of French Continental philosophy, ontology and Badiou himself, Watkin's commentary on the philosopher's text provides a brilliant and incisive new interpretation of this underrated work by the leading Continental philosopher of our time.

William Watkin is Professor of Contemporary Literature and Philosophy at Brunel University, West London. He is the author of In the Process of Poetry: The New York School and the Avant-Garde, Agamben and Indifference: A Critical Overview and Badiou and Indifferent Being.

This is a masterful example of scholarly companionship and criticism. Watkin has found a route into Badiou's formidable Logics of Worlds that consistently brings bucket loads of interpretive gems to the surface. * Iain MacKenzie, Reader in Politics, Centre for Critical Thought, University of Kent, UK * The work of Alain Badiou is amongst the strangest and strongest in contemporary philosophy. Here William Watkin takes up the challenge to explicate and justify Badiou's eventful innovations in Logics of Worlds, moving step-by-step through the key developments with clarity and care, showing his commitment to what is communicable - and to what is not. * Justin Clemens, Associate Professor of English and Theatre Studies, University of Melbourne, Australia *