Deaths in Venice

The Cases of Gustav von Aschenbach

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Music, Music Styles, Classical & Opera, Opera, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy, Aesthetics
Cover of the book Deaths in Venice by Philip Kitcher, Columbia University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Philip Kitcher ISBN: 9780231536035
Publisher: Columbia University Press Publication: November 12, 2013
Imprint: Columbia University Press Language: English
Author: Philip Kitcher
ISBN: 9780231536035
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Publication: November 12, 2013
Imprint: Columbia University Press
Language: English

Published in 1913, Thomas Mann's Death in Venice is one of the most widely read novellas in any language. In the 1970s, Benjamin Britten adapted it into an opera, and Luchino Visconti turned it into a successful film. Reading these works from a philosophical perspective, Philip Kitcher connects the predicament of the novella's central character to Western thought's most compelling questions.

In Mann's story, the author Gustav von Aschenbach becomes captivated by an adolescent boy, first seen on the lido in Venice, the eventual site of Aschenbach's own death. Mann works through central concerns about how to live, explored with equal intensity by his German predecessors, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche. Kitcher considers how Mann's, Britten's, and Visconti's treatments illuminate the tension between social and ethical values and an artist's sensitivity to beauty. Each work asks whether a life devoted to self-sacrifice in the pursuit of lasting achievements can be sustained and whether the breakdown of discipline undercuts its worth. Haunted by the prospect of his death, Aschenbach also helps us reflect on whether it is possible to achieve anything in full awareness of our finitude and in knowing our successes are always incomplete.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Published in 1913, Thomas Mann's Death in Venice is one of the most widely read novellas in any language. In the 1970s, Benjamin Britten adapted it into an opera, and Luchino Visconti turned it into a successful film. Reading these works from a philosophical perspective, Philip Kitcher connects the predicament of the novella's central character to Western thought's most compelling questions.

In Mann's story, the author Gustav von Aschenbach becomes captivated by an adolescent boy, first seen on the lido in Venice, the eventual site of Aschenbach's own death. Mann works through central concerns about how to live, explored with equal intensity by his German predecessors, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche. Kitcher considers how Mann's, Britten's, and Visconti's treatments illuminate the tension between social and ethical values and an artist's sensitivity to beauty. Each work asks whether a life devoted to self-sacrifice in the pursuit of lasting achievements can be sustained and whether the breakdown of discipline undercuts its worth. Haunted by the prospect of his death, Aschenbach also helps us reflect on whether it is possible to achieve anything in full awareness of our finitude and in knowing our successes are always incomplete.

More books from Columbia University Press

Cover of the book Transforming the Legacy by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Global Entanglements of a Man Who Never Traveled by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book The Making of Salafism by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Situating Existentialism by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Desegregating the Past by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Queen Victoria's Secrets by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Classical Arabic Stories by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Psychology of a Superpower by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Are the Lips a Grave? by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Contesting Cyberspace in China by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Aristotle's Ladder, Darwin's Tree by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book The Tet Offensive by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Intimate Strangers by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Recovering Buddhism in Modern China by Philip Kitcher
Cover of the book Shapeholders by Philip Kitcher
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy