Peter R. Sedgwick (1962–)

I have little natural sympathy for what are often referred to as the Continental philosophers (all those abstractions given Agency through capitalization; all those words given new arcane significance by "means" of quotation marks, all that metaphysics). Having said that, this is an extraordinarily clear explication of certain aspects of several of the major practitioners. Although called an "introduction", it will probably be of most use to those who come to it armed with have a certain grasp of the subject; this is not an easy read. Again and again, Sedgwick cites an author at length, then says "to put it more simply", and then, astonishingly, he does. His treatment of Derrida is a model of clarity; Heidigger remains a foggy muddle, but it isn't Sedgwick's fault. The book is divided into sections dealing with ontology, ethics, and politics, but since since it is also roughly chronological this organization feels arbitrary… (més)