Philosophy as a Kind of Cinema: Introducing Godard and Philosophy

Authors

  • John E. Drabinski Amherst College

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5195/jffp.2010.209

Abstract

"Jean-Luc Godard is nothing if not an enigma. His image has a life of its own, especially in its younger form: cigarette, sunglasses, smirk, rambling revolutionary slogans, and important books. It wasn’t just an image, we all know, for it reflected perfectly in iconic image the more substantial revolutionary recklessness with the camera we see from Breathless forward. Filmmaking is never the same after Godard. Images and their sequencing – Godard cloaked them in sunglasses and made them smirk. He made them revolutionary. That’s his thing. And even the older Godard makes for an iconic photograph: rough facial hair, the artist’s glasses, smirk, and important books. His films continue to be unpredictable, compelling, and revolutionary..."

Author Biography

John E. Drabinski, Amherst College

John E. Drabinski teaches in the Department of Black Studies at Amherst College. He is the author of Sensibility and Singularity (SUNY 2001), Godard Between Identity and Difference (Continuum 2008), and Levinas and the Postcolonial (Edinburgh 2011), as well as numerous articles on contemporary European philosophy and Africana theory. His current research is focused on Afro-Caribbean critical theory, postcolonialism, and the intersection of Europe and the Americas in theorizing memory, history, and subjectivity. He is co-editor (with Scott Davidson) of the Journal of French and Francophone Philosophy.

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Published

2010-01-28