How to Measure a World?
A Philosophy of Judaism
Published on 6. April 2021
Book
Hardback
258 pages
978-0-253-05453-1 (ISBN)
Description
What does it mean to wonder in awe or terror about the world? How do you philosophically understand Judaism? In How to Measure a World?: A Philosophy of Judaism, Martin Shuster provides answers to these questions and more.
Emmanuel Levinas suggested that Judaism is best understood as an anachronism. Shuster attempts to make sense of this claim by alternatively considering questions of the inscrutability of ultimate reality, of the pain and commonness of human suffering, and of the ways in which Judaism is entangled with the world. Drawing on phenomenology and Jewish thought, Shuster offers novel readings of some of the classic figures of Jewish philosophy while inserting other voices into the tradition, from Moses Maimonides to Theodor W. Adorno to Walter Benjamin to Stanley Cavell.
How to Measure a World? examines elements of the Jewish philosophical record to get at the full intellectual scope and range of Levinas's proposal. Shuster's view of anachronism thereby provokes an assessment of the world and our place in it. A particular understanding of Jewish philosophy emerges, not only through the traditions it encompasses, but also through an understanding of the relationship between humans and their world. In the end, Levinas's suggestion is examined theoretically as much as practically, revealing what's at stake for Judaism as much as for the world.
Emmanuel Levinas suggested that Judaism is best understood as an anachronism. Shuster attempts to make sense of this claim by alternatively considering questions of the inscrutability of ultimate reality, of the pain and commonness of human suffering, and of the ways in which Judaism is entangled with the world. Drawing on phenomenology and Jewish thought, Shuster offers novel readings of some of the classic figures of Jewish philosophy while inserting other voices into the tradition, from Moses Maimonides to Theodor W. Adorno to Walter Benjamin to Stanley Cavell.
How to Measure a World? examines elements of the Jewish philosophical record to get at the full intellectual scope and range of Levinas's proposal. Shuster's view of anachronism thereby provokes an assessment of the world and our place in it. A particular understanding of Jewish philosophy emerges, not only through the traditions it encompasses, but also through an understanding of the relationship between humans and their world. In the end, Levinas's suggestion is examined theoretically as much as practically, revealing what's at stake for Judaism as much as for the world.
Reviews / Votes
An introductory study that will have enormous appeal for both students and non-specialist general readers, How to Measure a World?: A Philosophy of Judaism is as informative as it is thought-provoking, and very highly recommended(Midwest Book Review) Overall, this book is a valuable contribution to not only modern Jewish studies, but also the broader field of continental philosophy of religion. With a clear mastery of his sources, Shuster carefully weaves his thesis through deeply complicated figures in a way that is both artful and textually sound.
- Josiah Solis (Reading Religion) One also has to be impressed with the wealth of learning Shuster brings to bear in developing this theme. In addition to Maimonides, Adorno, Benjamin, and Levinas, there are discussions of Kant, Hegel, Marx, Wittgenstein, and Heidegger. In an academic climate that has become increasingly specialized, it is rare for someone to master this much material and present it so gracefully
- Kenneth Seeskin - Northwestern University (AJS Review) Both historical and constructive in character, Shuster's work prodigiously works with many of the original languages necessary for the claims it makes (Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, German) as well as stages substantive conversations between supporting thinkers in its chapters (al-Ghazali, Heidegger, Aristotle, Hegel, Marx, Lukacs, and Davidson).
- Jeffrey Bernstein, College of the Holy Cross (Shofar) Martin Shuster's brilliant new book, How to Measure a World? A Philosophy of Judaism, oscillates between the experience of human suffering in the given world and the quest for metaphysical and moral knowledge required to transcend it."
- Asaf Angerman (Journal of the American Academy of Religion) The connections that Shuster draws between Maimonides and the phenomenological tradition are ingenious, and worth the price of admission to the book. In my estimation, the originality and cleverness of the reading justifies itself How to Measure a World? is a provocative and innovative work about (of?) contemporary Jewish thought.
- Samuel Brody Martin Shuster's brilliant new book, How to Measure a World? A Philosophy of Judaism, oscillates between these two poles, between the experience of human suffering in the given world and the quest for metaphysical and moral knowledge required to transcend it. In pushing boundaries and expanding the scope of a philosophy of Judaism by including an impressive variety of voices and perspectives, Jewish and non-Jewish alike, Shuster's book adds a valuable dimension of inclusivity and, true to a Jewish dialogical tradition, advances an important dialogue.
- Asaf Angermann - University of Louisville (Journal of the American Academy of Religion)
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Bloomington, IN
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paper over boards
Dimensions
Height: 203 mm
Width: 127 mm
Thickness: 19 mm
Weight
410 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-253-05453-1 (9780253054531)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Martin Shuster is Associate Professor of Philosophy and holds the Professorship of Judaic Studies and Justice at Goucher College in Baltimore, Maryland, where he previously directed the Judaic studies program and where he currently directs the Center for Geographies of Justice. In addition to many articles and book chapters across a range of topics, he is the author of Autonomy after Auschwitz: Adorno, German Idealism, and Modernity and New Television: The Aesthetics and Politics of a Genre and the coeditor of Logics of Genocide: The Structures of Violence and the Contemporary World.
Content
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Having a World
1. Wonder and World: Maimonides's Phenomenology
2. Suffering and World: Adorno's Negativity
Preconditions of Having a World
3. History and World: Benjamin and Adorno on Ethical Depth
4. Language and World: Levinas and Cavell on Ethical Foundations
Conclusion
Works Cited
Index
Introduction
Having a World
1. Wonder and World: Maimonides's Phenomenology
2. Suffering and World: Adorno's Negativity
Preconditions of Having a World
3. History and World: Benjamin and Adorno on Ethical Depth
4. Language and World: Levinas and Cavell on Ethical Foundations
Conclusion
Works Cited
Index