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In Search of Another Law : Three talmudic Readings of Benjamin’s Kafka

Seri, Bat Chen Laila LU (2025)
Abstract
The project offers a study of German-Jewish thought by examining Walter Benjamin’s notion of law through the interpretive framework of the Talmud. The widely recognised locus of Benjamin's discussion of law is his essay Toward the Critique of Violence. In his later essays on Kafka, however, Benjamin develops an alternative to the familiar negative notion of law found in the Critique, a development that has often been overlooked. The originality of the project lies in articulating "talmudic reading" as a methodology grounded in the hermeneutical resources of rabbinic thought. A close reading of Benjamin’s Kafka essays—paying special attention to the dynamics of the rabbinic textual categories halakhah and haggadah—uncovers a notion of law... (More)
The project offers a study of German-Jewish thought by examining Walter Benjamin’s notion of law through the interpretive framework of the Talmud. The widely recognised locus of Benjamin's discussion of law is his essay Toward the Critique of Violence. In his later essays on Kafka, however, Benjamin develops an alternative to the familiar negative notion of law found in the Critique, a development that has often been overlooked. The originality of the project lies in articulating "talmudic reading" as a methodology grounded in the hermeneutical resources of rabbinic thought. A close reading of Benjamin’s Kafka essays—paying special attention to the dynamics of the rabbinic textual categories halakhah and haggadah—uncovers a notion of law oriented toward the practice of study and interpretation. The project aims to contribute to contemporary debates in political philosophy, literary studies, and philosophy of religion, situating itself particularly within the expanding discourse on Talmud and philosophy. (Less)
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author
supervisor
opponent
  • professor Boyarin, Daniel, University of California, Berkeley
organization
publishing date
type
Thesis
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Walter Benjamin, Franz Kafka, German-Jewish thought, Talmud and philosophy, law and literature, rabbinic hermeneutics, halakhah and haggadah
pages
200 pages
publisher
Centre for Theology and Religious Studies, Lund University
defense location
sal C121, LUX, Helgonavägen 3, Lund
defense date
2025-11-18 15:15:00
ISBN
978-91-90055-28-1
978-91-90055-29-8
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
4d711f54-69d9-4699-b68e-befd50dc2345
date added to LUP
2025-10-02 22:24:28
date last changed
2025-10-06 11:03:03
@phdthesis{4d711f54-69d9-4699-b68e-befd50dc2345,
  abstract     = {{The project offers a study of German-Jewish thought by examining Walter Benjamin’s notion of law through the interpretive framework of the Talmud. The widely recognised locus of Benjamin's discussion of law is his essay Toward the Critique of Violence. In his later essays on Kafka, however, Benjamin develops an alternative to the familiar negative notion of law found in the Critique, a development that has often been overlooked. The originality of the project lies in articulating "talmudic reading" as a methodology grounded in the hermeneutical resources of rabbinic thought. A close reading of Benjamin’s Kafka essays—paying special attention to the dynamics of the rabbinic textual categories halakhah and haggadah—uncovers a notion of law oriented toward the practice of study and interpretation. The project aims to contribute to contemporary debates in political philosophy, literary studies, and philosophy of religion, situating itself particularly within the expanding discourse on Talmud and philosophy.}},
  author       = {{Seri, Bat Chen Laila}},
  isbn         = {{978-91-90055-28-1}},
  keywords     = {{Walter Benjamin; Franz Kafka; German-Jewish thought; Talmud and philosophy; law and literature; rabbinic hermeneutics; halakhah and haggadah}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Centre for Theology and Religious Studies, Lund University}},
  school       = {{Lund University}},
  title        = {{In Search of Another Law : Three talmudic Readings of Benjamin’s Kafka}},
  url          = {{https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/files/228924073/Seri_In_Search_of_Another_Law.pdf}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}