Basel Talk 'Speculative Realism and Aesthetics'

Here is a link to the details for a talk I will be giving in Basel on the topic of Speculative Realism and Aesthetics.

It takes place on Wednesday, 11 May 2011 at 12:15 – 13:00 at Dept. of English, Room 111 at Universität Basel. I'd like to extend a thanks to Ridvan Askin for setting this up. If you are in the area do come along.

The abstract is as follows:

The noted speculative realist Graham Harman has called aesthetics ‘first philosophy.’ But speculative realism is not concerned with a new aesthetic theory gifted from philosophers to artists. Rather speculative realists see aesthetics as a practical aid in getting their point across – they see themselves almost as artists in the craft of metaphysics. In this precise sense aesthetics becomes for speculative realism the practise of philosophical argumentation itself whether that manifests as Harman’s willingness to use wit in the service of expression or Ray Brassier inviting readers to imagine the end of the Universe in order to drive home the blunt fact of extinction.

This talk introduces the audience to the relatively young philosophical field of speculative realism using the aesthetic and literary practises of the four original speculative realists (Harman, Brassier, Meillassoux, Grant) as a linchpin, but it will also take time to explore a world inhabited with colourful characters ranging from transcendental nihilists, neo-vitalist quasi-Deleuzians, object oriented ontologists, speculative materialists, Lovecraftian weird realists, and other assorted continental realists on the fringe not only of mainstream philosophy but even on the fringe of continental philosophy.