Poetry and Philosophy: Heidegger and Celan

EXISTENTIALIST SOCIETY - Melbourne, Australia.

An online presentation, followed by discussion. All viewpoints welcome.

Dr. Desmonda Lawrence will present the topic and lead the discussion.

Abstract:
Todtnauberg: A meeting between Paul Celan and Martin Heidegger:
The tension between how poetry as art relates to our existence as citizens of a society is stretched to breaking point in Theodore Adorno’s famous pronouncement that there can be no poetry after Auschwitz. Paul Celan implicitly replies that after ‘that which happened’ to mankind and to language, poetry meant, more than ever, a reaching out; a handshake; a message in a bottle. He writes: “I went with my very being towards language”.
Martin Heidegger wrote some of his most influential work ‘almost within earshot of the death camps’ and his relations with Nazism, as well as his refusal to ever address the issue later in his life, has tainted his reputation and the reception of, if not the content of, his work. Paul Celan visited Heidegger in 1967, in Todtnauberg, in the Black Forest.

In this talk I will briefly discuss Celan’s life and work, address his interest in Heidegger’s philosophy and open up a close reading of the poem entitled Todtnauberg that ‘records’ his meeting with Heidegger.

Following the talk, I would like to invite participants into a discussion of the poem, and of any issues of interest in relation to Celan’s and Heidegger’s work more broadly.
(View the poem in the Comments section, below):

The Zoom Link will appear for those who RSVP.
Meeting ID: 881 9777 9874 - - Passcode: 611432

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