Quentin Meillassoux: Philosophy in the Making(Speculative Realism)

Quentin Meillassoux's entry into the philosophical scene marks the beginning of a new epoch: the end of the transcendental approach and the return to realist ontology. Harman's beautifully written and argued book provides not just an introduction to Meillassoux, but much more: one authentic philosopher writing about another - a rare true encounter. It is not only for those who want to understand Meillassoux, but also for those who want to witness a radical shift in the entire field of philosophy. It is a book that will shake the very foundations of your world!Slavoj Žižek, philosopher and psychoanalystAn in-depth study of the emerging French philosopher Quentin MeillassouxQuentin Meillassoux has been described as the most rapidly prominent French philosopher in the Anglophone world since Jacques Derrida in the 1960's. With the publication of After Finitude (2006), this daring protégé of Alain Badiou became one of the world's most visible younger thinkers.In this book, his fellow Speculative Realist, Graham Harman, assesses Meillassoux's publications in English so far. Also included are an insightful interview with Meillassoux and first-time translations of excerpts from L'Inexistence divine (The Divine Inexistence), his famous but still unpublished major book.

Table of Contents:
Introduction; Remark on Citations; 1. After Finitude; 2. The English Articles; 3. The Divine Inexistence; 4. Reflections on Meillassoux's Non-Euclidean Philosophy; 5. Interview with Quentin Meillassoux (August 2010); Appendix: Excerpts from L'Inexistence divine; Works Cited.

About the Author :
Graham Harman is Distinguished University Professor of Philosophy at Southern California Institute of Architecture (on leave from the American University in Cairo). His previous books include Tool-Being (2002), Guerrilla Metaphysics (2005), Heidegger Explained (2007), Prince of Networks (2009), Towards Speculative Realism (2010), Circus Philosophicus (2010), L'Objet quadruple (2010), and The Prince and the Wolf [with Bruno Latour and Peter Erdélyi] (2011).

Review :
A striking and original contribution to what the subtitle calls ‘Philosophy in the Making.’ … Harman, an accomplished philosopher in his own right, presents clearly Meillassoux’s work and ideas to date. In the book, he critically distinguishes his own philosophy from that of Meillassoux, provides an interview with Meillassoux, and most importantly, supplies an overview and partial translation of Meillassoux’s major unpublished book, The Divine Inexistence … These passages, included as an Appendix, amount to about 1/6th of the total manuscript in its 2003 version, but they are provocative indications of the work as a whole, and should be of great interest to philosophers of religion, despite or even perhaps because of the idiosyncrasy of his conclusions. A striking and original contribution to what the subtitle calls ‘Philosophy in the Making.’ Harman is to be commended for bringing more of Meillassoux to our attention and he delivers an admirably balanced account considering his own broad allegiance to the kind of philosophy he is explaining. There is a winning enthusiasm to his writing, even when he draws attention to questionable lines of thought in Meillassoux, and he is especially cogent in drawing out the larger philosophical frames of reference in which the French philosopher needs to be situated. Quentin Meillassoux's entry into the philosophical scene marks the beginning of a new epoch: the end of the transcendental approach and the return to realist ontology. Harman's beautifully written and argued book provides not just an introduction to Meillassoux, but much more: one authentic philosopher writing about another - a true rare encounter. It is not only for those who want to understand Meillassoux, but also for those who want to witness a radical shift in the entire field of philosophy. It is a book that will shake the very foundations of your world!