Bataille and Merleau-Ponty : Communication, intimacy, flesh, eroticism, and the invisible
Macke, F. (Mercer University)
Both Georges Bataille and Merleau-Ponty were Hegelian thinkers who wrote about the body, expression, communication, and sexuality. And yet despite the fascinating theoretical overlaps between Bataille and Merleau-Ponty, and despite the colleagues they held in common, the closeness in their ages, and their shared Parisian culture, there is little if any evidence that the two of them were in any sort of regular intellectual dialogue. In this paper, I seek to draw the work of Bataille close to Merleau-Ponty’s concept of chiasm (or the “flesh”), with particular emphasis on Merleau-Ponty’s concept of the “invisible.” It is in the realm of the unspoken and unarticulated (i.e., repressed) that Bataille’s concept of eroticism finds its experiential realm. An issue with which I seek to test the limits of both Merleau-Ponty and Bataille concerns the experience of “arousal” and its relationship to both fantasy, on one hand, and taboo and transgression, on the other (see Bader 2002; Frommer 2006; Weiss 1998). The primary question of this paper concerns the manner in which embodiment crosses the limits of both rational consciousness and relational possibility in its narrative expression. As such, the extent to which taboo and “madness” compete with vision and pragmatic identity emerges as, perhaps, the ongoing relational trail of intimacy and the meaningful existence of self.
Both Georges Bataille and Merleau-Ponty were Hegelian thinkers who wrote about the body, expression, communication, and sexuality. And yet despite the fascinating theoretical overlaps between Bataille and Merleau-Ponty, and despite the colleagues they held in common, the closeness in their ages, and their shared Parisian culture, there is little if any evidence that the two of them were in any sort of regular intellectual dialogue. In this paper, I seek to draw the work of Bataille close to Merleau-Ponty’s concept of chiasm (or the “flesh”), with particular emphasis on Merleau-Ponty’s concept of the “invisible.” It is in the realm of the unspoken and unarticulated (i.e., repressed) that Bataille’s concept of eroticism finds its experiential realm. An issue with which I seek to test the limits of both Merleau-Ponty and Bataille concerns the experience of “arousal” and its relationship to both fantasy, on one hand, and taboo and transgression, on the other (see Bader 2002; Frommer 2006; Weiss 1998). The primary question of this paper concerns the manner in which embodiment crosses the limits of both rational consciousness and relational possibility in its narrative expression. As such, the extent to which taboo and “madness” compete with vision and pragmatic identity emerges as, perhaps, the ongoing relational trail of intimacy and the meaningful existence of self.
Seeing from the gut: Life, phenomenology, and salsa dancing.
Lloyd, R. (University of Ottawa)
Salsa dancing, a partnered dance premised on the felt sense of connection, is an exemplar that is well suited to an exploration of Michel Henry’s radical phenomenology of the invisible and Heidegger’s facticity of life. Birthed in social celebratory contexts, salsa carries a particular motile freedom and authenticity in that it is less contrived when compared to ballroom and other traditional dance forms. What matters most is not how a movement is created from an outer frame or visual objectifying mode of reference, but rather the experience of fluid movement generated in acts of responsiveness to the other, moments of interactivity that emerge from unanticipated acts of giving. Acts of seeing are very much part of the salsa dance experience in terms of connecting to one’s partner and exuding a presence that is filled with life as revealed in an in-depth interview with two-time world champion salsa dancer, judge, choreographer and coach, Anya Katsevman (www.anyakatsevman.com) that will be featured in this inquiry. Yet, when it comes to vision and its role in phenomenological sense-making, an ontological shift from directing attention from what lies ahead and ‘the things themselves’ to the kinesthetic realm must be made when exploring the facticity of life. Hence, this inquiry into moments when one feels fully alive in the context of salsa dance provides both promise and challenge to the field of phenomenology as it invites us to delve into the ‘feeling of seeing’, or more simply, orient to what it is like to see from one’s gut.
Salsa dancing, a partnered dance premised on the felt sense of connection, is an exemplar that is well suited to an exploration of Michel Henry’s radical phenomenology of the invisible and Heidegger’s facticity of life. Birthed in social celebratory contexts, salsa carries a particular motile freedom and authenticity in that it is less contrived when compared to ballroom and other traditional dance forms. What matters most is not how a movement is created from an outer frame or visual objectifying mode of reference, but rather the experience of fluid movement generated in acts of responsiveness to the other, moments of interactivity that emerge from unanticipated acts of giving. Acts of seeing are very much part of the salsa dance experience in terms of connecting to one’s partner and exuding a presence that is filled with life as revealed in an in-depth interview with two-time world champion salsa dancer, judge, choreographer and coach, Anya Katsevman (www.anyakatsevman.com) that will be featured in this inquiry. Yet, when it comes to vision and its role in phenomenological sense-making, an ontological shift from directing attention from what lies ahead and ‘the things themselves’ to the kinesthetic realm must be made when exploring the facticity of life. Hence, this inquiry into moments when one feels fully alive in the context of salsa dance provides both promise and challenge to the field of phenomenology as it invites us to delve into the ‘feeling of seeing’, or more simply, orient to what it is like to see from one’s gut.
An early eastern-western phenomenology of transcendental space, and its contemporary application on movement flow in somatic architecture
Bellerose, C. (York University)
What do Edmund Husserl, Kitaro Nishida, and Benoît Lachambre have in common? Philosopher Kitaro wrote about early European work of phenomenology, especially addressing a notion of transcendental space that is known in Shinto Zen Japanese cosmology as ""ma"" or ""mu"". The concept is often translated as “nothingness”, or “negative space”, however, ""mu"" is best understood also as an “activator of space.” The complex nature of ""mu"" can be understood as one function of Maurice Merleau-Ponty's ""lived-body"" paradigm, further enriched by the application on the moving body of discourses from dance scholars Maxine Sheets-Johnstone and Sondra Fraleigh. The phenomenological nature of transcendental space further manifests in contemporary practices of flow – transmission channels are liberated, allowing the possibility of movement intent from directed choreography, to voluntary letting go of doing the choreography, thus allowing to be choreographed. The change is posture reflects an awareness of somatic dynamics that Benoît Lachambre calls “architectural transparency” and “shine” – the application of transcendental ""mu"" flow. The presenter illustrates through the case of Lachambre's movement pedagogy, a complex paradigm of transcendental space, creating space, and creating movement.
What do Edmund Husserl, Kitaro Nishida, and Benoît Lachambre have in common? Philosopher Kitaro wrote about early European work of phenomenology, especially addressing a notion of transcendental space that is known in Shinto Zen Japanese cosmology as ""ma"" or ""mu"". The concept is often translated as “nothingness”, or “negative space”, however, ""mu"" is best understood also as an “activator of space.” The complex nature of ""mu"" can be understood as one function of Maurice Merleau-Ponty's ""lived-body"" paradigm, further enriched by the application on the moving body of discourses from dance scholars Maxine Sheets-Johnstone and Sondra Fraleigh. The phenomenological nature of transcendental space further manifests in contemporary practices of flow – transmission channels are liberated, allowing the possibility of movement intent from directed choreography, to voluntary letting go of doing the choreography, thus allowing to be choreographed. The change is posture reflects an awareness of somatic dynamics that Benoît Lachambre calls “architectural transparency” and “shine” – the application of transcendental ""mu"" flow. The presenter illustrates through the case of Lachambre's movement pedagogy, a complex paradigm of transcendental space, creating space, and creating movement.