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Very little … almost nothing : death, philosophy, literature
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Very little … almost nothing : death, philosophy, literature

by Simon Critchley

This book explores the meaning of human finitude and death from a secular perspective, placing nihilism at the centre of philosophical debate. It examines these themes through the work of various thinkers and writers, including Blanchot, Levinas, Beckett, and Stevens.

Accession 7448 ISBN 0415340497 Publisher Routledge
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TAGS
Curated Derived
Art Communication Family and Society Literature Philosophy Romanticism
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True
position_updated_at
2026-06-04 15:17
orientation
vertical
Details

Physical

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Hard Back
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none captured
spine_text
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Metadata

Book form
LOCATION HISTORY
M:S3:25 3 Current vertical
5 days, 21 hours ago
M:S3:27 3 vertical
1 week, 4 days ago
M:S3:28 3 vertical
3 weeks, 4 days ago
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Updated 5 days, 21 hours ago
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Last synced 2026-05-21 00:41 (2 weeks, 6 days ago)

Identity

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Very little … almost nothing : death, philosophy, literature
vernon_id
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accession_no→ accession_number
7448
vernon_slug
very-little-almost-nothing-death-philosophy-literature-simon-critchley

Drives Pulse state

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isbn_issn→ isbn (when valid)
0415340497

Descriptive

production_date
2004
object_type
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brief_description
Puts the question of the meaning of life back at the centre of intellectual debate. Its central concern is how we can find a meaning to human finitude without recourse to anything that transcends that finitude. A profound but secular meditation on the theme of death, Critchley traces the idea of nihilism through Blanchot, Levinas, Jena Romanticism and Cavell, culminating in a reading of Beckett, in many ways the hero of the book. In this second edition, Simon Critchley has added a revealing and extended new preface, and a new chapter on Wallace Stevens which reflects on the idea of poetry as philosophy. -- blurb

Subjects & people

authors→ author (initial fill only)
Simon Critchley
tags→ tags
Literature, Philology, Philosophy, Death, Life, Aesthetics, Romanticism, Nihilism (Philosophy), Meaning (Philosophy)
subject_people
Samuel Beckett (b.1906, d.1989)
subject_objects
—

Cover image

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Topics and Themes