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jonfaith's review against another edition
4.0
What, in the end, makes advertisements superior to criticism? Not what the moving red neon says—but the fiery pool reflecting it in the asphalt.
It was a refreshing experience to finish Benjamin's One-Way Street on the same ill-fitting night that I finished [b:Spring and All|1383945|Spring and All|William Carlos Williams|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1416473060l/1383945._SY75_.jpg|1373970]. The two works penned within five years of each other. Each soul staring into the postwar tumult of Art and History, not hoping for transcendence as such but a pragmatic foothold from which to continue their journey.
Much of this work went unpublished in Benjamin's lifetime. Much of that is academic and rather dry. I found the pieces below to be most illuminating.
The Metaphysics of Youth
Dostoevsky’s The Idiot
Angelus Novus, 1920–1926
The Task of the Translator
Calderón’s El Mayor Monstruo, Los Celos and Hebbel’s Herades and Mariamne
Johann Peter Hehel (I): On the Centenary of His Death
Johann Peter Hebel (II): A Picture Puzzle for the Centenary of His Death.
A Glimpse into the World of Children’s Books
One-Way Street
Glancing at the list now, I recognize that most of these were from the later years of the selected time frame. That obviously suggests a finding of form after Benjamin sought publication or at least an audience outside of the academy. There is a measure of frustration in the critic in these pages. He isn't proclaiming dogma but rather he appears incensed about his lack of recognition. It would indeed arrive, albeit posthumously.
It was a refreshing experience to finish Benjamin's One-Way Street on the same ill-fitting night that I finished [b:Spring and All|1383945|Spring and All|William Carlos Williams|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1416473060l/1383945._SY75_.jpg|1373970]. The two works penned within five years of each other. Each soul staring into the postwar tumult of Art and History, not hoping for transcendence as such but a pragmatic foothold from which to continue their journey.
Much of this work went unpublished in Benjamin's lifetime. Much of that is academic and rather dry. I found the pieces below to be most illuminating.
The Metaphysics of Youth
Dostoevsky’s The Idiot
Angelus Novus, 1920–1926
The Task of the Translator
Calderón’s El Mayor Monstruo, Los Celos and Hebbel’s Herades and Mariamne
Johann Peter Hehel (I): On the Centenary of His Death
Johann Peter Hebel (II): A Picture Puzzle for the Centenary of His Death.
A Glimpse into the World of Children’s Books
One-Way Street
Glancing at the list now, I recognize that most of these were from the later years of the selected time frame. That obviously suggests a finding of form after Benjamin sought publication or at least an audience outside of the academy. There is a measure of frustration in the critic in these pages. He isn't proclaiming dogma but rather he appears incensed about his lack of recognition. It would indeed arrive, albeit posthumously.