The Question of Sacrifice

Keenan (Fairfield Univ.) has written a book on Emmanuel Levinas and journal articles on Nietzsche, Levinas, Derrida, and Kristeva. In the chapters of this new work, he treats these authors and more in a manner that reflects an almost excessive erudition and layered approach to the field of Continental philosophy. Full of irony, paradox, allusion, and parentheses, this collection of essays is finally short on clarity or coherence. Keenan squeezes out a lot of sparks, but offers little of the kind of illuminating light that advances understanding beyond cleverness and wordplay. Much of the writing in this book paraphrases the usual suspects' takes on each other, and on other well-known Continental philosophers, on topics relating (sometimes only vaguely) to sacrifice. The book is more like a whirlwind tour through a well-constructed bibliography than a sustained, nuanced, theoretical discussion of a more-or-less clear question. Some in the Continental philosophy community still find this style of writing satisfying. Those who may desire more light than heat will find this book a puzzling caricature of Continental writing. Summing Up: Optional. Graduate students and above. Not Recommended. Reviewed by P. Amato.