progress report.

"The concept of progress must be grounded in the idea of catastrophe." (The Arcades Project,[N9a,1])

Well, my progress certainly has been catastrophic these last few weeks. I'm down to 30 days here, folks. And there's no time for doubts, distraction, or fatigue. So, here it goes. I will have the first chapter posted by tomorrow. In the meantime, I've been drawing up lots and lots of outlines, so hopefully that will aid my rapid production. I went out and bought a big-ass roll of paper. I made giant outlines and hung them on the wall so I can see the whole project and individual chapters at once. Also, I may have gone crazy. Judge for yourself.





Alright, back to work.

god, writer's block is a bitch.

But at this stage of the game, i'm just going to have to work through it.

I sent out a detailed outline to my supervisor yesterday, so I thought I'd post it up here.

Introduction

• Introduce the idea of the project. Brief overview of Benjamin, Nihilism and Nietzsche
  
• Benjamin's Relationship to Nihilism and Nietzsche
• Said Relationship in the Secondary sources
• Overview/Outline for the project
  

Eternal Recurrence

• What does eternal recurrence mean for Baudelaire, Blanqui, and Nietzche? (Sub-question: is it as different/is there as much antagonism between their theories as Benjamin thinks?)
  
• Why does it become an issue of "mass production" for Benjamin?
• What is the status of Origin (ursrpung) within Eternal Recurrence?
• Explanation of why Recurrence is essential to Benjamin's non-teleological/non-progressive worldview.

Aesthetics/Authenticity

• What would a nihilistic reading of WofA mean?
  
• Call for revaluation/transvalution.
• The crisis of meaning.
• Becoming-Political of Aesthetics.

History and Dialectics

• Political View of the Past
• The Image: Dialectical Image vs. Dialectics
• The role of affirmation within history and the DI

Conclusion

• Reconciliation of Nihilism/Nietzscheanism with Marxism within Benjamin.
  
• What is the status of a constantly deferred redemption/revolution?
• What are consequences of an affirmative/active nihilistic political aesthetics?

I'm starting writing on the eternal recurrence chapter today, and I should have something finished by the end of the week.