Slavoj Žižek: 'Violence' September 8, 2008

Philosopher, cultural critic, and agent provocateur Slavoj Žižek constructs a new framework for looking at the forces of violence in the world. Using history, philosophy, books, movies, psychiatry, and jokes, Žižek examines the ways we perceive and misperceive violence. For Žižek, violence takes three forms—subjective (crime, terror), objective (racism, hate-speech, discrimination), and systemic (the catastrophic effects of economic and political systems). Discussing the inherent violence of globalization, capitalism, fundamentalism, and language, Žižek calls for a forceful confrontation with the vacuity of today’s democracies. Presented by the Town Hall Center for Civic Life, with Elliott Bay Book Company.