Transfigurements develops a framework for thinking about art through innovative readings of some of the most important philosophical writing on the subject by Kant, Hegel, and Heidegger. Sallis exposes new layers in their texts and theories while also marking their limits. By doing so, his aim is to show that philosophy needs to attend to art directly. Consequently, Sallis also addresses a wide range of works of art, including paintings by Raphael, Monet, and Klee; Shakespeare’s comedies; and the music of Beethoven, Schubert, Mahler, and Tan Dun. Through these interpretations, he puts forth a compelling new elaboration of the philosophy of art.

What is the work of art? How does art work as art? Andrew Benjamin contends that the only way to address these questions is by developing a radically new materialist philosophy of art, and by rethinking the history of art from within that perspective. A materialist philosophy of art starts with the contention that meaning is only ever the after effect of the way in which materials work. Starting with the relation between history, materials and work (art’s work), this book opens up a highly original reconfiguration of the philosophy of art. Benjamin undertakes a major project that seeks to develop a set of complex interarticulations between art history and an approach to art’s work that emphasizes art’s material presence. A philosophy of art emerges from the limitations of aesthetics.

This volume of essays on the philosopher John Sallis assesses his wide ranging and genuinely original contribution to philosophy. Along with the response to the essays by Sallis, these essays indicate directions for the future of philosophy.

Social work research is concerned with complex social issues closely connected to communities of people who are marginalized and oppressed. This volume develops critical and creative research methodologies that place questions of social justice at their centre and take innovative approaches to collecting, analysing, interpreting and presenting research data. The first section of the book examines textual data produced from an array of methodologies focused on the spoken and/or written word. These approaches allow those who are often silenced to speak by providing space and time to capture memory and meanings that may not come to light in a time driven structured research method like an interview or a questionnaire. The second section of the book discusses visual methods, including an examination of historical artefacts like, photographs and objects, and participant engagement with art, specifically clay sculpture and drawings. Both sets of methods examine the concept of ’time’, that is, how we understand time, as in our past memories, how we develop relationships and knowledge over time. These creative and critical methods provide new insights into ways of undertaking social research in social work which captures the complexity of social experiences, problems and meanings that are, more often than not, embedded in time and place.

“A landmark achievement in Heidegger scholarship . . . displays a rigorous, thoughtful, and nuanced understanding of the whole of Heidegger’s notebooks.” —Andrew J. Mitchell, author of The Fourfold: Reading the Late Heidegger Engaging the development of Heidegger’s non-public writings on “the event” between 1936 and 1941, Daniela Vallega-Neu reveals what Heidegger’s private writings kept hidden. Vallega-Neu takes readers on a journey through these volumes, which are not philosophical works in the traditional sense as they read more like fragments, collections of notes, reflections, and expositions. In them, Vallega-Neu sees Heidegger searching for a language that does not simply speak about being, but rather allows a sense of being to emerge in his thinking and saying. She focuses on striking shifts in the tone and movement of Heidegger’s thinking during these important years. Skillfully navigating the unorthodox and intimate character of these writings, Vallega-Neu provides critical insights into questions of attunement, language, the body, and historicity in Heidegger’s thinking.

During more than fifty years in medical research, Elwood honed his skills in evaluating evidence—evidence of benefit from drugs, from clinical procedures, and above all, from lifestyle. The overall aim throughout was not just an increase in survival but also the enriching of the health and the well-being of patients. In this book, Elwood examines the person and the life of Jesus and its relevance to our daily lives and to our relationships. Starting with the virgin birth, he examines the evidence in the story by Mary that her conception and pregnancy were unique and are consistent with the person of Jesus having a human and a divine origin. He then examines the life and teaching of Jesus and shows how this can enrich and give purpose to the lives of those who follow Jesus. Finally, Elwood reconstructs the details of the death and the resurrection of Jesus and attempts to explain some of the underlying purposes and meaning for us of these events. In neither his medical work nor in this book does Elwood ever claim proof, freely admitting there is always another possible explanation. Throughout the book, Elwood sees faith as one possible response to evidence, but he commends the seeking of further evidence as an indication of honest doubt on the part of the inquirer.