The violence of the letter : toward a theory of writing / Melanie McMahon.

Format:

• Book

Author/Creator:

• McMahon, Melanie, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

• Writing--History--Political aspects.
• Writing--History--Social aspects.
• Alphabet--Political aspects.
• Alphabet--Social aspects.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (213 pages)

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

• Ann Arbor : University of Michigan Press, 2023.
• Ann Arbor, Michigan : University of Michigan Press, 2023.

Summary:

The emergence of the alphabet in ancient Greece, usually heralded as the first step in the inexorable march toward reason and progress, in fact signaled the introduction of a chance technology that hijacked the future, with devastating consequences for humanity. By investigating an array of cultural artifacts, ranging from Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey" to the Oracle at Delphi to Luther's challenge to the Church, this book demonstrates how the apparently benign emergence of writing made possible far-ranging systems of organized domination and unprecedented levels of violence. The Violence of the Letter considers how a twenty-six letter code changed the face of the world, and not always for the better.

Contents:

• Intro
• Contents
• Prelude
• Introduction
• 1. A Brief Technical Detour
• 2. The Trauma of Literacy
• 3. The Alphabet and Reproduction
• 4. Plato and the Forms of Alphabetic Writing
• 5. The Alphabet and Money
• Interlude
• 6. Letters of Blood and Fire
• 7. The Subject Is Always Alphabetized
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index.

Notes:

• Title from eBook information screen..
• Includes bibliographical references (pages 181-191) and index.
• Description based on information from the publisher.

ISBN:

• 9780472903238
• 0472903233

OCLC:

1376446410