Sexual Personae (1990)

The accursed share

Georges Bataille

1988 · 200 pages · 1 review

Others: Positive

Most Anglo-American readers know Bataille as a novelist. The "Accursed Share "provides an excellent introduction to Bataille the philosopher. Here he uses his unique economic theory as the basis for an incisive inquiry into the very nature of civilization. Unlike conventional economic models based on notions of scarcity, Bataille's theory develops the concept of excess: a civilization, he argues, reveals its order most clearly in the treatment of its surplus energy. The result is a brilliant blend of ethics, aesthetics, and cultural anthropology that challenges both mainstream economics and ethnology. The three volumes of "The Accursed Share" address what Georges Bataille sees as the paradox of utility: namely, if being useful means serving a further end, then the ultimate end of utility can only be uselessness. The first volume, the only one published before Bataille's death, treated this paradox in economic terms, showing that "it is not necessity but its contrary, luxury, that presents living matter and mankind with their fundamental problems." In the second and third volumes, "The History of Eroticism" and "Sovereignty", Bataille explores the same paradox of utility from an anthropological and an ethical perspective, respectively. "The History of Eroticism" analyzes the fears and fascination, the prohibitions and transgressions attached to the realm of eroticism as so many expressions of the "uselessness" of erotic life. In the third volume, Bataille raises the ethical problems of sovereignty, of "the independence of man relative to useful ends."

The origins and history of consciousness

Erich Neumann

1949 · 493 pages · 1 review

Others: Positive

The Origins and History of Consciousness draws on a full range of world mythology to show how individual consciousness undergoes the same archetypal stages of development as human consciousness as a whole. Erich Neumann was one of C. G. Jung's most creative students and a renowned practitioner of analytical psychology in his own right. In this influential book, Neumann shows how the stages begin and end with the symbol of the Uroboros, the tail-eating serpent. The intermediate stages are projected in the universal myths of the World Creation, Great Mother, Separation of the World Parents, Birth of the Hero, Slaying of the Dragon, Rescue of the Captive, and Transformation and Deification of the Hero. Throughout the sequence, the Hero is the evolving ego consciousness. Featuring a foreword by Jung, this Princeton Classics edition introduces a new generation of readers to this eloquent and enduring work. Wikipedia discussion: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Origins_and_History_of_Consciousness Jordan B. Peterson: Erich Neumann is the most well-regarded student, analyst & distiller of Carl Jung's work.

Winter Light: On Late Life's Radiance

Douglas J. Penick

2025 · 1 review

Others: Positive

Come as you are

Emily Nagoski

2015 · 448 pages · 2 reviews

Others: Positive

An essential exploration of why and how women’s sexuality works—based on groundbreaking research and brain science—that will radically transform your sex life into one filled with confidence and joy. Researchers have spent the last decade trying to develop a “pink pill” for women to function like Viagra does for men. So where is it? Well, for reasons this book makes crystal clear, that pill will never exist—but as a result of the research that’s gone into it, scientists in the last few years have learned more about how women’s sexuality works than we ever thought possible, and Come as You Are explains it all. The first lesson in this essential, transformative book by Dr. Emily Nagoski is that every woman has her own unique sexuality, like a fingerprint, and that women vary more than men in our anatomy, our sexual response mechanisms, and the way our bodies respond to the sexual world. So we never need to judge ourselves based on others’ experiences. Because women vary, and that’s normal. Second lesson: sex happens in a context. And all the complications of everyday life influence the context surrounding a woman’s arousal, desire, and orgasm. Cutting-edge research across multiple disciplines tells us that the most important factor for women in creating and sustaining a fulfilling sex life, is not what you do in bed or how you do it, but how you feel about it. Which means that stress, mood, trust, and body image are not peripheral factors in a woman’s sexual wellbeing; they are central to it. Once you understand these factors, and how to influence them, you can create for yourself better sex and more profound pleasure than you ever thought possible. And Emily Nagoski can prove it.

Caliban and the Witch

Silvia Federici

2004 · 288 pages · 1 review

Others: Neutral

De la emancipación de la servidumbre a las herejías subversivas, un hilo rojo recorre la historia de la transición del feudalismo al capitalismo. Todavía hoy expurgado de la gran mayoría de los manuales de historia, la imposición de los poderes del Estado y el nacimiento de esa formación social que acabaría por tomar el nombre de capitalismo no se produjeron sin el recurso a la violencia extrema. La acumulación originaria exigió la derrota de los movimientos urbanos y campesinos, que normalmente bajo la forma de herejía religiosa reivindicaron y pusieron en práctica diversos experimentos de vida comunal y reparto de riqueza. Su aniquilación abrió el camino a la formación del Estado moderno, la expropiación y cercado de las tierras comunes, la conquista y el expolio de América, la apertura del comercio de esclavos a gran escala y una guerra contra las formas de vida y las culturas populares que tomó a las mujeres como su principal objetivo. Al analizar la quema de brujas, Federici no sólo desentraña uno de los episodios más inefables de la historia moderna, sino el corazón de una poderosa dinámica de expropiación social dirigida sobre el cuerpo, los saberes y la reproducción de las mujeres. Esta obra es también el registro de unas voces imprevistas (las de los subalternos: Calibán y la bruja) que todavía hoy resuenan con fuerza en las luchas que resisten a la continua actualización de la violencia originaria.

Love That Journey for Me

Emily Garside

2021 · 96 pages · 2 reviews

Others: Positive

Love That Journey For Me dives deep into the cultural sensation of Canadian comedy-drama Schitt’s Creek. Considering the fusion of existing sitcom traditions, references and tropes, this Inkling analyses the nuance of the show and its surrounding cultural and societal impact as a queer revolution. By discussing how the show reshapes LGBTQ+ narratives from the crafting of the town itself, and celebratory influences including Cabaret, to how writer-creator Dan Levy utilised and subverted expectations throughout his work, Emily Garside will showcase how one TV show became a watershed moment in queer representation and gay relationships on screen. Part analysis of Schitt’s Creek’s importance, part homage to a cultural landmark, this is a show that – in the words of David Rose himself – needs to be celebrated. This book is that celebration. This book is unofficial, and unaffiliated with Schitt’s Creek and its brand.