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Philosophy

The Accursed Share, Volume I

    Translated by
  • Robert Hurley

From the acclaimed French philosopher, intellectual, and novelist, a brilliant account of the social and economic costs of civilization

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Published:
Nov 14, 2017
Copyright:
1988
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In this important work, Georges Bataille uses his novel economic theory as the basis for an incisive inquiry into the very nature of civilization. He introduces here his concept of the accursed share, the surplus energy that any system, natural or cultural, must expend; it is this expenditure, according to Bataille, that most clearly defines a society. His examples include sacrifice among the Aztecs, potlatch among the Northwest Coast Indians, military conquest in Islam, and Buddhist monasticism in Tibet.

In this way, Bataille proposes a theory of a 鈥済eneral economy鈥� based on excess and exuberance that radically revises conventional economic models of scarcity and utility. A brilliant blend of economics and aesthetics, ethics and anthropology, The Accursed Share provides an excellent introduction to Bataille鈥檚 philosophic work. It will be of particular interest not only to readers of his fiction and essays but also to cultural theorists, anthropologists, and economists of all schools.