Durham E-Theses A Theology of Failure: Ontology and Desire in Slavoj iºek and Christian Apophaticism ROSE, CHRISTA,MARIKA How to cite: ROSE, CHRISTA,MARIKA (2014) A Theology of Failure: Ontology and Desire in Slavoj iºek and Christian Apophaticism, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/10666/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 Marika Rose A Theology of Failure: Ontology and Desire in Slavoj Žižek and Christian Apophaticism This thesis offers a re-reading of the Christian apophatic tradition via the work of Slavoj Žižek in order to articulate an account of Christian theology and identity as failure, as constituted by a commitment to Christ as both its cornerstone and the stone on which it stumbles. In Dionysius the Areopagite’s marriage of Christian theology with Neoplatonism, the ontology of Neoplatonism is brought into uncomfortable but productive tension with key themes in Christian theology. These tensions are a crucial aspect of Dionysius' legacy, visible not only in subsequent theological thought but also in much twentieth century continental philosophy as it seeks to disentangle itself from its Christian ancestry. Twentieth century discussions of the relationship between apophatic theology and continental philosophy attempt to grapple with this inheritance. The work of Slavoj Žižek, I argue, is an attempt to move beyond the impasses of twentieth century philosophy not by escaping but by returning to metaphysics, drawing on the work of Hegel and Lacan in order to articulate an account of the material world as an intrinsically ruptured economy. This form repeats itself in those structures which subsequently emerge from the material world – in particular, the structures of the individual subject and of the social order and the ways in which both are constituted by desire. This thesis traces the implications of this peculiar ontology through, first, the Derridean problematic of the gift and, second, the Žižekian problematic of violence (both of which, I argue, are structurally homologous with the Christian theological problematics of creation and fall). The thesis offers a critical and theological engagement with Žižek's ontological and erotic account of transformation before returning to Dionysius in order to demonstrate how Žižek's work makes possible a materialist reading of apophatic theology and Christian commitment to the church. A Theology of Failure: Ontology and Desire in Slavoj Žižek and Christian Apophaticism Marika Rose Thesis submitted to Durham University for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Research conducted in the Department of Theology and Religion 2014 Table of Contents List of Abbreviations ......................................................................................................... 4 Statement of copyright ...................................................................................................... 6 Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................... 7 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................... 9 1.1 The linguistic turn............................................................................................ 11 1.2 On the economic problem ............................................................................... 13 1.3 Structure of the thesis ...................................................................................... 17 1.4 Failure and fidelity .......................................................................................... 21 2. Ontology and Desire in Dionysius the Areopagite ...................................................... 24 2.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 24 2.2 Dionysius ......................................................................................................... 25 2.3 Eros and ontology ............................................................................................ 27 2.4 Freedom ........................................................................................................... 29 2.5 Materiality ....................................................................................................... 31 2.6 Hierarchy ......................................................................................................... 35 2.7 Universalism .................................................................................................... 40 2.8 Conclusion ....................................................................................................... 42 3. Apophatic theology and its vicissitudes ...................................................................... 43 3.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 43 3.2 Derrida and Dionysius ..................................................................................... 45 3.2.1 Freedom ............................................................................................... 50 3.2.2 Materiality............................................................................................ 51 3.2.3 Hierarchy ............................................................................................. 51 3.2.4 Universalism ........................................................................................ 53 3.2.5 Ontology and desire ............................................................................. 54 3.3 Dionysius, Derrida and Radical Orthodoxy .................................................... 55 3.3.1 Freedom ............................................................................................... 57 3.3.2 Materiality............................................................................................ 58 3.3.3 Hierarchy ............................................................................................. 60 3.3.4 Universalism ........................................................................................ 62 3.3.5 Ontology and desire ............................................................................. 63 3.4 Dionysius, Derrida and John Caputo ............................................................... 64 3.4.1 Freedom ............................................................................................... 66 3.4.2 Materiality............................................................................................ 67 3.4.3 Hierarchy ............................................................................................. 68 3.4.4 Universalism ........................................................................................ 70 3.4.5 Ontology and desire ............................................................................. 71 3.5 Conclusion ....................................................................................................... 72 4. The death drive ............................................................................................................ 73 4.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 73 4.2 Freud on the death drive .................................................................................. 74 4.3 Lacan on the death drive ................................................................................. 77 4.4 Žižek on the death drive .................................................................................. 84 4.5 Conclusion ....................................................................................................... 89 5. Ontology and the death drive in Slavoj Žižek ............................................................. 91 5.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 91 5.2 Ontology and the death drive .......................................................................... 93 2 5.3 Freedom and the death drive ........................................................................... 95 5.4 Materiality and the death drive ...................................................................... 101 5.5 Hierarchy and the death drive ....................................................................... 110 5.6 Universalism and the death drive .................................................................. 112 5.7 Conclusion ..................................................................................................... 114 6. The Gift ..................................................................................................................... 115 6.1 Introduction