BENJAMIN ON ART HISTORY [Re: ADORNO ONE LAST TIME]

[Ralph Dumain]

At 08:48 AM 02/15/2000 -0500, you wrote:
 >i've never heard, nor seen the quote you reproduced but I think  Benjamiin's
>interest in the unique work of art is best discussed in "The Work of Art
in the
>Age of Mechanical Reproduction" - in Illumiinations of course. Here he
teases out
>the concept of "unique" a little more fully - but not particulary in
relation to
>genre. I like "The Storyteller" for a close examination of the genre of
novel form
>(more in lieu of the quotation you reproduced). You've probably already
read these
>two texts (they are always taught) but i don't think i'm happy with your
statement
>"Benjamin is interested in the unique work of art, of how an understanding
of its
>own character gets lost as the individual work of art gets absorbed into
>historicizing, periodizing, taxonomic and pigeonholing schemes" -
especially in
>relation to "Work of Art".

Is it possible my paraphrase is misleading?  Yes, I've read the mechanical
reproduction essay, but I've never been able to understand it, and nobody
in the Benjamin essay has yet elucidated it satisfactorily.  In my
experience, Benjamin is about the hardest author to understand without a
whole lot of context.  Reading bits and pieces without being thoroughly
exposed to his oeuvre and its background seems to land me in perpetual
miscomprehension of his intent.  I still haven't caught on to what makes
Benjamin such a bog thrill.  When I am less rushed, I'll try to explain
more of why this particular passage 
caught my attention.