The horizon : a history of our infinite longing

387 Pages·2011·7.194 MB·English

by  Maleuvre, Didier

The Horizon
The publisher gratefully acknowledges the generous support
of the General Endowment Fund of the University of
California Press Foundation.
The Horizon
A History of Our Infinite Longing
Didier Maleuvre
university of california press
Berkeley • Los Angeles • London
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University of California Press
Berkeley and Los Angeles, California
University of California Press, Ltd.
London, England
© 2011 by The Regents of the University of California
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Maleuvre, Didier.
The horizon : a history of our infinite longing /
Didier Maleuvre.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 978-0-520-26743-5 (cloth : acid-free paper)
1. Civilization—History. 2. Horizon—Social
aspects—History. 3. Boundaries—Social aspects—
History. 4. Wonder—History. 5. Philosophy—
History. 6. Religion—History. 7. Art—History.
I. Title.
cb151.m224 2011
909—dc22
2010021801
Manufactured in the United States of America
20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This book is printed on Natures Book, which contains
50% post-consumer waste and meets the minimum
requirements of ansi/niso z39.48–1992 (r 1997)
(Permanence of Paper).
To Juan
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I am tormented with an everlasting itch for things remote.
—Herman Melville
The longing for the infinite must always be a longing.
—Friedrich Schlegel
Only a poet could frame a language that could frame a
world.
—Jeanette Winterson
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Contents
List of Illustrations xi
Preface xiii
Acknowledgments xxi
Introduction 1
part one. the archaic age
1. Permanence: Egypt, 2500 b.c.e. 11
2. Astonishment: Mesopotamia, circa 1900 b.c.e. 29
3. Enterprise: Aegean Sea, circa 725 b.c.e. 39
4. Tremor: Northern Kingdom of Israel, 500 b.c.e. 51
part two. the philosophical age
5. Exodus: The Desert of Moab, 450 b.c.e. 65
6. Synthesis: The Hellenic Archipelago, 500 b.c.e. 77
7. Closure: Athens, circa 400 b.c.e. 85