I'm not all that familiar with him, just what I read here. On one level, he seems like a guy who has some really good insights, and then some dogshit ones. And lots of takes in between.
However... that description could be about lots of people. I also understand Zizek is (apparently) a brilliant philosopher. I've also read here somewhere that his approach to philosophy or ideas in general can make him frustrating to follow for regular Marxists. Like, he's operating on a different level from us or something. And that he doesn't always say what he means.
So what's the deal with Zizek? How should I approach his writings?
:zizek-joy:
He's a dirty old man that's read Hegel. He enjoys hotdogs and using slurs ironically. He's almost certainly masturbated in the same hotel hot-tub as Werner Herzog.
So yeah, he's basically a Chapo.
Zizek is a land of contrasts
I mean it’s kind of as you said he has some good insights, he’s got some dodgy ones as well.
I get the sense that his work in the 80s is peak good take zizek, or at least that’s the general take. The popular idea seems to be that he makes some controversial/incendiary takes these days in an effort to maintain relevance.
Generally I think he’s at his best when critiquing capitalism or talking about how ideology effects how we view things or hampers us even but sometimes his takes on social situations are a bit goofy and I’ve seen him say shit that edges kinda close, for me personally anyway, to stupidpol/“we have to still say slurs or normal people won’t like us” territory wrt humor or other things.
I think like anyone, take what seems good, read critiques on what seems bad. Just like anyone else
Hish mannerizhms are exshtremely sniff funny and so on and so on however lol
Generally I think he’s at his best when critiquing capitalism or talking about how ideology effects how we view things or hampers us even but sometimes his takes on social situations are a bit goofy and I’ve seen him say shit that edges kinda close, for me personally anyway, to stupidpol/“we have to still say slurs or normal people won’t like us” territory wrt humor or other things.
:this: Zizek has recently been opting towards being a polemic figure and that has led to some really :jesse-wtf: takes. But he's really at his best when confronting chuds as seen in his debate vs Peterson, that was such a clean, thorough take down of the 'intellectual' right I'm not sure the academic fascism is ever going to be viable.
Didn't that debate turn out to be a dud? They agreed on most things.
I remember him directly talking to the chud audience and directing them away from Peterson. While Peterson was preparing for the debate by only reading the communist manifesto, zizek took a nice long shit on capitalism. Zizek also called Peterson out by asking him to directly show him the cultural Marxists, which he obviously couldn't
Overall it was decent in the debatebro framework, but still like all debate bro shit worthless? Idk
Approach Zizek's work the same way you would read something by Diogenes.
That's the most PG-13 Diogenes thing Zizek could do, I thank you for going no further.
He outright said that it's praxis to take capitalists's money, so he takes money to shitpost constantly
His film analysis slaps p hard
perverts guide to cinema is a banger
I quite like Zizek as he produces a lot of interesting and entertaining ideas. He is often right, especially when talking about subjects which he's an expert. Hegelianism for example. He also misses the mark when he talks about science or because he's old. I think he wouldn't be popular with a lot of people on this website because he carries with him criticisms of the Soviet Union and their final decades.
Zizek was trained by Lacan, whom he still seems to hold a lot of reverence for. I don't think you can really comprehend exactly what Zizek is saying without understanding Lacan. This probably doesn't help answer your question exactly, but hopefully points you in a useful direction.
I don’t know shit about Lacan and I don’t think I’ve ever had trouble understanding what he’s saying
there was a really detailed effortpost on the old sub by a philosophy grad student, lemme see if I can dig it up
Oh, I'm going to do the thing that I kind of hate and spoil everyone's fun.
It's a little fucking ableist and teensy-weensy bit racist when people ape his accent and make fun of his ticks. The man clearly uses tugging his shirt and wiping his nose as a way to get through speaking in front of people. If you see him speaking Slovenian, he doesn't do it nearly as much, which I think speaks to it being a way of coping with discomfort.
Look, it's funny the first time and he probably deals with it fine, but just try to keep a lid on it.
He’s good on his analysis of Lacan and that’s about it. His pop culture takes are fun brain candy. Other than that he is a contrarian and a meme
i view him as a polemic philosopher like baudrillard and in his own words he said writing a book every year feels like a civic duty. Books are usually good and more thought out than any knee jerk interviews he has on contemporary issues. He's a shitposter through and through as well which is why he will stay famous as a meme at least for his JP interview with "where are the marxists?" and perhaps he views shitposting as a way of staying relevant and relevancy is the most valuable currency in today's age of social media. Heard someone else call him "a gateway drug to philosophy" and i think that fits.
Being a popular media philosopher is the only way to avoid being a hungry philosopher. I can't blame the man for being theatrical.
Does anyone remember the weird beef between Zizek and Chomsky, which involved Nathan J. Robinson and Current Affairs writers? I can't recall the exact sequence of events, but Chomsky called Zizek's scholarship baseless and contingent on big empty words. Zizek called out Chomsky's interpretation of Cambodia in the 70s. I think he also alleged that Chomsky solicited Robinson's magazine to be an attack dog against Zizek. There was this 2019 scathing article in CA: https://www.currentaffairs.org/2019/10/what-is-zizek-for
