Discussion about the avant-garde literatures of Brazil and Indonesia with Oliver Precht, lecturer of philosophy and literature at the University of Munich (LMU).
The discussion will focus on the possibilities, limits and dangers of avant-garde movements in “underdeveloped” countries.
With Brazilian avant-garde literature serving as a case study, this discussion aims to raise broader questions concerning literary avant-gardes at the periphery of global capitalism, especially in the global south. What is the relation between avant-garde literature and politics? What is the role of avant-garde poets at the center (in relation to the periphery of the “underdeveloped” country) and at the periphery (in relation to the centers of global capitalism) at the same time? Can there even be an avant-garde in an “underdeveloped” country? And can there be such a thing as “underdevelopment” for a literary avant-garde?
Oliver Precht teaches philosophy and literature at the University of Munich (LMU), Germany, where he also obtained his PhD in philosophy with a thesis on the connection between German philosophy and national socialism. His research and writing focusses on topics such as classical and Marxist political philosophy, post-modern French philosophy and literature, post-colonial theory, and literature (with a special focus on Brazilian literature), and anthropology. He also works as a translator of literary and theoretical works from Portuguese, French and English. Among others, he has translated and published works by Oswald de Andrade, Haroldo de Campos, Eduardo Viveiros de Castro, Jacques Derrida, Louis Althusser, Fernando Pessoa, and Suely Rolnik.
Back
