Stefani Engelstein (Duke University/ZfL): Geschwister-Logik. Genealogisches Denken in der Literatur und den Wissenschaften der Moderne

Lecture by Stefani Engelstein on her book Geschwister-Logik. Genealogisches Denken in der Literatur und den Wissenschaften der Moderne (Sibling Action: The Genealogical Structure of Modernity) (De Gruyter 2024)
Respondence: Stefan Willer (HU Berlin)

In the 19th century, genealogy became an established method to classify historically mutable systems such as languages, biological species, nations, and religions. It was also used to justify the invention of the category of race. Sibling Action: The Genealogical Structure of Modernity critically analyzes genealogy as a transdisciplinary organization principle of the cultural and biological world, thus providing an alternative history of our modern age.

In her book, Stefani Engelstein argues that, in such systems, concepts are determined through differentiations from adjacent concepts—or sibling terms. While neither identical nor totally different, these sibling terms constitute the system while simultaneously destabilizing it. The book connects an extensive intellectual history to detailed analyses from the life and human sciences and close readings of literary texts.

In her talk with Stefan Willer (HU Berlin), Stefani Engelstein discusses the understanding of systems of knowledge as discussed in her book while also introducing theoretical foundations for more flexible forms of belonging, identity, and agency.

With kind support from De Gruyter, Berlin.

Admission is free, prior registration is not necessary.

Stefani Engelstein is a professor for German Studies at Duke University. She is currently a Guggenheim Fellow at the ZfL.

Stefan Willer is a professor for modern German literature at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.