Phenomenology of Art and Narrative in Hannah Arendt

Redemption and Understanding for Law and Literature

Abstract

Hannah Arendt’s aesthetic reflections have not been largely considered in Law and Literature (1), contrary to her contributions to political theory and philosophy. This article seeks to give an approach to the phenomenology of art developed by Arendt to apply it to Law and Literature. For this (2) I describe what this theory consists of, focusing the analysis on the notion of a work of art whose characteristics (permanence and uselessness) and functions (visibility and anticipation) are intertwined with two types of narrative: first, the narrative for redemption (3), based on which Arendt redeems the defeated in history and, second, narration for understanding (4), which seeks to morally
engage the reader in social phenomena. To highlight the use of both forms of narration, I pay attention to the use of Proust In Search of Lost Time in Arendt’s work, regarding the redemption of the Jewish outcast, and to the analysis of a story by Günter Anders entitled Die beweinte Zukunft (1961), based on which I present the concept of understanding developed by Arendt, but led to concern for the current climate crisis.
I conclude (5) with some projections and criticisms that show that Arendt’s phenomenology and her use of the narrative can be used in Law and Literature to reflect on the great problems of contemporary times.