The Work of Rediscovering Public Intellectuals

When it comes to the work of content creation, what's old is new again

It’s time for that Walter Benjamin hot take. Benjamin is fun because you can read 20 pages of his work and claim to be an “expert” on his various opaque claims. I suppose you could also read Passagenwerk from cover to cover, but no one has ever done that before and the feat isn’t likely to happen in my lifetime — or yours

In the churn of content production, the act of "rediscovering" canonical figures has become a cottage industry. This is a fascinating phenomenon, reflective of both the opportunism of digital content and the sincere search for meaning in past thinkers who still resonate today. Rife with contradictions, it also reveals an abiding cynicism at the heart of cultural commentary.

In a culture that prizes the novel and the right-here, right-now, the cycle of reviving public intellectuals is dizzying. "Why We Need Walter Benjamin Now"¹ and "Herman Melville Isn’t Dead Yet"² become story pitches that play into this endless loop. It suggests that these figures are dormant, awakening only when summoned by the contemporary moment's conjurings.³