Synopsis
What is addiction? Who is an addict, and why? Are we only addicted to substances, or also to patterns of thought: self-loathing, doubt, obsessive thinking, and perhaps even silence? Subtle Gravity, like Praeg’s first novel, Imitation, departs from the assumption that we are all addicts. We all struggle with being alone. Taking as a point of departure an extreme form of addiction—a commitment to the silence we know precedes the violence that language imposes on us—Subtle Gravity maps a possible way back from addiction through a playful engagement with Buddhism, Christian mysticism, and, of course, Star Wars. Subtle Gravity deals with addiction as both a philosophical and spiritual issue or phenomenon. Insights from Buddhism, Christian mysticism, and popular culture are woven into a narrative that simultaneously reflects on contemporary issues in local and global politics.
About the Author
Leonhard Praeg is Extraordinary Professor in the Department of Philosophy at Stellenbosch University, South Africa. He lives in Makhanda in the Eastern Cape, from where he works as a freelance researcher, editor, writer, and yoga nidra teacher. Subtle Gravity is his second novel.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.