Excerpt

With the increasing attention devoted to Ernst Jünger, this superb translation of his 1934 essay “On Pain” is sure to enrich discussions on its subjects of pain, sensitivity, the body, and visual media. It comes with an informative introduction by translator David C. Durst as well as a substantial and wide-ranging preface by Russell A. Berman, which situates Jünger's text in the contexts of the Weimar Republic and contemporary culture.

In Jünger's essay, pain is the measure of all things. Like our shadow, it is always at our side. But Jünger knows that we wish to be rid of this…