The French philosopher Jean Baudrillard, cultural theorist, media theorist, situationist, post-structuralist and one of France’s leading postmodern thinkers, died today in Paris at the age of 77, his relatives said. He was the last survivor of the fab four of French PoMo (the others being Georges Bataille, Gilles Deleuze and Jacques Derrida), and a wonderful prose poet. The only living French philosopher I can think of who continues to write in the tradition of Baudrillard is Paul Virilio.

Baudrillard satirized.

Text: “Yes, hyper-scepticism. Intellectuals must stop legitimizing the notion that there is some “ultimate truth” behind appearances. Then, maybe, the masses will turn their backs on the media and public opinion management will collapse.” –Baudrillard

The cartoon is from “Postmodernism for beginners” by Richard Appignanesi and Chris Garratt, an Icon Books book.

Update, March 11 2007:

The Gulf War Did not Take Place

New York, Sept 11, 2001, terrorist attacs on th WTC.

My interest in Baudrillard is very much related to his statements on hyperreal mediatizations of the 1990/1991 Gulf war and on the 2001 terrorist attacks on the WTC.

• On the latter, the Augean Stables offers a thorough analysis of Baudrillard’s “schadenfreude and ressentiment” diagnosis titled Baudrillard on 9-11: American Derangement Syndrome and the Ideology of Resentment. Further reading: When Bad Things Happen to Other People (2000) – John Portmann.
• Litlove analyzes Baudrillard’s concept of hyperreality as it relates to the Gulf war (The Gulf War Did Not Take Place).

Update March 12, 2007:

• Excellent obituary by K-Punk (… obscurant and pop philosopher … always an outsider … ). K-Punk also recommends Antigram (… influential to … the New York “Simulationist” school, principally composed of the artists Peter Halley, Jeff Koons, Ross Bleckner, Sherrie Levine … ) and Sit down man, you’re a bloody tragedy ( … the gulf that lies between Robert Venturi’s Learning from Las Vegas and Baudrillard’s America ...).