Over the course of a distinguished career, critic Leo Bersani has tackled
a range of issues in his writing, and this collection gathers together some
of his finest work. Beginning with one of the foundations of queer theory.
his famous meditation on how sex leads to a shattering of the self, Is the
Rectum a Grave?.this volume charts the inspired connections Bersani has made
between sexuality, psychoanalysis, and aesthetics.

Over the course of these essays, Bersani grapples with thinkers ranging
from Plato to Descartes to Georg Simmel. Foucault and Freud recur as key
figures, and although Foucault rejected psychoanalysis, Bersani contends
that by considering his ideas alongside Freud.s, one gains a clearer
understanding of human identity and how we relate to one another.
For Bersani, art represents a crucial guide for conceiving new ways of
connecting to the world, and so, in many of these essays, he stresses the
importance of aesthetics, analyzing works by Genet, Caravaggio, Proust,
Almodovar, and Godard.

Documenting over two decades in the life of one of the best minds working
in the humanities today, Is the Rectum a Grave? and Other Essays is a unique
opportunity to explore the fruitful career of a formidable intellect.

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