1.2EN2

Posted · Add Comment

According to Marcus Terentius Varro, the Roman writer cited by Giorgio Agamben in Infancy and History, both poets and actors are indelibly involved with making gestures, as “the play is made by the poet, but not acted by him; it is acted by the actor, but not made by him.” In contrast to this borderline state of making but not enacting or enacting but not making, the emperor “neither makes nor acts, but takes charge, in other words carries the burden of [responsibility].” (Varro according to Agamben 2006EN, 140). For Agamben, Varro’s observation suggests what a gesture is (Agamben 2006EN, 139). In this light, certain claims could be made of this research: whereas DAR makes gestures, the ultimate responsibility for the research lies with me. On this stage, words are like actors in that they take different shapes and forms, transform.