“In a democracy, every ordinary citizen is effectively a king--but a king in a constitutional democracy, a monarch who decides only formally, whose function is merely to sign off on measures proposed by an executive administration. This is why the problem with democratic rituals is homologous to the great problem of constitutional monarchy: how to protect the dignity of the king? How to maintain the appearance that the king effectively makes decisions, when we all know this not to be true?” KnowsProblemDecisionDemocracyKingsCitizensProtectOrdinaryDignityFunctionDemocraticAppearanceBeing TrueAdministrationExecutivesRitualMonarchyMonarchsOrdinary CitizensConstitutional MonarchySigning Off Book:First As Tragedy, Then As Farce Source: First As Tragedy, Then As Farce
“I think that the task of philosophy is not to provide answers, but to show how the way we perceive a problem can be itself part of a problem.” ThinkingWayPhilosophyShowsProblemAnswersTasksPerceive Author:Slavoj Žižek
“Why are so many problems today perceived as problems of intolerance, rather than as problems of inequality, exploitation, or injustice? Why is the proposed remedy tolerance, rather than emancipation, political struggle, or even armed struggle?” ProblemTodayPoliticalStruggleInjusticeToleranceInequalityRemedyIntoleranceExploitationEmancipationPolitical StruggleArmed Struggle Book:Living in the End Times Source: Living in the End Times
“What if the way we perceive a problem is already part of the problem?” IfsWayProblemPerceiveWhat If Author:Slavoj Žižek
“For me, Stalinism was even a greater philosophical problem than Nazism. Under Nazism, if you were a Jew, you were simply killed, no questions asked, you had nothing to prove. Under Stalinism, of course, most [victims] were on trial for false accusations; most of them were not traitors. There is one interesting feature: that they were tortured or through some kind of blackmail forced to confess to being traitors.” IfsKindProblemCoursesInterestingGreaterProvePhilosophicalVictimJewTrialsFeaturesTraitorNazismAccusationBlackmailStalinismQuestions AskedFalse Accusation Author:Slavoj Žižek
“The problem for me is not that Schwarzenegger is governor, but the extent to which even politicians who are not actors are functioning like actors.” ProblemActorsPoliticianGovernorsSchwarzenegger Author:Slavoj Žižek
“The problem with kitsch is that it is all too profound, manipulating deep libidinal and ideological forces, while true art knows how to remain at the surface, how to subtract it's subject from it's deepest context of historical reality. The same goes for contemporary art, where we often encounter brutal attempts to return to the Real, to remind the spectator or reader that he is perceiving a fiction, to awaken him from a sweet dream.” KnowsArtRealProblemDreamRealityForceFictionKnow HowSubjectsSweetReturnReaderHistoricalProfoundSurfaceContemporaryEncountersBrutalSpectatorsIdeologicalKitschContemporary ArtSweet Dreams Author:Slavoj Žižek
“The problem for us is not are our desires satisfied or not. The problem is how do we know what we desire.” KnowsProblemDesireSatisfied Author:Slavoj Žižek
“Come on. I don't have any problem violating my own insights in practice.” ProblemMy OwnPracticeInsight Author:Slavoj Žižek