Benjamin’s "Jetzt"

"Jetzt" is a historical concept proposed by Benjamin,which is based on his epistemological and spatio-temporal view and shows Benjamin’s historical view and attitude towards popular culture.This thesis consists of three parts.First,the connotation and extension of the concept of "Jetzt" are clarified."Jetzt" is the "present" with a sense of recognition and history,through which Benjamin enters history.It has a dual nature:in terms of temporality,"Jetzt"has a non-temporal continuity,encompassing the past and the present,and thus opening up to the future;in regard to spatiality,the moment of "Jetzt" reflects a readable imagery grounded in the whole era.After that,the centrality of "Jetzt" in Benjamin’s view of history is explained.Benjamin conceives of history as a continuous life that is understood and felt in "Jetzt"."Jetzt" writes history through storytelling,thus bringing history to the moment of the coming of the Messiah.Messianic time is the source and goal of the sense of history,which is separate from the flow of linear history and is therefore both a divine inspiration and a reference to "Jetzt".The Messiah guides history to its "unfinished" end,aiming to construct a view of history of "Jetzt".The third part of the paper discusses "Jetzt" in Benjamin’s popular culture based on historical perspective.Born out of socialized production of capitalism,mass culture is so far the dialectical imagery of "Jetzt" in the 20th century and the main component of the contemporary cultural symbol system.Popular culture itself is non-temporal,but the loiterers and modern technology inject a sense of history inside,making it isomorphic with"Jetzt".By becoming loiterers,the masses are able to gain the small possibility of dissociating themselves in escape and confrontation,and to view the whole era from a supra-temporal perspective;while the development of modern technology,especially modern media and modern printing technology,has enabled mass culture to constantly expand the phenomenal world it can depict and cover,changing the way we perceive nature and write history.To conclude,Benjamin’s concept of "Jetzt" is a dissociation from the linear view of progressive history.Only by firmly grasping "Jetzt" of our time and entering into popular culture to feel its rhythms,can we deeply dispel the illusion of capitalist progressiveness and awaken the potential of contemporary people to redeem themselves through criticism.