Acéphale
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''Acéphale'' is the name of a public review created by Georges Bataille (which numbered five issues, from 1936 to 1939) and a secret society formed by Bataille and others who had sworn to keep silent. Its name is derived from the Greek ἀκέφαλος (''akephalos'', literally "headless").


''Acéphale'', the review

Dated 24 June 1936, the first issue was only eight pages. The cover was illustrated by
André Masson André-Aimé-René Masson (4 January 1896 – 28 October 1987) was a French artist. Biography Masson was born in Balagny-sur-Thérain, Oise, but when he was eight his father's work took the family first briefly to Lille and then to Brussel ...
with a drawing openly inspired by
Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 14522 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, Drawing, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially res ...
's famous drawing of ''
Vitruvian Man The ''Vitruvian Man'' ( it, L'uomo vitruviano; ) is a drawing by the Italian Renaissance artist and scientist Leonardo da Vinci, dated to . Inspired by the writings by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius, the drawing depicts a nude man in two s ...
'', who embodies classical reason. Masson's figure, however, is headless, his groin covered by a skull, and holds in his right hand a burning heart, while in his left he wields a dagger. Under the title ''Acéphale'' are printed the words ''Religion. Sociologie. Philosophie'' followed on the next line by the expression ''the sacred conjuration'' (''la conjuration sacrée''). The first article, signed by Bataille, is titled "The Sacred Conjuration" and claims that "Secretly or not... it is necessary to become different or else cease to be." Further on, Bataille wrote: "Human life is exasperated by having served as the head and reason of the universe. Insofar as it becomes this head and this reason, insofar as it becomes necessary to the universe, it accepts serfdom." The second issue of the review begins with a large article titled "
Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (; or ; 15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher, prose poet, cultural critic, philologist, and composer whose work has exerted a profound influence on contemporary philosophy. He began his car ...
and Fascists", in which Bataille violently attacks
Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche Therese Elisabeth Alexandra Förster-Nietzsche (10 July 1846 – 8 November 1935) was the sister of philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche and the creator of the Nietzsche Archive in 1894. Förster-Nietzsche was two years younger than her brothe ...
, Nietzsche's sister, who had married the notorious antisemite
Bernhard Förster Ludwig Bernhard Förster (31 March 1843 – 3 June 1889) was a German teacher. He was married to Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche, the sister of the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. Life Förster became a leading figure in the anti-Semitic ...
— the wedding had led to a final rupture between Nietzsche and his sister. Bataille thereby called Elisabeth ''Elisabeth Judas-Förster'', recalling Nietzsche's declaration: "To never frequent anyone who is involved in this bare-faced fraud concerning races." The same issue contains an unedited text of Nietzsche on
Heraclitus Heraclitus of Ephesus (; grc-gre, Ἡράκλειτος , "Glory of Hera"; ) was an ancient Greek pre-Socratic philosopher from the city of Ephesus, which was then part of the Persian Empire. Little is known of Heraclitus's life. He wrot ...
from ''Die Philosophie im tragischen Zeitalter der Griechen'' (''Philosophy in the Tragic Age of the Greeks''), as well as an article from
Jean Wahl Jean André Wahl (; 25 May 188819 June 1974) was a French philosopher. Early career Wahl was educated at the École Normale Supérieure. He was a professor at the Sorbonne from 1936 to 1967, broken by World War II. He was in the U.S. from 1942 ...
titled "Nietzsche and the Death of God," which is a commentary on a text from
Karl Jaspers Karl Theodor Jaspers (, ; 23 February 1883 – 26 February 1969) was a German-Swiss psychiatrist and philosopher who had a strong influence on modern theology, psychiatry, and philosophy. After being trained in and practicing psychiatry, Jaspe ...
on Nietzsche. The other issues also centered on Nietzsche. The last one, prepared but ultimately not published, was titled "Nietzsche's madness" (''La folie de Nietzsche''). These references to Nietzsche were directed against the philosopher's appropriation by
Nazism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) i ...
- despite Nietzsche's opposition against
anti-semitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...
- as one of its seminal thinkers, leading to Nietzsche's unpopularity at the time in France. Apart from Bataille, who signed most of the texts, Roger Caillois (issue 3 and 4),
Pierre Klossowski Pierre Klossowski (; ; 9 August 1905 – 12 August 2001) was a French writer, translator and artist. He was the eldest son of the artists Erich Klossowski and Baladine Klossowska, and his younger brother was the painter Balthus. Life Born in Par ...
(issue 1, 2, 3 and 4),
André Masson André-Aimé-René Masson (4 January 1896 – 28 October 1987) was a French artist. Biography Masson was born in Balagny-sur-Thérain, Oise, but when he was eight his father's work took the family first briefly to Lille and then to Brussel ...
, Jules Monnerot (issue 3 and 4), Jean Rollin and
Jean Wahl Jean André Wahl (; 25 May 188819 June 1974) was a French philosopher. Early career Wahl was educated at the École Normale Supérieure. He was a professor at the Sorbonne from 1936 to 1967, broken by World War II. He was in the U.S. from 1942 ...
(in the second issue) also participated in the review.


The secret society

Because of its very nature, it is difficult to describe the society's acts. Bataille referred several times to
Marcel Mauss Marcel Mauss (; 10 May 1872 – 10 February 1950) was a French sociologist and anthropologist known as the "father of French ethnology". The nephew of Émile Durkheim, Mauss, in his academic work, crossed the boundaries between sociology and ...
who had studied secret societies in Africa, describing them as a "total social phenomenon". On this model, he organized several nocturnal meetings in the woods, near an oak which had been struck by lightning. Members of the ''Acéphale'' society were required to adopt several rituals, such as refusing to shake hands with anti-semites and celebrating the decapitation of
Louis XVI Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was ...
, an event which prefigured the "chiefless crowd" targeted by "acéphalité". Members of the society were also invited to meditation, on texts of Nietzsche, Freud, Sade and Mauss read during the assemblies. To psychologically prepare for the violence and losses that active duty in the French Resistance to Vichy—Nazi occupation of France would bring, members discussed carrying out a
human sacrifice Human sacrifice is the act of killing one or more humans as part of a ritual, which is usually intended to please or appease gods, a human ruler, an authoritative/priestly figure or spirits of dead ancestors or as a retainer sacrifice, wherein ...
, but this may never have been carried out.


The ''Encyclopaedia Da Costa''

Acephale also published ''Encyclopaedia Da Costa'' ''(Da Costa Encyclopédique)'', meant to coincide with the 1947
International Surrealist Exhibition The International Surrealist Exhibition was held from 11 June to 4 July 1936 at the New Burlington Galleries, near Savile Row in London's Mayfair, England. Organisers The exhibition was organised by committees from England, France, Belgium, Sca ...
in Paris, but due to printing delays, the ''Encyclopedia'' was not distributed until months after the exhibition ended. Modelled after the format of a conventional encyclopedia, it lambasted social and individual conventions with an unprecedented fervor, as well as putting forth more obscure ideas. Perhaps its most insolent entry was the "License to Live", a faux governmental form requesting vital statistics from the bearer in order to enforce its legal fiat; the penalty for failing to keep the document "in order" was death. The license was likely an invention of
Marcel Duchamp Henri-Robert-Marcel Duchamp (, , ; 28 July 1887 – 2 October 1968) was a French painter, sculptor, chess player, and writer whose work is associated with Cubism, Dada, and conceptual art. Duchamp is commonly regarded, along with Pablo Picasso ...
, typographer for the ''Encyclopaedia Da Costa'', and was a gesture that had no obvious relationship to the ''art object'' as it is commonly known. A precursor to "License to Live" appears in an earlier note in Duchamp's ''Green Box'', published in 1934 but written 20 years earlier, where he imagines a society in which people must pay for the air they breathe. By the end of the century the encyclopedia fell into obscurity, partly because those who created it actively discouraged interested parties from procuring copies.


See also

* '' Documents'', a surrealist journal edited by Bataille from 1929 to 1930 * '' Minotaure'', a primarily surrealist-oriented publication founded by
Albert Skira Albert Skira (1904–1973) was a Swiss art dealer, publisher and the founder of the Skira publishing house. The Skira publishing house, Editions d'Art Albert Skira Skira founded the eponymous publishing house in Lausanne in 1928, at various tim ...
, published in Paris from 1933 to 1939 * ''
La Révolution surréaliste ''La Révolution surréaliste'' (English: ''The Surrealist Revolution'') was a publication by the Surrealists in Paris. Twelve issues were published between 1924 and 1929. Shortly after releasing the first '' Surrealist Manifesto'', André Bre ...
'', a seminal Surrealist publication founded by André Breton, published in Paris from 1924 to 1929 * '' View'', an American art magazine, primarily covering avant-garde and surrealist art, published from 1940 to 1947 * '' VVV'', a New York journal published by émigré European surrealists from 1942 through 1944


Notes


Bibliography


Texts from Georges Bataille

* ''L'apprenti Sorcier : Ce que j'ai à dire'', éd. de la Différence, Paris, 1937 * ''Acéphale'', réédition des numéros publiés et du numéro final non publié, éd. Jean-Michel Place, Paris, 1995 * ''L'Apprenti Sorcier'' (textes, lettres et documents (1932–1939) rassemblés, présentés et annotés par Marina Galletti), Éditions de la Différence, Paris, 1999 * ''The Sacred Conspiracy'' (The Internal Papers of the Secret Society of Acéphale and Lectures to the College of Sociology, edited by Marina Galletti and Alastair Brotchie), Atlas Press, London, 25 January 2018


Other references

*
Maurice Blanchot Maurice Blanchot (; ; 22 September 1907 – 20 February 2003) was a French writer, philosopher and literary theorist. His work, exploring a philosophy of death alongside poetic theories of meaning and sense, bore significant influence on pos ...
, ''La communauté inavouable'',
Les Éditions de Minuit Les Éditions de Minuit (, ''Midnight Press'') is a French publishing house. It was founded in 1941, during the French Resistance of World War II, and is still publishing books today. History Les Éditions de Minuit was founded by writer and i ...
, Paris, *
Marcel Mauss Marcel Mauss (; 10 May 1872 – 10 February 1950) was a French sociologist and anthropologist known as the "father of French ethnology". The nephew of Émile Durkheim, Mauss, in his academic work, crossed the boundaries between sociology and ...
, ''Manuel d'ethnographie'', Petite bibliothèque Payot, Paris, 1967 * Michel Surya, ''Georges Bataille, la mort à l'œuvre'', Gallimard, Paris, 1992 * L'unebévue, n° 16 : ''Les communautés électives'', EPEL, 2000 * Stephan Moebius, ''Die Zauberlehrlinge. Soziologiegeschichte des Collège de Sociologie'', Konstanz 2006.


External links


''Acéphale review''
on-line (January 1937 issue, "Nietzsche and Fascists")
''Da Costa Encyclopédique''
* Interview with André Masson on ''Acéphale'',
Black Sun Lit
' (October 2016) {{DEFAULTSORT:Acephale Defunct magazines published in France French-language magazines Georges Bataille Magazines established in 1936 Magazines disestablished in 1939 Modern art Surrealist magazines French surrealist artists Surrealist groups 1936 establishments in France 1939 disestablishments in France