Agamben and the Signature of Astrology

In his latest book, Paul Colilli provides an Agambenian archeological study of astrology in Western culture. With great erudition, the author offers a commentary on classical Greco-Roman works (e.g., by Aristotle and Ptolemy), discusses some of the defining moments of Christianity (iconology, Patristics, Aquinas) and authors from the Renaissance (Pico della Mirandola, Giordano Bruno). Colilli demonstrates exceptional expertise in Agamben's oeuvre as well as the latter's own references, including Benjamin, Foucault, and Aby Warburg. . . .The thought-provoking journey Colilli offers to his readers sheds light on the tumultuous history of astrology. . . .Colilli pioneers a systematic and comprehensive study of the importance of astrology in Agamben's work, and by doing so he contributes to the revealing of a lesser-known aspect of Agamben's intellectual endeavor. The book is additionally valuable in that Colilli, a professor of Italian studies, comments on some of Agamben's untranslated texts, including recent books and older interviews, which have remained unknown for most of the English readers. . . .Agamben and the Signature of Astrology is an inspiring archeological work which digs deeply into the tradition of falling back on astrology; it tries to understand the crucial role astrology used to play in human life, why it fell into oblivion, and how it could still be worth commemorating (as opposed to a mere reactualization) in today's world, which is emptied of its mystery and strangeness, and where the heavens are left in the hands of naive horoscopy, dogmatic religions, and secularized/materialistic astrophysics. Colilli points out to an alternative by suggesting an original interpretation of the work of Agamben, who is sensitive to the needs of a new immanent, and yet mystical, connection with the world. * Foucault Studies *
This fascinating and well-researched work by Paul Colilli unexpectedly and for the first time shifts the readers’ attention to astrology.... Among those who will undoubtedly find food for thought here are scholars (both faculties and graduate students) in cultural (Italian) studies, comparative literature, and the history of ideas and philosophy. * Annali D'Italianistica *
Paul Colilli’s archeology of astrology is enlightening and penetrating. His conception of astrology as an epistemological ruin located in the unconscious of contemporary thought should be carefully considered by any scholar in the field of humanities. It is not surprising, therefore, that I learned from his book something utterly unexpected about my own work. -- Giorgio Agamben
Professor Colilli offers the reader a brilliant and insightful semiotic interpretation of an astrological reading of Giorgio Agamben's theoretical and philosophical writings. Through his clear and lucid exposition and argumentation, Colilli provides a significant and substantive addition to our knowledge of the historical dimensions of astrology. -- Frank Nuessel, University of Louisville