Between the Serpent and the Sovereign: On the Perception of Divine Violence

This chapter explores the concept of “divine violence” in Walter Benjamin’s work, focusing on how perception, rather than language, plays a critical role in the formation of collectives and mass movements. Drawing from scholars like Werner Hamacher and Slavoj Zizek, the chapter critiques existing interpretations of divine violence, particularly Hamacher’s attempt to equate it with peaceful, non-coercive communication. Instead, the chapter argues that divine violence entails a violent but necessary de-centering of perception, allowing for new modes of collective understanding to emerge during moments of social upheaval, such as uprisings or natural disasters. By engaging with Benjamin’s early philosophy of language and the opposition between mythic and divine violence, the essay challenges the idea that divine violence is purely communicative. It proposes a framework where divine violence involves a creative interplay of perception that dissolves the reified structures of mythic violence, thereby generating new forms of solidarity and collective action.