Editorial

There is an element of obscurity in the title of this special issue of Colloquy: “Blanchot, the Obscure.” That element is due to the comma between the proper name and the adjective. Thus, “the Obscure” cannot be a straightforward epithet of the person or the work of the French author and critic Maurice Blanchot. Rather, the comma is meant to indicate a type of relationality that pertains between Blanchot and the obscure – moreover, an undecidable relationality. Thus, in this relation neither the name “Blanchot” nor the adjective “obscure” are to be approached with a pre-established security about their origin and destination. The comma indicates the fragile moment of hesitation before this conjunction of name and attribute.