Children, Redemption and Remembrance in Walter Benjamin

Abstract

wrote extensively on children and childhood, though this aspect of his work has hitherto received scant attention despite continuing and growing interest in his thought. This article makes explicit the connection between his acute observations of childhood and his distinctive messianic philosophy. The twin aspects of redemption in Benjamin's writings: remembrance and now-time, as illustrated in Wim Wender's Wings of Desire, are explored in relation to the 'task of childhood'. Benjamin asserts the emancipatory potential held within the development of historical consciousness, and leads us to question how our understanding of childhood can foster this potential BENJAMIN'S CHILDRENConsidering the central importance of the figure of the child in Benjamin's writings it is surprising that so little has been written on the subject. He makes frequent mention of children throughout his essays and in his Arcades Project; he also wrote about toys and play, children's perception of colour, an autobiographical collection of childhood fragments, Berlin Childhood around 1900, and a number of radio broadcasts for young audiences. Essays from around 1928 discuss the role of children's theatre in education and communist pedagogy. He was a collector of children's books, wrote about children's literature, and calls upon figures from traditional tales. Despite this, Benjamin has received little attention in works on the philosophy of childhood and, in broader studies of Benjamin, childhood receives only a passing glance 1 .This article explores some central ideas in Benjamin's writings, in particular the idea of the Messianic in his philosophy of history, and relates this to his conception of childhood. In doing so, certain difficult issues raised by the historical education of children may be enabled through a somewhat neglected critique in Benjamin studies. Although he cannot tell us how to teach children history, Benjamin's ideas assert the emancipatory potential held within the development of historical consciousness, and lead us to question how our understanding of childhood can foster this potential. bs_bs_banner

Minecraft as a Tool for Engaging Children in Urban Planning: A Case Study in Tirol Town, Brazil

“…The panel discussed UN-Habitat, Mojang and Microsoft initiatives regarding civic engagement in public spaces' design, focusing on the participation of youth, woman and slum dwellers. Thus, regardless of citizen involvement or the fact that there are places where there are no computers or even internet, it is possible to conduct and engage urban planning experiments in Minecraft, with participation of citizens of different ages, genders and cultures, if the required equipment is provided during the workshops [13,35].…”

“…The hypothesis was that children are valuable to the planning process, and that they are able to co-design, collaborate, and envision changes in the place in which they live. Children have a redemptive possibility of the past through the life-and-sense-embracing immersion in the world of sensation, absorbing and being absorbed by the present moment [35]. Using a Minecraft scenarios approach may enable children to explore the twin aspects of redemption in Benjamin's writings: remembrance and now-time as a task of childhood [36].…”

“…The notion of remembrance raises three interlinked sets of questions: (a) justification for remembering the past; (b) what should be remembered; and (c) what kind of existence the past has [35]. The justification relates to the subject, for instance, setting Minecraft as a scenario environment for children to revisit the past and better understand their ancestors planning choices.…”