Final Issues: Endings in Modern Intellectual History

Histories of avant-gardes are often told through documents of their beginnings: Pamphlets and programs proclaim what the groups behind them stand for, what they want to achieve, and what they oppose. The importance of ‘beginnings’ has been emphasized in cultural theory and historiography alike. However, in contrast, endings seem much harder to grasp – not at least because the late and final stages of political-intellectual projects are often under-documented, as many avant-gardes and collec...