Elias Canetti's Death Instinct Explored in New Essay

A new essay on Doppiozero examines Elias Canetti's lifelong intellectual struggle against the death instinct, as reflected in his major works 'Auto da fé', 'The Tongue Set Free', and 'Crowds and Power'. The piece draws on a 1994 article by Claudio Magris in Corriere della Sera, written shortly after Canetti's death, which described the writer's effort to 'hunt down the death instinct like a bloodhound'. Canetti, born in Bulgaria to a Sephardic family, fled across Europe from Bulgaria to Vienna, London, and Zurich, witnessing the 20th century's mass deaths. The essay highlights his tense, contracted expression in later photographs, embodying his relentless pursuit to 'grab the century by the throat'.