Benjamin A. Saltzman
Associate professor of English at the University of Chicago and medievalist; author of Turning Away: The Poetics of an Ancient Gesture and Bonds of Secrecy, with research on literature, law, and spirituality in early medieval England.
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Apr 1, 2026 • 57min
Turning Away from the World / The Poetics of an Ancient Gesture with Benjamin A. Saltzman
Benjamin A. Saltzman, a medievalist and University of Chicago professor, explores the ancient gesture of turning away. He traces its manuscript origins, debates whether aversion is melancholic or restorative, links it to art, philosophy, and media’s pressure to witness. He considers gesture as language and how withdrawal accumulates meaning across history.
