ABSTRACT
Born: July 15, 1892; Berlin, Germany Died: September 27, 1940; Port Bou, Spain Area of Achievement: Literature Contribution: Unappreciated during his own tragic
life, Benjamin became a major influence upon modern cultural criticism after World War II when former colleagues and friends began publishing his work. Using messianic and Marxist ideas in a very idiosyncratic manner, Benjamin criticized all attempts to mask the suffering of humanity with an aesthetic illusion.
