Walter Benjamin was a German Jewish philosopher, cultural critic, and essayist, born on July 15, 1892, and died on September 26, 1940. An important figure in the Western intellectual tradition, he is best known for his works on aesthetics, historical materialism, and literary criticism. His diverse body of work includes analyses of historical materialism, the relationship between art and politics, and the philosophical basis of the humanities. Benjamin's most famous works include "The Task of the Translator," an essay on the theory of translation; "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction," which discusses the effects of mass production on culture; and "Theses on the Philosophy of History," a set of aphorisms critiquing traditional historical narratives. Although he did not live to see most of his work gain widespread recognition, after his death, he became influential in various intellectual fields, including critical theory, media theory, and literary studies. Tragically, Benjamin's life ended when he died by suicide while fleeing the Nazis, at the Spanish-French border during World War II, as part of a group of refugees attempting to escape the Holocaust. Despite his premature death, his ideas have had a lasting impact on contemporary thought.