Hanjo Berressem, Leyla Haferkamp (eds.

), Deluzian Events: Writing/History

Münster: Lit Verlag, 2009.
introduction. This paper argues that in contemporary debates in ln malhematlcs ar
cultural studies, but also social and political theory and in new me­ tivety}, but also a
dia theory, GHles Deleuze and Félix Guattari have been pushed More specifically,
excessively to the camp of cultivated artifteiality and conlined to the non-anthropo
the corner of post-humanist thoughl. ln opposition to this view, 1 Lynn Margulis (M
will argue that they are materiallst thinkers who emphasize both There is also a c
immanence and vltality (or 'lile'-centered perspectives) within a the monistic phih
strong ethical project that aims al creating social horizons of hope mode of a 'natun
and sustainable change. of mlnd and body
are bugs to nature as chips to MOl'80ver, 1 wiN explore to currently taking
what extent their brand of discursive forrm
culture? on becoming-insect with vitalism is non-essential­ emphasizing the
deleuze!guattari ist and anti-teleological, ment of the mlnd
with special reference to appraisal of the r
the notion of immanence nomenologlcal
and the Spinozist political (Sobchack), in
ontology. Spinozism (GatE
There is a growing field of Lloyd), in ecologi<
scholarship today which ist thought (ShivE
could be defined as neurological anc
Deleuzlan 'life-studies.'' live sciences (Wil
This field is marked by well as in the d
the ability to construct taken by conte
productive interrelations genomics resea
between distinct and molecutar biolog\
rosi braidotti often compeling discl- lin, Lury and
plinary discourses. For A monlstlc a1
instance between cultural, literary and film studies on the one however, can al�
hand and social sciences, studies of technology and eplstemology of matter'2 ln the
on the other. Rhlzomatics or nomadic thinklng has the ability to creative evolutior
provide some missing links between these perenntany separated evolution (Ansell•
'two cultures,• by introduclng much-needed doses of complexity mobility of matte
and internai differentiations. ln a transdlsciplinary approach that lion thal reduce!
stresses the importance of processes and interrelations, Deleuze's as the life (bios)•
non-realfst naturalism or anti-essentialist vitalism offers new and this equation, rhi;
yet untapped possibilities to reconnect the two cultures of the hu­ the non-determin
manities and the hard sciences. ln thls regard, as I have argued reading, this is cc
elsewhere (Metamorphoses}, Deleuze can be read alongside the the sense of rela·
new science studies and radical eptstemologies of today, not only retum to this poir
 a r e bugs to natur e a s c h'1ps t o c u l t ure?
irary debates in in mathemalics and physics (see Plotnitsky and Delanda respec­ beyond the cuit of the inorganic. Although 1
and in new me­ tively), but also alongside the new genelics and bio-technology. from several quartera the end of postmod- 4
e been pushed More specifically, 1 see clear resonances between Deleuze and emism is currently being celebrated, soma 9
:md confined to the non-anthropocentric epistemologies of Donna Haraway and of the postmodem conceptual and cultural
n lo lhis view, 1 Lynn Margulis (Margulis and Sagan: Parisi). habits are still very much in circulation. Not
imphasize both There is also a common root that connects DeleuzelGuattari to the least of them is the cuit of the inorganic,
clives) wilhin a the monistic philosophies that assume one living matter, in the the celebration of the sublimely fake and the
orizons of hope mode of a 'natureculture' continuum or of the mutual imbrication purposefully inauthentic. This provides one
1inable change. of mind and body. This is of the frameworks of· reception of
1 will explore to currently taking different DeleuzelGuattari's work as some
11 their brand of discursive forms: from sort of kings of queer artifice at
, non-essentïal- emphaslzing the embodi- the tail-end of the linguistic tum of
1nti-leleolog1cal, ment ol the mind, in a re- postmodemism. One discursive
1al relerence 10 appraisal of the neo-phe- area where this is evidenced is in
of immanence nomenological tradition the hasty renditions of the electronic
oinozist political (Sobchack), in feminist web as rhizome. This establishes a
Spinozism (Gatens and convergence between the hype sur­
growing field of Uoyd), in ecological activ- rounding the new digital media and
p loday which ist thought (Shiva), in the information technologies and the
i defined as neurologîcal and cogni- philosophy of Deleuze. Technology
'life-sludîes. '' tive sciences (Wilson), as is at the heart of a process of blur­
ïs marked by well as in the directions ring fundamental categorical divides
f to conslruct taken by contemporary between self and other; a sort of het­
1 inlerrelalions genomics research and eroglossia of the species, a colossal
distinct and molecular biology (Frank- hybridization which combines mon­
mpeling disci­ lin, Lury and Stacey). sters, insects and machines into a
1
iscourses. For A monistîc approach, powerfully post-human approach to
ies on the one however, can also take the form of stressing the 'embralnment what we used to call 'the embodied subject.'
1d epistemology of matter'2 in the sense of a retum to Henri Bergson's notion of This trend towards 'techno-bodies' - which for
as the ability to creative evolution (Grosz, Time), or non-deterministic visions of conservative thinkers spells a crisis - offers
nially separated evolulion (Ansell-Pearson). The idea of the intelligence and the affirmative aspects, in indicating the retum
1
s of complexity mobility of matter contrasts the century-old philosophical tradi­ of 'real bodies' and real materiality. An ontol­
/ approach that tion that reduces matter to immbbility and defines intelligence ogy of presence is replacing postmodemist
lions, Deleuze's as the life (bios)-force that produces movement. ln opposition to deconstruction. Politically, there ls definiteiy a
'
offers new and lhis equatlon, rhizomatic thought supports an idea of evolution of conservative side to this phenomenon, which
ltures ol the hu­ the non-deterrninistic, non-linear and non-teleological kind. ln my has led the neo-liberal thinkers (Francis Fuku­
s I have argued reading, this is connected to the processes of becoming-other, in yama) to celebrate 'neo-realism' and the retum
1d alongside the the sense of relating, hence of affecting and being affected. 1 will of fundamental moral values. Neo-iiberals re­
l loday, not only retum to this point later in the essay. cycle two main master-narratives: on the one
...
 r
r o s bra ido ttl
5
0 hand, the triumph of market economies as the ln the cyber universe which we inhabit, the link between the sublimely artificia
historically dominant form of human evolution flesh and the machine is symblotlc and therefore can best be de­ the less lazy-min
and on the other genetlc delenninism under scribed as a bond of mutual dependence. This engenders some nonhuman, ever
the authority of the DNA and the capital value significant paradoxes, especially when it cornes to the human among living fore
of the Human Genome. These concems have body. The corporeal site of subjectivity is simultaneousty denied a renewed conce
the neo-Kantlan thinkers struck by high levels and strengthened or re-enforced. Anne Balsamo stresses the a world that is tee
of anxiety about the sheer thinkability of hu­ paradoxical concomitance of affects surrounding the new post­ The model of tt
man future (Habennas). human bodies: 1E]ven as techno-science provides the realistic of post-human r
Because of this context, both the possibility of replacement dependence. Toi:
figuration of the cyborg and the of body parts, it also en­ to the co-presenc
cyber-imaginary that supports it ables a fantastic dream embodled subj1
can be seen and, to a certain ex­ of immortality and con­ different element
tent, dismissed today as dominant trol over life and death. dilferent stages
modes of representation. They are And yet, such beliefs lution: like in
powerfully active throughout the about the technological different tim
social fabric and in all the modes future 'life' of the body slmultaneously.
of cultural representation. Claudia are complemented by a man organism ts
Springer argues that this discourse palpable fear of death wholly human.
celebrating the union of humans and annihilation from persan, nor jus!
and electronic technology is cur­ uncontrollable and spec­ ganism. lt's an
rently circulatlng with equal success tacular body-threats: an­ machine, radie.
among the sclentific community as tibiotlc-resistant vlruses, manent, which c
well as in popular culture. The cy­ random contamination, transforms and p
borg as a technologlcally-enhanced flesh-eating bacteria" Interconnections.
body-machine is the dominant (1-2). ln other words. power of such a,
social and discursive figuration for the new practices of life lsm is certainly
the interaction between the humen mobilize not only genera- contalned nor ,
and the technological in post-industrial soclet­ tive forces, but also new and subtler degrees of extinction. This to consciousnesi
ies. lt is also, however, a living or active, ma­ type of vitality, unconcemed about clear-cut distinctions between and the self-ironl
terially embedded cartography of the kind of living and dying, composes the notion of zoe as a nonhuman yet philosophy, restit
power-relations that are operatlve in the post­ affirmative life-force (Braidotti, Metamorphoses). This vitalist ma­ living beings, inc
industrial social sphere (Haraway, Witness). terialism has nothing in common with the postrnodem emphasis nature,' as Gene·
Scott Bukatman argues that this projection of on the inorganic and the aesthetics of fake, pastiche and camp Steven Shavlro c
the physlcal self into an artiflcial environment simulation. are at the end of
feeds into a dream of tenninal identity outside subjectivity and \
the body, a sort of "cybersubject" (187) that does deleuze offer a t heory of post-human bodies? The an­ sitic' mode. This i
supports new-age fantasias of cosmic re­ swer 1s negative if the post-human 1s understood in the vulgar today's body ls
demption via technology. New age spirituality common-sense understandlng of the hyped cyborg and the neo­ practices of pros
or techno-mysticism form part of this trend. liberal celebratlons of the inauthentic, the willfully constructed and is anything but n,
 are b u g s lo n a t u r e a s c h ips ta c ult ure?
k between the sublimely artificial. The answer is positive however, if il points in the body with its environment or territory, which
:an best be de- the less lazy-minded sense of re-configuring the extended, the is one of the salienl features of the notion of 5
19enders some nonhuman, even cosmic span of possible interconnections 'becoming-animal.' A body is a portion of forces
to the human among living forces. This is the direction of neo-materialism and life-bound to the environment that feeds il; ail
,eously denied a renewed concem for the corporeal structure of the subject in organisms are collective and inter-dependent.
o stresses the a world that is technologicatly mediated and globally connected. Parasites and viruses are hetero-directed: They
the new post­ The modal of the embodied subject proposed by the brand need other organisms. Admittedly, they relate
es the realistic of post-human nomadism I am defending is symbiotic inter­ to !hem as incubators or hosts, releasing their
of replacement dependence. This points genetically encoded message with
uts, it also en­ to the co-presence within evident glee. This expresses a self­
mtastic dream emboclied subjects of ish cruelty that horror movies capture
ality and con• different elements, from perlectly, but il is a mare detail in
Ife and death. different stages of evo- a much broader picture. The con­
such beliefs lution: like inhabiting ceptually solid point here is that the
, technological different lime-zones virusl parasite constitutes a modal of
1' of the body simultaneously. The hu- a symbiotic relationship that defeats
lemented by a man organism is neither binary oppositions. lt is a simulacrum
fear of death wholly human, as a that duplicatas itsell ta inlinity wilhout
,ihilallon !rom person, nor just an or- any representational pretensions. As
able and spec­ ganism. lt's an abstract such it is an inspiring modal for a no­
idy•threats: an­ machine, radically im- madic eco-philosophy.
;istant viruses, manent, which captures, The analogy with human reproduc­
contamination, transforms and produces tion is picked up by Shaviro, who
19 bacteria" interconnections. The argues that reproduction also in­
other words, power of such an organ- volves vampirism, parasitism and
>ractices of life ism is csrtainly neither cancerous simulation. Ali origins are
101 only genera• contalned nor confined tainted by such un-noble modes of
extinction. This to consclousness, nor does il coïncide with the deliberately fake lnteraction with nonhuman lite. This does not
ICtions between and the self-ironically un-natural. If anything, DeleuzelGuattari's mean to assert the alleged dictatorship of the
1 nonhuman yet philosophy, resting on a Spinozlst monlstic ontology, makes all viral proliferation of codes. 1 want to resist the
This vitalist ma­ living beings, including the human subjects, very much 'part of hasty dismissal of the complexities of the corpo­
>dem emphasis nature,' as Genevieve Uoyd put il. real self, the speciftcity of human embodiment
liche and camp Steven Shaviro describes this in terms of a new paradigm: We and the paradoxes which define the human
are al the end of the Cold War, binary nuclear modal of embodied species. This over-inllation of the powers of the
subjectivity and we have entered the rhizomatic, 'viral' or 'para­ DNA would be a form of bio-œntered nihilism
odles? The an­ sitic' mode. This is a graphie way of explaining the extent to which which borders on moral irresponsibllity. This
ld in the vulgar today's body is immersed in a set of technologically mediated over-simplified glorification of raw, 'animal' life
>rg and the neo­ practicss of prosthetic extension. Read with Deleuze, this mode needs to be nuanœd in order to avoid genetic
construcled and is anything but negative. lt expresses in fact the co-extensivity of determinism: A new mix, a more balanced corn-
ro s i braido t t i
1
5
2 bination of elements needs to be negotiated. individualism is
in the spaœs in between the traditional dichotomies, including the
The point of convergence among these differ­ body-machine binary. ln other words, il has become historically, ing the complell
ent discourses and practices of bodily material­ scientificalty and culturally impossible to distinguish bodies from their ticular1y for the c
lsm is that the human body is fully lmmersed in technologically mediated extensions. Halberstam and Livingston human (bios) ar
systems of rnceptlon and processing of Infor­ conclude: "Oueer, cyborg, metametazoan. hybrid, PWA; bodies­ Two core objec
mation: those which emanate from its genellc without-organs, bodles-in-process, virtual bodies: in unvisualizable deeply seated
structures, as much as those which 1s relayed amniotic indetenninacy, and unfazed by the hype of their always pre­ universalism. 11
by satellites and wired circuits throughout the mature and redundant annuncialion, posthuman bodies thrive ln the working within a
advanced world. The most signifl• mutuel defomiations of to­ others, can be s
cant thing about post-human bodies tem and taxonomy" (19). side the fom,s
of all species, however, romains 'Life' is simply not what il Western neo-ht
thelr dense materiality. which means used to be. Whereas con­ shared by a m
that they are atso surprislngty gen• temporary culture tends to contemporary s
erative, ln lhat they stubbomly and react to the cyber•worid les working with1
relentlessly reproduce themsetves. according to a problematic (Braidotti, T
The terms of their reproduction double-pull: on the one tions), race, pos
are slightly off-beat by good old hand the hype and on or non-Western
humanist standards in that they in· the other hand nostalgia, lives who argue
volve animal, insect, and inorganic 1 would plea for a more etary cosmop
models of bath sexual and a-sexual passionate but distant (Gilroy) or an 1
reproduction. ln fact they represent approach. A form of neo­ non-Western
a whole array of possible alternative materialist apprecialion of ism (Shiva; Bha
morphologies and 'other' sexual and the body would be helpful painting out th1
reproductive systems. The paradlgm here, to think through the verging lines
of cancerous proliferalion of cells is kind of techno-universe critiques of h•
mentloned as an exemple of this we inhabit. Rethinking the from the cente
mindless self-duplicaling capacity embodiecl structure of hu- speak, and the
of generativelviral life. Critics like Judith Halber• man subjectivity requires an ethics of lucidity, as well as powers of the postcolonial
stam and Ira Livingston are quick to point out innovation and creativity. l wish to avoid referenœs to the paradigms differences, nor
how thls generative dlsorder in contemporary of human nature (be it biological, psychic or genetic essenlialism) rather as a fonr
molecular biotogy and genetics is bath echoed whlle taking fully into account the fact that bodies have indeed be­ along a series o·
and implemented by the everyday evolution in corne techno-cultural constructs immersed in networks of complex, tics of their res1
contemporary societies where sexed identities simultaneous and potentially conflicting power-relations. 1 do net and non-Wester
and sexuel bodies are ln a state of flux. want to fall, however, into either moral relativism or the suspension along productive
Consequently, the post•human body is not of ethical judgement. This is why I am a Deleuzian. graphie move. "
merely split or knotted or in process: Il is shot diverse positiom
through with technologlcally mediated social radical immanence. One of the consequences of this post­ tive political affec
relations. Il has undefgone a meta(l)molphosis human predicament is that il exposes the limitations of liberal back into •activis
(Braldotti, MetalTIOlphoses) and is now positioned individualism. Emphasis on the unitary subject of possessive that leaps acros
 are b ugs t o nat ure a s ch·1p s t o cult u r e?
ies, încluding the individualism is of hindrance, rather than assistance, in address­ sharable level of intensity. What matters is the
X>me historically, ing the complexities of our post-human condition and more par­ affective dimension, the aflinity between these s
bodies lrom their ticularly for the discussion on the dlscourses about lite in bath the diflerent tunes, not their political or theoretical 3
1 and Livingston human (bios) and the nonhuman (zoe) sense of the term. correctness.
:1, PWA; bodies­ Two core objections have emerged agalnst il: One targets its Anti-lndividualistic nomadic politics ls a critique
in unvisuallzable deeply seated anthropocentrism, and the other ils posturing of the canter from the canter. Il assumes a
1 their always pre­ universalism. The post-humanism of social and cultural critîcs multiplicity of canters in a world of scattered
:>dies thrive in the working within a Western perspective, like DeleuzelGuattarf and hegemonies (Grewal and Kaplan). The carto-
:1fonnatîons of to- others, can be set along- graphie reading of the present points
taxonomy" (19). side the forms of non- to a post-humanist system in whîch
imply not what il Western neo-humanism, the human has been subsumèd 1nto
ie. Whereas con­ shared by a number of global networks of contrai and com­
'/ culture tends to contemporary social crit- modilication which have taken 'Lite'
the cyber-wor1d ics working within gender and living malter as the target. This
1 to a problematic (Braidotti, Transposi- is framed by an affective political
JII: on the one tions), race, post-colonial economy of advanced capilalism
� hype and on or non-Western perspec- that altemates euphoria with gloom
· hand nostalgia, tives who argue for plan- and inscribes us in a state of con­
plea for a more etary cosmopolitanism stant crisis. The crisis of human
le but distant (Gilroy) or an enlarged, rights, of human lite, the environ­
. A fonn of neo­ non-Western human- ment or of human survival is on the
;t apprecialion of lsm (Shiva; Bhabha). By agenda. The generic ligure of the
would be helpful painting out these con- human is in trouble. Haraway puis is
hlnk through the verging lines between as follows: •[Q}ur authenticity is war­
techno-universe critiques of humanlsm ranted by a database for the human
it. Rethinking the tram the canter, so to genome. The molecular database is
1 structure of hu­ speak, and those lrom held in an informational database
vell as powers of the postcolonlal 'margins,' 1 do not mean to flatten out structural as legally branded intellectual property in a
to the paradigms dlflerences, nor to draw facile analogies. 1 see this convergence national laboratory with the mandate to make
?lie essentialism) rather as a lorm of synchronization that pitches the discussion the text publicly available for the progress of
have indeed be­ along a series of variations on a theme, whlle honoring the poli­ science and the advancement of industry. This
·orks of complex, tics of their respective locations. Bio-centered post-humanism is Man the taxonomie type become Man the
lations. 1 do not and non-Western neo-humanism can be traveling companlons brand" ( Witness 74).
r the suspension along productive axes of transposition. The point of this carto­ This standard is posited in a universal mode
graphie move, which aligns along the same axis theoretically as Man, but this pseudo-universal has been
diverse positions, ls to lacilitate the transposition of the respec­ widely criticized (Uoyd) precisely because of
:is of lhis post­ tive pohtical affects that activate them. 1 do like puttlng the 'active' its partiality. Universal Man, in tact, is implicitly
alions of liberal back into 'activism. ' 3 This transposition is like a musical variation assumed to be masculine, white, urbanized,
t of possessive that leaps across scales and compositions to llnd a pitch or a speaking a standard language, heterosexu-
 ·r.
1
ro si braldo t t l
1
5
4 ally lnscribed in a reproductive unit and a full subjectivity and the very possibility of the future as a sustainable sumptlons of the
citizen of a recognlzed polity. Brian Massuml common option. 'We' are in this together, in fact, enlarges the forms of epistem
refers to thls phenomenon as 'Ex-Man:' "a sense of collectively bound subjectivity to nonhuman agents, the need for a Sl
genelic matrix embedded in the materiallty of from our genetlc nelghbors the animais, to the earth as a bio­ '
1 ject's transcende
1
the human" (60) and as such undergolng slg­ sphere as a whole. 'We,' therefore, ls a non-anthropocentrlc 1 abstractions or i1
nlflcant mutations: "{S)pecles lntegrity is lost ln construct, whlch refers to a commonly shared territory or habitat 1 nomadic-materla
a bio-chemlcal mode expresslng the mutabillty (thfs). To do justice to thls relallvely simple yet hlghly problematic lions of the subje
of human matter" (60). reality requires a shlft of perspective. As Haraway suggests, we Philosophical in•
To this end, 1 do not think that the need to work towards "a for the embeck
reference or the retum to the hu­ new techno-scientific de· embodied naturi
manlstically indexed universel sub­ mocracy" ( Witness 95). subject are ind
ject is lnevitable or aven necessary. This is lndeed a totality, evant and gene
On the contrary, 1 want to argue finite and confined. Be· lies in the ongoir
for a more speciflc and grounded cause of the complexl· to develop an e
sense of slngular subjectivities that lies 'we' are facing, we to subjectivity 't'I
are collectively bound and outward need to review method­ the complexitief
oriented. ln other words, 'we' need ologies that have tended age. One needs
a redefinitlon of that subject posi­ to underplay the role some subject
tion and consequenlly some Input of biologlcal or genetic This needs not 1
from philosophies that attempt to factors. This marks a re­ unitary, or ex
struggle wlth this question. The groundlng of the subject anthropocentric,
notion of 'pan-humanlty' has to be in a materlally embedded must be the site
revislted from within a non-unitary sense of responsibility cal and ethical
understandlng of the subject. This and ethical accountability ability.
ls precisely the important contribu­ for the environments slhe 1 would define
tion of Deleuze's 'emplrical tran­ inhabits. This calls for a proach as a
scendantal' to this contemporary new set of alllaoces of a evolutionary
debate (Braldotti, Metamorphoses). more transversal nature, wlth dlfferent communities of scholars which contrasts
Deleuze's notion of 'anybody' in the sense and activists, committed to Intensive or nornadic polltics. Becom­ terminism. What
of homo tantum 1s relevant to thls discus­ ings are un-programmed as mutations, dlsruptions, and points tive is the anthro
sion about neo-universal blndlng notions of of reslstance agalnst the commodlficatlon of their own diversity. ary, biological,
pan-humanity, because it refers to concretely The lime frame of thls polltics ls always the future anterior, that is immanent philos
embodied slngularities that are structurally to say a Hnkage across present, and past in the act of construct­ a subject that i:
connected. An Important reason why we need ing and actuallzlng possible futures. man, inorganic
a new grounded, embodied and embedded ln dlsagreement with other femlnlst theorists, especlally ln the and thus enviro
subject has to do with the second half of that field of science studies and actors' network theory, 1 maintaln thought refers te
crucial sentence: 'We' are ln this together. that the subject- in the non-unltary, processual but accountable outside the cla�
What this refers to is the cartography of lnter­ sense of phliosophical nomadlsm - ls a crucial term of reference. subject, re-locat
connected problems that touch the structure of 1 want to keep an equal distance from both the humanlslic as- of forces. This is
 a r e b u gs t o nat ure a s ch i p s t 0 c u l t u re?
as a sustainable
sumptions of the necessity of the unitary subject and the extrema about technology as the future of humanity.
et, enlarges the
forms of epistemologically driven post-humanism which dismiss The latter constitutes an aH-pervasive master- s
lhuman agents,
the need for a subject altogether. lt is not the case that the sub. narrative of flight from the human embodied 5
earth as a bio­
ject's transcendent nature needs to result in either disembodied self, into the fake transcendence of a machine
•anthropocentric
abstractions or in universalistic pretensions. On the contrary, a that strikes me as molar, Oedipalizing, des­
,rritory or habitat
nomadic-materialist philosophy rethinks the embodied founda­ polie and exploitative. Il is against this social
;ihly problematic
tions of the subject in a non-essentialist yet accountable manner. imaginary of techno-transcendence lhat I want
ay suggests, we
Philosophical investigations of alternative ways of accounting to argue for a more dissipative, eroticized and
Nork towards "a
for the embedded and llowing interaction between the hu­
no-scientific de­
embodled nature of h t e man and the bio-techno-logical: an
, (Witness 95).
subject are indeed rel- evolution of the non-teleological and
1deed a totality,
evant and generous al- nomadological kind.
j confined. Be­
lies in the ongoîng efforts
l the comptexi-
to develop an approach becoming-world. At this stage of
are facing, we
to subjectivity worthy of the argument, it is important to em­
review method-
the complexitles of our phasize the difference between the
1at have tended
age. One needs at least minoritarian becomings (woman,
rplay the role
some subject position: animal and others) and the becom­
1ical or genetic
This needs not be either ing-wor1d or merging with the envi­
"his marks a re­
unitary, or exclusively ronment, or the Earth. This does not
g of the subject
anthropocentric, but il fit in wilh this pattern because il is
rially embedded
must be the site for politi­ a pure form of becoming, which is
1f responsibility
cal and ethfcal account­ immanent to all the others: lt is plan­
al accountability
ability. etary. lt is the only form of becoming
,vironments slhe
1 would define thls ap­ which is not minoritarian, but stands
This calls for a
proach as a nomadic qualitatively at a distance from the
Jf alliances of a thought
evolutionary standard or norm of the dominant
ilies of scholars
whlch contrasts openly with contemporary bîo-technological de­ subject position or Majority. As such it has the
politics. Becom­
terminism. What comas especially uncler scrutiny ln this perspec­ power to de-territorialize the Majority and its
ons, and points
tive is the anthropo-centrism that is in-built in so much evolution­ main categories and classifications. The no­
·ir own diversity. ary, blological, scientific and philosophical thought. RadicaUy tion of 'becoming-imperceptible' is the most
1 anterior, that is
immanent philosophlcal nomadism, on the other hand, sponsors forceful expression of this positive or qualita­
act of construct-
a subject that is composed of extemal forces, of the nonhu­ tive shift or de-territorialization. lt concems
man, Tnorganic or technologlcal klnd. Il is territorially based, the movement of the totality ol all that lives, of
1specially in the and thus environmentaily bound. The 'machinic' in Deleuze's that great anlmallmachine that is the cosmos
eory, 1 maintain thought refers lo this dynamic process of unfolding subjectivity itself, or the planet as a whole. ln this sense
but accountable outside the classical frame of the anthropocentric humanistic the becomlng-imperceptible traces a general
,rm of reference. subject, re-locating it into becomings and fields of composition eco-philosophy of becoming that produces
1 humanistic as- positive Interconnections on a planetary scale.
of forces. This is far removed from the advanced capitalist hype
ro si bra l d o t t l
1
5
6 The phrase 'we are in this together' accurately to naturallstic romanticlsm in opposition to the brutallty of indus­ My minlmallst de
sums up the global dimension of the problems trial culture, a mistrust of the masses and a touch of aristocratie fective and intelli
we are facing when we take the power rela­ disdain and a true worship of free will ln its anarchical mode. forms energies a
tions around biosjzoe as the defining feature of Carlston remlnds us that gender and ethnicity play a major role ic entity feeds up
our historicity, as I stated earlier. How to think here, as both lesblanlsm and Jewishness became major issues (be il 'natural,' 's
accurately about the complex singularity of the ln fascistlc aesthetlcs and politics. as symbols of degeneration embodied in this
subject al the same lime as the generic mate­ and hence as targets for extermination. mersed in fields ,
riality of this earthily embedded, 'g-localized' On this, as on other issues (for instance the speciflcalion of them are positive
and universel subject ls the crucial a new, post-nationalist this cannot be
question. European identity), philo• or judged a pn
The modal of alternative ethics sophical nomadism oper­ core of the matt,
proposed by radically Immanent ates the denazification of relentless gE
philosophies of nomadism implies philosophy. Vitalism is force of biosjzoe
a non-hlerarchical idea of transcen- too Important a notion to specific brand c
dance and a non-binary model of let it freeze in ils histori­ species egalile
Interrelation. This has Implications cal past as a decadent which they ,
for the notion of desire as poten- aesthetics. ln order to between the hur
tia, or affirmative vitality. Hlstori- lhink the anli-essenlialist animal others.
cally, Western culture has cocled vitality of zoe in the era For philosophical
as 'feminine' - fluid, generative, of advanced technolo­ ology, the streng
affective and erotic - that vitalistic gies, we need to re-think mals lies precisel
power of affirmation, no matter who vitalist ideas. Nomadism not being-one,
embodies it or where it happens to de-fascisticizes them, de­ expressed in t
actualize itsett. Accordlngly, the aim mysoginizes them and tachment to ar
of Deleuzian feminist theory is not de•racistifies them, as il dependence on
to affirm the femlnine, but to open does to all the molar or ry. They rely on s
up fields of multiple becomings sedentary formations of highly confinec
(Colebrook). Il is nonetheless the case that the Western culture. Vitallsm is a relevant question and the lime siices of environ
klnd of style and sensibllity that sustalns the has corne to thlnk through this notion in a rigorous and updated ceptively. lnsect!
process of becoming-minoritarian ls unequivo­ fashion. among Deleuze'
cally closer to the feminine and that il requires The Intensive subject 1s trans-generational and environmentally ritory physically,
the 'becoming-woman' as a compulsory bound; as a living organism it partakes of the shared time se­ marklcodelpossE
transition phase (Braidottl, Patterns}. Vitalism quence of the genetic code, which makes lt a collective entity and signs conste
poses several problems to the critlcal thinker, that moves beyond anthropocentrism. The human organism is upper primates i
because of lts historical links to the organicist an ln-between that is plugged lnto and connected to a variety of lands with bodil�
phllosophy of European fascism. Erin Car1ston possible sources, tlme-lines and forces. Il may be useful to de­ howl in pain an<
argues that some elements of this fascist defi­ fine it as a machine, which does not mean an appliance or any­ almed at coplng
nition of vitalism are the mystlcal union of the thlng with a speciflcally utilltarian aim, but rather something that of recognizing, c
soul with an inflated idea of Nature, a tendency is simultaneously more abstract and more materially embedded. animality, jolning
 are b u g s t o n a ture a s c h1'p s t o c u l t ure?
utality of indus­ My minimalist definition of a body-machine is: an embodied, af­ inhabiting and protecting lheir territory. Orient-
, of arislocrahc fective and intelligent enlity that captures, processes and trans­ ing oneself in a strange territory; finding food 5
archical mode. forms anergies and forces. An embodied and embedded nomad• and water, let alone a mate, expressing all 7
ay a major role ic entity feeds upon, incorporates and transforms its environment this so that the others in the collective pack or
1e ma1or issues (be il 'natural,' 'social,' 'human,' or whatever) constantly. Being group can gel the idea - that 1s a model of radi-
,t degeneration embodied in this high-tech ecological manner means being im­ cal immanence lhal needs to be revalued. lt is
mersed in fields of constant flows and transformations. Not all of non-verbal communication al ils best.
,pacification of them are positive, of course, allhough in such a dynamic system ln this respect, humans may have more in
:>ost-nationalist this cannai be known common with their genetic neighbors
identity), philo- or judged a priori. The - the animais - than they may care
1omadism oper­ core of the matter is the to admit and in some ways, they are
enazification of relenlless generalive less constructive. This proximity,
y. Vitalism 1s force of biostzoe and the however, is not to be taken in the
tant a notion to specific brand of trans- classical, benevolent mode of car­
ie în its historï­ species egalitarianism, ing for 'our four-legged friands.' The
as a decadent which they establish culture of pets in soma ways con­
,. ln order to between the human and stitutes the epitome of humanism:
anti-essenlialist animal others. Pets are indeed those Oedipalized
zoe in the era For philosophical nomad­ enülies we watch television with.
1ced technolo- ology, the strength of ani· ln philosophical nomadism, on the
1eed to re-think mals lies precisely in their other hand, the proximity is trans­
!as. Nomadism not being-one, which is species and transgenic, material in
icizes lhem, de­ expressed in thelr at­ the sense of matterlmater. Il has to
:es them and tachment to and inler­ do with a chain of connections which
les them, as il dependence on a territo­ can best be descrïbed as an eco­
111 the molar or ry. They rely on small and logical philosophy of non-unitary,
' formations of highly confinedldefined embodied subjects.
n and the lime slices of environment to which they relate sensorïally and per­ ln order not to confuse the becoming of the
us and updated ceptively. lnsects, especially spiders and parasites like ticks, are animal with becoming-animal, il is important
among Deleuze's favorites. Like artists, animais mark their ter­ to distinguish the discours& of physiology,
environmentally ritory physically, by color, sound or markinglframing. ln order to which deals with organic functions, from that
;hared time se­ marklcodelpossesslframe their territory, animais produce signais of elhics. Nomadic ethics, inspired by Spinoza,
collective entity and sfgns constanlly; insects buzz and make all sort of sounds; is related to the physics and the biology of bod­
1an organism is upper primates practically talk; cats, wolves and dogs mark the ies. This means that il deals with the question
d to a variety of lands wilh bodily fiuids of lheir own production, dogs bark and of what exaclly a body can do and how much
)8 uselul to de­ howl in pain and desire. They are immanent to lheir gestures il can take. This is the issue that I code as
>pliance or any- aimed at coping with needs and environments. ln the process 'sustainability:' how much a body can take in
someth1ng that of recognizing, coding and coping they transcend lheir sheer pleasure or enhancement of ils potentials, as
ially embedded. animallty, joining up with the human in the effort of expressing, in pain or impoverishment of ils potentia (or
r o si braid o t t i
1
5
,,
8 conatus). This implles an equation between trend of post-humani9' artefacts by tuming to one of the many meters, they car
ethical virtue, empowennent, joy and under­ possible wortds with which we share our planet: insects. They destroy somethin
standlng. To represent adequately to oneself are neither technological artefacts nor trendy innovations: They maniacal precisi<
one's own good amounts to understandlng it. have been here far longer than we have, Invisible to our scopie different species
Sucti an act of understandlng, however, is not apparatus, impenetrable to our gross senses, inaudible to our sure make their
the mere mental acquisition of certain ldeas. damaged ears. lnsects signal thelr ecology of belonging in clear lived on il for mo
lt rather coincldes with a bodily process, that and unequlvocal - albeit non-lingulstlc - codes. They are actual­ the sophisticated
is, an activity that enacts or embodies what is ized slices of altematlve living matter, which expresses the mul- marvels at them ;
good for the subject: the actuallza- tlpllcity of possible wortds wax, serve a li
tion of hislher potentia. Mlnd and and their co-presence practical purpos•
body act in unison and are glued within our humanized work haret. folle
together by what Spinoza calls universe. They are a leaders and resp
conatus, that is to say the desire to radical fonn of other­ govemmental o
become and to lncrease the inten- ness which we cannot tion. Collective•
sity of one's becoming. perceive, wrapped up they are ideal n
This approach 1s made explicit in as we are in our habits, of the pollty tho1
Pearson's work on Deleuze's phl­ which are the locus of ants, they tend te
losophy of the body. By reading our structural stupidity. sessive. Jacques
Nietzsche and Darwin with Deleuze, lnsects also have a very resorts to the n
Pearson explores the interconnec­ respectable literary pedi­ of bees to exp
tions between ethlcs of values and gree in European culture disapprovat of a
the nature of bodies, he thus em­ and are very much coded femlnists and
phasizes the continuum of becom­ culturaHy. ln the post­ demn our allege
ings as well as the transmutation of nuclear historical con­ mented and auth
values that is lmplied in a nomadic text, they have become ways of thinkln
concept of 'life' that ls simultane­ the sign of a widespread also, however,
ously materialistic and vitalistic. ln repertoire of angst-ridden in individual en
so cloing, Pearson uses Deleuze's lnsights to fears and deep anxlety as phobie abjects. Creepy mutants; ver­ they produce th1
"begin to map non-human becomings of life• min emerging from the sewerage; resilient survivors; tentacular grated in their o't\
(109), combining in a sklllful manner biology and left-overs lrom a prevlous evolullonary era; signs of the wrath of - and are supert
technology. Pearson envisages a 'trans-human' God as the Bibllcal locusts, lnsects cover a number of stagger­ business and en,
space of pure, processual metamorphoses that lng signifying practices. On the positive side, fonn Aesop to La Derrida wishing 1
asserts the lnfinite powers of a lite that cloes nol Fontaine until contemporary Hollywood animation films, ants are Last, but not lea!
require the supervision of the human mlnd in or­ the prototype of the industrial robot, or the industrious factory of their lite-cycle
der to endure a generalized becoming-world. worker. Capable of lifting 50 limes their own bodily weight, they stadia of develoJ
are resistant to pesticides and enjoy fast reproductive cycles. as an immense f
becomlng-lnsect. Let me illustrate the dis­ Crickets may be the lazy hedonists lying in the sun, they have, matter. For Arist1
tance that separates the phtlosophy of inhuman however, amazlng destructive powers. Louis-Vincent Thomas sexuality is unde
and nonhuman becomings from the cultural estimates that crickets can reach a density of 2,000 square- they exerclse th1
 a r e bu g s t o n a t u re a s Ch i p s t 0 c u l t u re?
one of the many meters, they can also caver 1 0 kilometers a day and thus can nosaurs, dragons or other giganlic monsters. 1
et: insects. They destroy something like 4,000 tons of greens every 24 hours. Wilh Improbable morphological constructs, they s
,novations: They manlacal precislon Thomas also aclds that there are five million challenge and titiUate; non-mammals that lay 9
ble ta our scopie different specles of insects. At the average weight of 2.5 mg, they eggs, they are hybrid par excellence. lnsects
inaudible to our sure make their presence on the earth feltl Alter ail, they have carry lite in their cross-species pollinating
,elonging in clear lived on it for more than 300 million years. Bees are, historically, encounters with plants and flowers. They also
They are actual­ the sophisticated lndustrial engineers. ln his Nalural Histo,yPliny carry death, through their own bodily reserves
presses the mul- marvels at them as real-life factorles. They produce honey, make of poison, stings, bites and bums, but also by
1f possible worlds wax, serve a thousand carrying around powerful viruses,
eir co-presence practical purposes; they malaria being the best known.
our humanized work hard, follow their Elisabeth Grosz ("Animal Sex") lo­
1. They are a leaders and respect their cuses on the fascination of humans
form of other­ govemmental organiza- with insect sexuality. Grosz sees the
hich we cannot tion. Collective-minded, insect as a highly sexualized 'queer'
1, wrapped up they are ideal members entity, capable of titillating the col­
1re in our habits, of the polity though, like lective imagination especially on the
1re the locus of ants, they tend to gel ob- issue of sex and death. She concen­
:tural stup1dity. sessive. Jacques Derrida trates on two insects particularly: the
aise have a very resorts to the metaphor black widow spider and the praying
1ble lilerary pedi­ of bees ta express his mantis, especially in the work of
European culture disapproval of academic Roger Caillois and Alphonse Lingis.
very much coded feminlsts and to con- She finds in these the prototype of
f. ln the post- demn our allegedly regl- a post-human philosophy. ln their
historical con- mented and authoritarlan mimicry and camouflage abilities, in­
1y have become ways of thlnking. Bees sects enact the psychoanalytic phe­
of a widespread also, however, believe nomenon of psychasthenla, that is
·e of angst-ridden in individual enterprise; to say a disintegration of the bounds
ipy mulants; ver- they produce their own medicine - the propolis, perfectly inte­ of consciousness and the rellnquishing of its
11ivors; tentacular grated in their own environment, in which they hibernale in winter ties to the body so that the distinction between
,s of the wrath of - and are superbly well-organized. Great leaders, military minds, the inside and the outside becomes difficult
mber of stagger­ business and engineers, the bees leave Pliny gasping for air and to hold. Accordingly, the sexual connotation
orm Aesop ta La Derrida wishing for more. of this orgiastic dissolution of the boundar­
on films, ants are Last, but not least, insects are kings of queer. The tact that most ies of decency in insects leads Caillois to a
dustrious factory of their lite-cycle is made of metamorphoses through different semi-delirious set of associations between the
>dily weight, they stadia of development means that transformative speed as well praying mantis-religion-food-orality-vampires­
roductive cycles. as an immense power of adaptation are the heart of the insect­ vagina-dentata-automatism-female android.
1 sun, they have, matter. For Aristotle, insects have no specific sex, for Pllny, their What emerges loud and clear from the series
Vincent Thomas sexuality is undecidable as their sex is invisible. Tiny miniatures, of associations is the insect-paradigm as a
>f 2,000 square- they exercise the same immense sense of estrangement as di- model for polymorphous anti-phallic sexuality.
rosi brafdottl
1
6
0 lingis argues that the orgasmic body cannot exper (47). As such it dwells between different states of ln-be• lnsects are pow,
be reduced to the organic body but to an or­ tween-ness, arousing the same spasmodic reactions in humans centrism and po
ganic assemblage of forces that exceeds and as the rnonstrous, the sacred, or the alien. This is a reaction of This is cleariy rr
challenges the boundaries of morphology and slmultaneous attraction and repulsion, dlsgust and desire. They ence fiction and 1
finds an interesting resonance ln the sexuaiity pose the question of radical othemess not in metaphorical, but Barbara Creed
of insects. in bio-morphic terms, that is to say as a metamorphosls of the between becom1
Disruption rather than the unfolding of the pre­ sensory, cognitive and perceptual human apparatus. ln thls Cronenberg's Tt­
dictable okl scenario of heterosexual seduc­ regard, the insect provides a new paradlgm for discontinuous sis of the scienti:
tion is the key to trigger off desire transmutations without and the fly, whic
in these post-human times. Trans­ major disruptions. The inforced in the ni
formations and metamorphoses key elements of this are: scene where st
are the true site of desire, asym- larval metamorphoses; birth to a giant
metrically embodled ecstasy in and the speed of their re­ Films llke 7
of dlfference, through the construc- productive system; the (1955) and Then
tion of unprogrammed surfaces of propensity to generate which features
pleasure, not the articulation of the mutations; the faster rate post-nuclear ar
libidinal economy of the same. Lust of genetic recombination. blown-up, larger•
and pleasure in the nomadic mode Moreover, not having any female figure is ;
meft down the cohesion and unity major neuronal reservoir, on which ail sorts
for the body, allowing for the cricket insects are free from the anxieties get proj
in you to sing, and the cockroach hold of memory and of The Fly (1958) v
in you to endure. Something that the socially enforced mad scientist loo
David Cronenberg has understood forms of sedimented wife through hi�
completely. memory known as insti­ eyes, we gel
Other qualities that make insects tutions. ln Oeleuze's ter­ blow-up phenorr
paradlgmatic are: the power of minology, they are mul­ the female mulli�
metamorphosls; the parasitism; tiple singularities without fold. ln a gestu,
the power of mlmetism or blending with their fixed identlties. Ali of these have been amply explored and docu­ anticipates Cam
territory and environment and the speed of mented in literature, cinema and culture: lnsects evidence the kills him under a1
movement; their hyper-active sexuallty, with proximity and co-presence of multiple worlds existlng alongside lnsects are tech
highly accelerated rhythms and made of many each other in a cruelly symbiotic fonn of mutual lnditterence. tween the organi
rhizomatic trans-species copulations with of Bruce Sterling
plants and flowers as well as entities of the the insect paradlgm of contemporary culture. The evidence only the most evi
same species (a life cycle can be completed points to a powerful llnk between the insect and electronic tech­ of irreconcilable
in 24 hours). They defy gravity and embody a nology: the tlcking away of incessant bytes of information at the human/machine"
specific temporaiity of their own, with very fast speed of llght. 1 think this destabillzing post-human speed is the of imbrication of
rates of genetic recombination. source of Deleuze's connection to writers like Willtam S. Bur­ evidenced in the
Shaviro argues that "insect iife is an alien roughs, but also to others, whom he ignores, like Kathy Acker often used to de�
presence that we can neither assimllate nor and Angela Carter. and virtual realil)
 are bug s t o n a tur e a s c h"Ip s t o c u l t ure?
States of in-be­ lnsects are powerful indicators of the decentering of anthropo­ ter-dependance of technology on other, social 1
:tions in humans centrism and point to post-human sensibilities and sexualities. and environmental forces. Cyber-feminists like 6
; is a reaction of This is clearly manifest in popular literary genres, such as sci­ Helena von Oldenburg argue that lhe lntemet,
tnd desire. They ence fiction and horror, for instance, in the womenlinsects nexus. or the computer-mediated web, can only be
1etaphorical, but Barbara Creed argues that there is a privileged relationship arachnoidic, or spider-like. The World Wide
norphosis of the between becoming-insect and becoming-woman. For instance Web functions via fines, knots, connections,
paratus. ln this Cronenberg's The F/y(1986) displays a Kafka-Uke metamorpho­ relations in a manner that is also analogous ta
,r discontinuous sis of the scientist. The film draws parallels between the woman the human brain. Thus, the discourse of arach-
ations wilhoul and the lly, which are re- nomancy can be used ta explore
isruptions. The inforced in the nightmare possible evolutions of information
Ients of this are: scene where she gives technologies: weaving a quilt with
netamorphoses; birth to a giant maggot. the synapses of our brains and the
ad of their re­ Films like Tarantula sinews of our nerves.
,e system; the (1955) and Them (1954), ln bfology, it's the speed and effi­
ty ta generale which features gigantic ciency of ils molecular structure and
s; the faster rate post-nuclear anis, this more especially of ils reproductive
c recombination. blown-up, larger-than life cycle that has made the fruit-fly into
r, nol having any female figure is a screen the most important experimental site
uronal reservoir, on which ail sorts of other in modem molecular research (Fox
1re free from the anxieties gel projected. ln Keller). Haraway also hints at an
memory and of The Fly (1958) when the 'insect paradigm' in contemporary
cially enforced mad scientist looks at his molecular biology, which has moved
of sedimented wife through his insect- beyond the classical opposition of
known as insti- eyes, we get another 'vitalistic' and 'mechanislic' prin­
n Deleuze's ter­ blow-up phenomenon of ciples, to evolve instead in the direc­
,, they are mul­ the female multiplied ten- tion of serial repetilions. Haraway
�ularities without fold. ln a gesture which takes this as a serious indication that
plored and docu­ anticipates Cameron's The Terminator (1984), she mercifully we have already left the era of "bio-politics• to
:ts evidence the kilts him under an industrïal press. enter that al "the informatics of domination­
Kisling alongside lnsects are technological artifacts, or entities that stand in be­ ("Cyborg Manifestoft 161 ).
inditterence. tween the organic and the inorganlc. Bukatman, in his analysis lnsects have also gained widespread promi­
of Bruce Sterling's cyberpunk novais, argues that �[i]nsects are nence and star-billing in contemporary media
·e. The evidence only the most evldent metaphorical process conflatlng a number culture. An evident insect and also a spider
l electronic tech­ of irreconcilable terms such as lite/non Jife, blology/technology, paradigm is on full display in recent cinematic
'llormation at the human/machlneft (2n). As such, insects signal a high degree exploits in the genre of computer games, cy­
nan speed Is the of imbrication of the organic with the technologlcal; this can be berpunk and scienarfiction. Gigantic metal­
William S. Bur­ evidenced in the insectoid and arachnoid terminology that is so framed imitation-insects crawl all over the sur­
like Kathy Acker often used ta describe advanced technologies, especially robots face of films as Star Wa15 VI: The Retum of the
and virtual reality artefacts. This kind of imagery stresses the in- Jedi(1983), Robocop (1987), as well as in the
ro si bra i d o t tl
6
2 digital nightmare-worlds of The Matrix (1999). of the insects' bodies, however, is thelr geomorphic technologi­ aims preclsely •
lnsect aesthetics reaches its apotheosis ln the cal performativlty. lnsects are fantastlc music-makers. Deleuze spaces, and yet
digital images of Antz (1998) and A Bug's Lite dlstlnctly wams us that he does not mean the usuel bodify noises experlments cre
(1998) which merely offteiallze a topos that is that one makes in movlng about the planet, but rather the spe­ and the technol,
flrmly instlned in the contemporary imaginary: cifte capacity to produce sounds that have speeds, variations colorists like Re
the post-human mix of organic and inorganic and intensltles worthy not only of human compositions, but aise Spooky, or of cc
organisms. of the harmony of the spheres. lnsects- as well as other animais chemy is a gamt
There are other aspects of the becoming­ - oHer convincing examples of nonlinguistic communication out the acoustic,
insect, however, that, read ln a De- and modes of thought, classlcal functio
leuzlan perspective, point towards ranglng from vlsual ap­ sic as the incar
technology and away from human- prehenslon to sonar and the most sublin
ism: homo faber rather than homo other acoustlc technolo­ of the humanist :
sapiens. OeleuzelGuattari argue gies, including an acute ln music, lime
that lnsects are essentially about sense of internai lime. Il heard. Il is a pur
becoming-lmperceptible, becoming- is probably on thls score lime through th,
molecular mostly because of the that insects conslilute lion of rhythm. 1
speed of their lifespan (333). a real challenge for hu­ nutsheli, is ils r
Thelr slgniflCélnt traits in terms of manlty, they deprive the for nomadic sui
a Deleuzian mapping of forces are: human of hislher alleged T echnologically
dryness; hairiness; metal-like body- rnonopoly over music­ ed music de-ne
frames; great resilience. They are making. and de-humani
environment-bound, thus elemen- lt would be interestlng time-sequence.
tal, either because linked to the to analyze contempo­ push speed anc
earth and to ils under-groundlcrust rary music by artists post-human hel•
(chthonic forces) or defying its like Meredith Monk and it can also fade
gravity thanks to aircraft-like body- Dlamanda Galas along pre-human depl
frames (remember the exhilaration these lines; the latter audibility. How
of Kafka's Gregor Samsa when he discovers being especially comparable to Carmelo Bene for her vocal us hear the inaL
that he can crawl up on the ceiling). virtuosity and the capaclty to capture the sound•like inner core the other side of
Of great importance is the shift ln sensoriel and of words, pushing the phonemes to the point of implosion. They impose an audib
spatio-temporal coordinates that rnake insects certalnly undo not only the priority of the human voice ln music­ inhabit îs, for DE
inlo genuinely admirable organisms. The pow­ making, but also the centrality of the human as a sensible means of composition î:
er of vision of sorne of them, for instance the of achieving rhythms and sounds that reflect our era. process, and ln­
fly's eye, can be considered as a masterpiece The interconnectlon soundsltechnologylinsectslmuslc stresses transitions in the
of evolution. ln an these regards, the lnsects how rare it is to encounter music or sound that reflects the accus­ marks the proxir
are a very perfect machinic organlsm which tic quality of the environment most of us inhabit. Thal is to say. a to avoid synthes
is as other from the mammals and therefore very crowded, nolsy, highly resonant urban environment where pursuing dlssoni
the humans as biologlcally possible. What stlllness and silence are practically unknown. 1 think that a great sounds belong, ;
interests Deleuze particulariy about the speed deal of music or sound production of the alternative klnd today tably to outer sp;
 a r e b ugs to n ature a s c h i p s t o c u l tur e?
rphic lechnologi­ aîms precisely at capturing the intense sonority of our lived-in There is also a political side to this. Given 1
nakers. Deleuze spaces, and yet to empty it of its represenlational value. Sanie that vision as a sense has been historically 6
ual bodily noises experiments create alternative possible worlds. Techno-sounds, privileged as a hegemonic element in the 3
t rather the spe­ and the technological performances of Deleuze-inspired music constitution of the subject. Considering also
,eeds, variations colorists llke Robin Rimbaud, also known as Scanner, or DJ that the scopie is dominant in contemporary
lsitions, but also Spooky, or of contemporary artists like Soundlab, or Cultural Al­ epistemology and psychoanalysis. And keep­
as other animais chemy is a gamble with thls apparenUy contradictory alm: to map ing in mind that visualization techniques are
communication out the acoustic environments of here and now, while undoing the central to contemporary formations of power
:les of thought, classical funclion of mu- as domination, 1 can only conclude
from visual ap­ sic as the incarnation of that the visual regime ls dominant,
on to sonar and the most sublime ideals or molar, in the polilical economy of
oustic technolo­ of the humanist subject. postmodemity. As such, it is saturat­
luding an acute ln music, lime can be ed with power-relations. This is not
internai time. lt heard. Il is a pure form of the case for sounds or the acoustic
lly on this score time through the media- regime. They are more subversive,
;ects constitute lion of rhythm. This, in a because they are less codilied by
1allenge for hu­ nutshell, is îts relevance power. Sound is more abstract, less
hey deprive the for nomadic subjectivity. prone to immediate commodification
,f hisjher alleged Technologically mediat- into an economy of language. Since
y over music- ed music de-naturalizes the 1968 events, in Europe the
and de-humanizes the counter-culture has invested in the
be interesting time-sequence. lt can production of alternative acoustic
'/Ze contempo­ push speed and pitch to envîronments and forms of sound­
Isic by artists post-human heights, but transmission as central elements of
:idlth Monk and it can also fade them to cultural and political activism, from
la Galas along pre-human depths of in- the free radio stations of the 70s
11es; the latter audibility. How to make to the techno-music of today. The
e for her vocal us hear the inaudible, the imperceptible, that roar which lies on coming of the new information technologies,
:Hike inner core the other side of silence, ls what is al stake in this procass. How to cyber-feminism and iPods have merely inten­
implosion. They impose an audible form upon the amorphous mass of sounds we sified this trend.
1 voice in music­ inhabit is, for Deleuzian composers, the challenge. The method Whereas class1cal music, încluding pop, rock
sensible means of composition ls in keeplng with Deleuze's criteria of selection, and their off-shoots aims at resonances,
·era. process, and ln-between transitions. ln music one can hear the and the constitution of alternative resisting,
!music stresses transitions in the form of intervals. ln nomadic music, the interval counter-cultural subjectivities, nomadic or rhi­
llects the acous­ marks the proxlmity but also the singularity of each sound, so as zomatic musicology, to quota Ronald Bogue,
That ls lo say, a to avoid synthesis, hannony or melodic resolutlon. lt is a way of attempts to make us hear the inaudible. lt aims
1ironment where pursuing dissonance by retumlng it to the extemal world, where at a virtual sound space. This is a space of de­
hink lhat a great sounds belong, always in transit, like radio-waves moving ineluc­ territorialîzation of our acoustic habits through
ative kind today tably to outer spaces, chatting on, wîlh nobody to listen. the production of unexpected, speedy, hostile
1.
r o si b r a l d o t t l
6
4 sounds that facilitate unexpected connections a non-mathemalical mode. Deleuze's 'abstract machines,' best The becoming
and relations. ln tact. the example of insects expressed in his becomlng-inssct, are rhythmic and abstract. the sounds ol
suggests that we inhabit unfamiliar, post-human Deleuze challenges the representational functlon of music as been amply U!
acoustlc environments all the lime: We just call expresslng the harmony of the spheres, ln opposition to the dark mostly banal r,
it 'nature' and mostly ignore il. We Just do not chaos of unaccounted-for space. The accountability of space is themselves. A
hear them - we are not used to 'take them in,' ensured by mathematical ordering; ln Plato's phllosophy thls re­ and runs; the �
or 10 tune into them. Rhizo-muslc forces this sults in a tlme-honored connectlon between music, mathematlcs line and color.
encounter by re-creatlng il technologically, in and cosmology. Il is this cosmic quality of music that makes it both the artisl
the best musical tradition. As such, relevant for philosophi­ music alms
il represents a space of becoming. cal nomedism, in that it torializing ou
The key-notlon in becoming-inssct points to the infinite in a habits, makin{
as ln rhizo-muslcology is thal of very grounded, embed­ that the huma•
an envlronment, an acoustic terri- ded fashion. ruling principle
tory, a position of spatio-temporal in their committed antl­ mony of the s1
coordlnates where rhythms are re­ Platonlc mode, Deleuze! Lawrence
membered or stored and eventually Guattari want to de-fink sees acousti
produced. Hence the connections the representatlon of as a crucial
to animais and lnsects, lerritories, the cosmos from ils framing spa
or habitats are constituted through reliance on the rational­ sound-walls tt
the composition and the organiza- ity of a mathematlcal and contain tl
tlon of refrains or rhythms under- order. They approach il Sonic bricks
stood as patterns of repelition and instead as an open sys­ for stabllity, al
occupation and marking of a space. tem, uncontainable and rarily. Under
Invisible signatures, so to speak. Incommensurable wilh of molecular 1
Bogue sums up as follows the the human capacity to however, the•
function of these refrains or pat- count. Music 1s accord­ an boundart
terns of repetition: "They may (1) ingty llberated from ils tear down the
mark or assemble a territory; (2) connect a human constraints and tumed into a transversal space of mo­ re-join the cos
territory with interval impulses and/or extemal l8Clllar becomings. Rhythms acqulre a singularlty and autonomy mobilizalion" (
circumstances; (3) identify speclallzed func­ of their own. As many contemporary artists from Laurie Anderson music produc,
tions; (4) or conect forces in order to centralize to Stelarc have pointed out, the sheer materiality of the human unitary subjec
the territory or go outside" (91). The function body and ils fleshy contents (lungs, nerves, brains, intestines, upon them.
of the refrain is to create spaces of transition etc.) are as many sound-making, acoustic chambers. Enhanced Music lncrea!
or becoming-in-between passages that de­ technologicaUy, these Internai sounds can confront the llstener ing as many 1
stabHize the linearity of recorded lime, pack­ with as shocking a sensation of unfamlliarity as the extemal Ali becoming
aged as musical sounds. Deleuze's vision of rumbles of the cosmos. Possible worlds are already here, we imperceptible,
the becoming-minoritarian of music offers a Just do not seem able to extend our perception, cognition and wriling for Dei,
way of reconstructing the subject's relatlonship empathy far enough to actually inhabit them and do justice to so musiC can
to hisjher envlronment, earthly and cosmic, in their complexity. boundaries. tv
 •
ar e bugs t o n a t ur e as c h i p s t o cul t u r e?
machines,' best The becoming-animal or insect has nothing to do with imitating mie narrations. lt makes audible the irreducibil· 1
1ic and abstract. the sounds of animais or insects. That mimetlc capacity has ity of in-between spaces, polyphonie hybridiza• 6
ion of music as 1 been amply used up în classical music. lt has produced fiat and lion, multiple sanie interferences. 5
sition to the dark 1 mostly banal renditions of animal sounds that make a mockery of
.bility of space is 1 themselves. As Deleuze suggests, art does not imitate: lt steals conclusion: an eco-philosophy of multiple
1
1ilosophy this re• and runs; the painter does not imitate the bird: Slhe captures it as belongings. The post-human predicament
sic, mathematics line and color. This rs a process of becomlng that deterritorializes is not about artificiality, but rather about the
sic that makes it bath the artist and hislher abject. Against Imitation, rhizomatîc emergence of zoe, or of 'lite' itself as a politi-
for philosophi­ music aims at deterri- cal subject in advanced, genetically
adism, in that il torializing our acoustic backed capitalism. ln thls context,
, the inlinite in a habits, making us aware at the end of the postmodemist
>unded, embed- that the human is not the celebration of the inorganic and
1ion. ruling principle in the har- fake, 1 have stressed the need to
committed anti• mony of the spheres. rethink the materialist foundations
mode, Deleuze! Lawrence Grossberg of subjectivity and ta cultivate posi­
want to de-link sees acoustic refrains tive political passions and an ethics
Jresentation of as a crucial element in of affirmation. Re-visiting Spinoza
smos from its framing space-creating and Nietzsche with Deleuze, antira­
on the rational­ sound-walls that encircle cist and feminist theory allow us to
a mathematical and contain the subject. posit the project of constructing an
"hey approach it Sonic bricks that allow affirmative approach to complexities
as an open sys­ for stability, albeit tempo- of our historical condition. We need
containable and rarity. Under the impact to re-think ethics, politics and repre­
ensurable with of molecular becomings, sentation in view of the non-unitary
nan capacity to however, they can split subjects ln process, which we have
.1usic is accord- all boundaries open, already become. Conceptual cre­
1erated from its tear down the walls and ativity and vision are needed, as is
,al space of mo­ re-join the cosmos. lt is a case of mobility versus the •disciplined the love for zoe. Zoe as the ullimate echoing
ity and autonomy mobilization" (97) of social space. The becoming-minoritarian of chambers of the specific slice of life that we
Laurie Anderson music produces a practice of expression without a monolilhic or embody is larval, but also cosmic. Questions
lity of the human unitary subject that supervises the operations and capitalizes linked to post-secular spirituality arise as a
trains, intestines, upon them. consequence of the politics of life and an eth­
nbers. Enhanced Music increases the intensity of becoming: lt is about cross­ ics that takes zoe seriously as a productive
1front the listener ing as many thresholds of intensily as the subject can sustain. category.
as the extemal Ali becoming is transgressive; it also aims at approaching the The potency of zoe as the defining trait of
already here, we imperceptible, the unthinkable, the audible. Just as intransitive the subject displaces the unitary vision of
m, cognition and writing for Deleuze can engender becoming by being intransitive, consciousness and the sovereignty of the 'I.'
and do justice to sa music can express affectlvily, immanence and dissolution of Bath liberal individualism and classical human­
boundaries. Music is constant becoming, its refrains and rhyth- ism are accordingly disrupted at their very
ro si braidottl
6
6 foundations. Far from belng merely a 'crisis' of advanced technologies. This result is simultaneously containing um. far tram resu
values, 1 think this situation confronts us with a and narrowing down the enormous potential of the technologies respect for the cc
formidable set of new opportunitles: renewed themselves, which are advanced enough to redesign our cos­
conceptual creativity and a leap of our col­ mological views as well as social relations. They also prevent notes. 1 1 am gr
lective imagination to meet the challenge. A humans from active experimentations with new thresholds of in his opening re
post-humanistic brand of non-anthropocentric sustainability: How far we can go without cracking, how much the University of
vltallsm. inspired by philosophical nomadism, our bodies can take on the current transformations. coined by John t.
is one possible response to this challenge. A This calls for a revislon of the subject in terms of an eco­ with lntensities' é
polilics of iife defined as biosjzoe phUosophical integration thanks to Juditl
power opens the possibility of the into hisjher environment. for this warm Ion
proliferation of highly generative The shift to blo-centered of my work.
post-humanities. egalitarianism posits the
A sustainable ethics for a non­ subject as a post-identity works c1ted
unitary subject proposes an en­ site, or an embodied and Pearson, Keith.
larged sense of interconnection embedded entlty, whlch Ufe: Perspectr
between self and others, including exists ln the interaction Nietzsche an
the nonhuman or 'earth' others, by with a number of extemal Transhuman C
removing the obstacle of self-cen­ forces and others, not all London: Re
lered lndividualism. Far from entail­ of them human, social or 1997.,i Balsamc
ing the loss of values and a free fall hlstorical others. Such Technologies
into relativism, this rather implies a a vision of the subject Gendered Body
new way of comblning self-interests transposes bath human­ ing Cyborg
with the well- being of an enlarged lsm and social construc­ Durham: Dukr
sense of community, which includes tlvism and calls for a 1996.,i Bhabha,
one's territorial or environmental revision of vitalism as a "Unpacking my
interconnections. lt is a nomadic major theoretical issue. agaln." The Pc
eco-philosophy of multiple belong- Before we mlstake a shift niai Question: C
ings, which lnvolves transposing the subject of scale for a qualitative shift of perspective, we need to develop Skies, Divided H.
oui of identity politics into a non-unilary or no­ more accurate cartographies, to stay focused on the potential for York: Routledge
madic vision of selves as interrelational forces. qualitative changes (becomings), not Just quantitative prolifera­ cosmology." Sul
Consciousness is redefined accordingly not as tions of counter-identitles. ln order to answer these challenges, Metamorphoses.
the core of the humanistlc subject, but at best the speclfic time-sequences and temporaiity of nomadic subjec­ Cambridge: Poli
as a way of synchronizing the multiple differ­ tivity need to be accounted for. The non-linear lime of becoming Cambridge: Poli
ences wilhln each and everyone, which con­ accomplishes a number of productive transpositions of lite loto madic Ethics. Ca
stitutes the ethical core of nomadic subjects. zoe and of death lnto a-temporal and incorporeal becomings. ln Tennlnal /dentil}
The retum of the master narratives of genetlc this project, insects stand as the indicators of a path of becom­ Fiction. Durham:
determinism and market capitalism today pro­ ing-imperceptible which can be considered as paradlgmatic in Fascism: Sapph.
vide a perverse equation of individualism wlth contemporary techno-cuiture. Bugs may lndeed be to nature as Stanford UP, 1f
the multiple inter-connective capacities of chips to culture, but the terms of this new 'natureculture' continu- Humanism: Dele
 •
a re bug s t o n a t ure a s c hip s t o c u l t ure?
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