Episode #127 - Gilles Deleuze Pt. 3 - Anti-Oedipus
Gilles Deleuze Pt. 3 - Anti-Oedipus
In this episode, the third in a series on Gilles Deleuze, the discussion centers on Capitalism and Schizophrenia, a two-volume collaboration between Deleuze and Félix Guattari. Departing from traditional reinterpretations of Freud and Marx, Deleuze critiques rigid frameworks of modernity and calls for a radically new way of conceptualizing politics, desire, and subjectivity. Instead of grounding political analysis in individuals or fixed categories like the state or society, Deleuze and Guattari propose “machines”—fluid, interconnected entities driven by “desire production,” a concept they position as a fundamental, generative force in both life and politics. Drawing on Bergson’s distinction between the virtual and the actual, and culminating in the metaphor of the rhizome—a nonlinear, networked structure that opposes hierarchical “tree-like” models—the episode explores how this vision redefines how ideas, movements, and systems evolve. By shifting focus to multiplicity, flexibility, and interconnection, Deleuze invites a transformative rethinking of both political reality and philosophical method.
Further Reading:
Anti-Oedipus: Capitalism and Schizophrenia by Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari (1972)
A Thousand Plateaus: Capitalism and Schizophrenia by Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari (1980)
A User's Guide to Capitalism and Schizophrenia: Deviations from Deleuze and Guattari by Brian Massumi (1992)
See the full transcript here.
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