Episode #129 - Gilles Deleuze Pt. 5 - Difference
Gilles Deleuze Pt. 5 - Difference
In this episode, the podcast deepens its exploration of Gilles Deleuze by examining his interpretation of Nietzsche’s concept of eternal recurrence, using it to challenge the long-standing philosophical distinction between being and becoming. Deleuze argues that becoming—the world in motion—is more foundational than static being, and that identity arises not from some fixed essence but from the dynamic connections we form over time. Through examples like postwar urban planning and personal transformation, the episode illustrates how attempts to impose rigid identities onto fluid systems—whether cities or individuals—lead to fragmentation and dysfunction. Instead, Deleuze calls for an embrace of immanence, difference, and experimentation. Rather than asking how one should live, Deleuze encourages us to ask how one might live, affirming life through motion, openness, and the refusal to conform to prescribed templates of identity or meaning.
Further Reading:
Nietzsche and Philosophy by Gilles Deleuze (1983)
Deleuze and Guattari's A Thousand Plateaus: A Critical Introduction and Guide by Brent Adkins (2015)
Architectural and Urban Reflections after Deleuze and Guattari: Organic Machines, Aesthetics and Assemblages edited by Jonathan Hale, Christina Contandriopoulos, and Andrew Ballantyne (2018)
See the full transcript here.
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