Laruelle and Non-Philosophy

by John Mullarkey, Anthony Smith

Overview

The first collection of critical essays on the work of this most original thinker. Fran ois Laruelle is one of the most important French philosophers of the last 20 years, and as his texts have become available in English there has been a rising tide of interest in his work, particularly on the concept of 'Non-Philosophy'. Non-philosophy radically rethinks many of the most cutting-edge concepts such as immanence, pluralism, resistance, science, democracy, decisionism, Marxism, theology and materialism. It also expands our view of what counts as philosophical thought, through art, science and politics, and beyond to fields as varied as film, animality and material objects.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780748664764
Publisher:	Edinburgh University Press
Publication date:	07/03/2012
Series:	Critical Connections EUP
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

John Mullarkey is Professor of Film and TV at Kingston University, London. In 2014, his name reverted from the English 'Mullarkey' to the original Irish, ' Maoilearca', which ultimately translates as 'follower of the animal'.

He previously taught at the University of Dundee (2004-2010) and the University of Sunderland (1994-2004). He is the author of Bergson and Philosophy (1999), Post-Continental Philosophy: An Outline (2006), and Philosophy and the Moving Image: Refractions of Reality (2010). He is an editor of Film-Philosophy and co-editor of The Continuum Companion to Continental Philosophy (2009) and Laruelle and Non-Philosophy (2012). His work explores variations of 'non-standard-philosophy', arguing that philosophy is a subject that continually shifts its identity through engaging with (supposedly) 'non-philosophical' fields such as cinema, diagrams, and animality. He is currently working on a book entitled Reverse Mutations: Laruelle and Non-Human Philosophy.

Anthony Paul Smith is Assistant Professor in Religion at La Salle University. He is the translator of Future Christ: A Lesson in Heresy and co-translator of Principles of Non-Philosophy, both by Fran ois Laruelle, and co-editor of After the Postsecular and the Postmodern: New Essays in Continental Philosophy of Religion.

Table of Contents

Introduction: The Non-Philosophical Inversion: Laruelle’s Knowledge Without Domination; John Mullarkey and Anthony Paul Smith; 1. Thinking from the One: Science and the Ancient Philosophical Figure of the One, Anthony Paul Smith; 2. Laruelle Facing Deleuze: Immanence, Resistance and Desire, Marjorie Gracieuse; 3. Laruelle and Ordinary Life, Rocco Gangle; 4. The Justice of Non-Philosophy, Joshua Ramey; 5. Laruelle and the Reality of Abstraction, Ray Brassier; 6. The Science-Thought of Laruelle and Its Effects on Epistemology, Anne-Françoise Schmid; 7. 1 + 1 = 1: The Non-Consistency of Non-Philosophical Practice (Photo: Quantum: Fractal), John Mullarkey; 8. Transcendental Arguments, Axiomatic Truth, and the Difficulty of Overcoming Idealism, Michael J. Olson; 9. Laruelle, Anti-Capitalist, Alexander R. Galloway; 10. Theories of the Immanent Rebellion: Non-Marxism and Non-Christianity, Katerina Kolozova; 11. Is Thinking Democratic? Or, How to Introduce Theory into Democracy, François Laruelle; 12. Non-Philosophy, Weapon of Last Defence: An Interview with François Laruelle; Notes on Contributors; Bibliography; Index.

What People are Saying About This

Non-philosophy is neither a school nor a method, and it is not simply another way of doing philosophy by other means. Mullarkey and Smith demonstrate this in their selection of essays for this volume; each essay refuses the traditional explanatory or representational functions of philosophy, preferring to see thought as co-extensive with a real in which it is imbricated. A welcome addition to the growing engagement with Laruelle and non-philosophy.

Eugene Thacker

Non-philosophy is neither a school nor a method, and it is not simply another way of doing philosophy by other means. Mullarkey and Smith demonstrate this in their selection of essays for this volume; each essay refuses the traditional explanatory or representational functions of philosophy, preferring to see thought as co-extensive with a real in which it is imbricated. A welcome addition to the growing engagement with Laruelle and non-philosophy.

The New School - Dr Eugene Thacker

Non-philosophy is neither a school nor a method, and it is not simply another way of doing philosophy by other means. Mullarkey and Smith demonstrate this in their selection of essays for this volume; each essay refuses the traditional explanatory or representational functions of philosophy, preferring to see thought as co-extensive with a real in which it is imbricated. A welcome addition to the growing engagement with Laruelle and non-philosophy.

Editorial Reviews

This collection is the first significant work commenting on [Laruelle's] ideas. For those already familiar with him, the book will satisfy with a well-rounded introduction, 10 essays engaging the material in diverse ways, a contribution from Laruelle, and an intriguing interview with him as well.

LSE Review of Books