What is the Body Without Organs? | Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari | Keyword
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Show transcript
This episode explores Deleuze and Guattari's complex concept of the Body without Organs, examining its philosophical underpinnings and revolutionary potential.
There are four key takeaways from this discussion. First, the Body without Organs, or BwO, is a theoretical plane of pure potential, not a physical entity. Second, it challenges rigid structures by focusing on dynamic, fluid connections among elements. Third, the BwO opposes the fixed, hierarchical organization of parts, not the parts themselves. Fourth, this framework critiques societal systems, particularly how capitalism both liberates and re-codes desires.
The BwO represents a conceptual surface or plane of consistency where production and organization occur. It is the site for "desiring-machines," which are productive forces or "partial objects" to connect and create new structures. This perspective shifts focus from static forms to dynamic processes and flows.
Deleuze and Guattari posit the BwO as a plane of immanence, allowing for new configurations and connections. This liberates elements from predetermined roles, fostering innovative arrangements beyond traditional hierarchies. It emphasizes the potential for constant becoming and transformation.
Critically, the BwO does not reject individual components or "organs." Instead, it challenges their rigid, coded organization within systems. It seeks to unleash their potential for novel interactions and formations, promoting a more fluid and less constrained mode of existence.
This analytical lens, known as schizoanalysis, contrasts sharply with traditional psychoanalysis. It provides a powerful tool to understand how systems like capitalism operate by simultaneously opening up flows (deterritorialization) and then re-establishing control through new structures (reterritorialization) for their own benefit.
This discussion offers a concise entry point into a profound philosophical concept impacting our understanding of desire, power, and societal structures.
Episode Overview
- An introduction to the complex philosophical concept of the "Body without Organs" (BwO) from the works of Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari.
- An explanation of the BwO as a plane of immanence or a surface of pure potential, rather than a literal, physical body.
- A discussion on how this concept functions in relation to productive forces, which Deleuze and Guattari call "desiring-machines" or "partial objects."
- An analysis of how the BwO relates to societal structures, particularly capitalism and psychoanalysis, and its potential for revolutionary thought.
Key Concepts
- Body without Organs (BwO): A conceptual surface or plane of pure potential that is unproductive on its own. It is the site upon which organization, connections, and production occur.
- Desiring-Machines / Partial Objects: Productive forces (such as organs or individuals in a system) that connect to and operate on the BwO, creating flows, patterns, and structures.
- Plane of Consistency: Another term for the BwO, highlighting it as a surface where various elements can interact in non-hierarchical ways.
- Organization vs. Organs: The speaker clarifies that the BwO doesn't oppose organs but rather the rigid, hierarchical organization of organs, seeking to free them for new connections.
- Schizoanalysis: The analytical method proposed by Deleuze and Guattari that traces the flows of desire on the BwO, contrasting with psychoanalysis, which they argue imposes reductive structures like the Oedipus complex.
Quotes
- At 00:04 - "Today we're going to talk about Deleuze and Guattari's idea of the body without organs." - The speaker directly introduces the central topic of the episode.
- At 01:54 - "The body without organs is a body upon which that which serves as organs is distributed according to crowd phenomena in Brownian motion in the form of molecular multiplicities." - The speaker reads Deleuze and Guattari's complex definition from A Thousand Plateaus as a starting point for his explanation.
- At 03:22 - "This isn't to say that the body without organs opposes organs. That would be very wrong to think that. The body without organs opposes the organization of organs in a very coded, specific way." - A crucial clarification is made to prevent a common misinterpretation of the BwO concept.
Takeaways
- Understand the "Body without Organs" as a theoretical plane of possibility, not a literal entity.
- The concept challenges rigid, predetermined structures by focusing on the potential for new and fluid connections between different elements.
- The BwO is not inherently against parts (like organs) but against their fixed, hierarchical organization, advocating for liberation from these codes.
- This framework can be applied to critique societal systems like capitalism, which both deterritorializes (frees up flows) and reterritorializes (imposes new structures) for its own ends.
