On Terrorism, Events, and the Nature of Problematic Structures
Abstract
This paper argues that French philosopher Gilles Deleuze’s concept of “the event” provides a resource for the meaningful reconstruction of the socio-political problem of terrorism. Through an elucidation of the claim that, for Deleuze, all events are genuinely and positively new, I argue—in contrast with two predominant approaches to the problem—that terrorism exhibits a nonlinear and differential structure that cannot be adequately reduced to a set of necessary or sufficient conditions that account for its possibility in advance. In this way, my argument seeks to align terrorism with the properly variable concepts that Deleuze explores throughout his work. Finally, I conclude by suggesting what it might mean to become “worthy” (in Deleuze’s sense) of the event of terrorism.
On Terrorism, Events, and the Nature of Problematic Structures
Stewart Center 313
This paper argues that French philosopher Gilles Deleuze’s concept of “the event” provides a resource for the meaningful reconstruction of the socio-political problem of terrorism. Through an elucidation of the claim that, for Deleuze, all events are genuinely and positively new, I argue—in contrast with two predominant approaches to the problem—that terrorism exhibits a nonlinear and differential structure that cannot be adequately reduced to a set of necessary or sufficient conditions that account for its possibility in advance. In this way, my argument seeks to align terrorism with the properly variable concepts that Deleuze explores throughout his work. Finally, I conclude by suggesting what it might mean to become “worthy” (in Deleuze’s sense) of the event of terrorism.