Gilles Deleuze’s alphabet book: H for Histoire de la Philosophie (History of philosophy) Part I

Summary:

A Conversation with Gilles Deleuze: our teacher this evening.

One of the truly great philosophers of the twentieth century was the French creator of novel concepts Gilles Deleuze (1925-1995). Near the end of his life, he filmed a video in which he is interviewed by Claire Parnet, one of his long-time students, who asks him to speak about themes organized by the alphabet. In this selection, he covers the letters H, I, and J. The three themes are the histoire de philosophy, the meaning of Idea, and Joy.

We saw some clips from this video many years ago, but its relevance and profundity have not lessened. In this selection, he will reveal the essence of what  drives a great philosopher in the endeavor to develop new ideas. He will also speak about the thinkers in the past who have inspired him. These include Spinoza, Leibniz, and Nietzsche. Deleuze studied their work, and that of many other philosophers, before attempting to write his own philosophy. He will emphasize the necessity to be willing to undergo a long apprenticeship before advancing a new paradigm of thought—and the same long, grueling period of apprenticeship is required in every field, whether art, music, or other discipline.

Deleuze, who wrote several books together with a rogue Lacanian psychoanalyst named Felix Guattari,
was also a close friend of Michel Foucault, another
great French philosopher of the last century. Together, they had a huge effect on the following generation of thinkers. Rosi Braidotti, for example, whom we heard speak a few days ago, did her apprenticeship as a student of both Deleuze and Foucault.

I hope you find Deleuze’s ideas inspiring and nourishing to your soul. If you do, we can watch more of these clips of his conversations about life.

Namaste,
Shunyamurti