Table Of ContentDosse François Dosse
Praise for
g i l lesdeleuze &
fél ixguattari
“An exhaustive and fascinating account. . . . As a glimpse into a remarkable period
in French intellectual history where politics, philosophy, and literary brilliance
coalesced, it is captivating.” g i l lesdeleuze & fél ixguattari
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
IN MAY 1968, Gilles Deleuze was an
“The ‘intertwined’ biography of Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari bears all the
i n t e r s e c t i n g l i v e s established philosopher teaching at the inno-
traits of François Dosse’s previous work. It is scrupulously researched, written
vative Vincennes University, just outside of
with verve, adroit and responsible in its handling of complex philosophical issues, Paris. Félix Guattari was a political militant
and fi lled with hitherto unpublished details about the lives of its subjects and the and the director of an unusual psychiatric
often tempestuous events that surrounded them throughout their careers. An clinic at La Borde. Their meeting was quite
impressive and important study.” unlikely, yet the two were introduced in an
RONALD BOGUE, University of Georgia arranged encounter of epic consequence.
From that moment on, Deleuze and Guattari
“What is most striking in François Dosse’s dual biography is how utterly different engaged in a surprising, productive partner-
ship, collaborating on several groundbreaking
are these two men—not only in their academic training but also in their styles
works, including Anti-Oedipus, What Is Philoso-
FRANÇOIS DOSSE is a professor at of thought, temperament, social habits, and modes of political engagement. One phy? and A Thousand Plateaus.
the IUFM Creteil, Paris Institute for Political gets the sense that their collaboration is rich precisely because they are able to
Studies, and at the Center for Cultural His- work with these differences and continually set them into play, all the while main- François Dosse, a prominent French intel-
tory, University of Versailles/Saint-Quentin- taining the utmost respect for and fascination with each other.” lectual known for his work on the An-
en-Yvelines. He has published several impor-
MICHAEL HARDT, coauthor of Empire; nales School, structuralism, and biographies
tant books on intellectual history, including
Multitude: War and Democracy in the Age of Empire; and Commonwealth of the pivotal intellectuals Paul Ricoeur, Pierre
History of Structuralism: The Rising Sign, 1945– Chaunu, and Michel de Certeau, examines the
1966, and History of Structuralism: The Sign Sets, prolifi c if improbable relationship between
1967–Present. EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVES: two men of distinct and differing sensibilities.
A SERIES IN SOCIAL THOUGHT Drawing on unpublished archives and hun-
DEBORAH GLASSMAN is the author AND CULTUR AL CRITICISM dreds of personal interviews, Dosse eluci-
of several works on literature, education, and dates a collaboration that lasted more than
international development and is the transla- Columbia University Press / New York two decades, underscoring the role that fam-
tor of Dosse’s two books on structuralism. www.cup.columbia.edu ily and history—particularly the turbulent
Based in Paris and Washington, D.C., she is Printed in the U.S.A. time of May 1968—played in their monu-
currently living and working in Tunis for the mental work. He also takes the measure of
African Development Bank.
ISBN: 978-0-231-14560-2 Deleuze and Guattari’s posthumous fortunes
and the impact of their thought on intellectual,
Jacket image: © Fonds Félix Guattari/Archives IMEC 9 780231 145602 COLUMBIA academic, and professional circles.
gi l lesdeleuze & fél ixguattari
i n t e r s e c t i n g l i v e s
Gilles
Deleuze
&
Félix
Guattari
eur o p e a n p e r s p e c t i v e s
eur op ea n perspectives
A Series in Social Thought and Cultural Criticism
L awr ence D. Kritz m an , Ed i t or
Eur op ea n Perspectives presents outstanding books by leading Eur op ea n thinkers. With both
classic and contemporary works, the series aims to shape the major intellectual controversies
of our day and to facilitate the tasks of historical understanding.
For a complete list of books in the series, see pages 653–5 5.
Gilles
Deleuze
&
Félix
Guattari
Intersecting
Lives
François Dosse
Translated by Deborah Glassman
Columbia University Press Ne w York
Columbia University Press
Publishers Since 1893
New York Chichester, West Sussex
Originally published as Gilles Deleuze et Félix Guattari. Biographie croisée
Copyright © Editions La Decouverte, Paris, 2007
Translation copyright © 2010 Columbia University Press
All rights reserved
Columbia University Press wishes to express its appreciation for assistance given
by the government of France through the Ministère Français de la Culture with the
preparation of this translation.
Library of Congress Cataloging-i n-P ublication Data
Dosse, François, 1950–
[Gilles Deleuze et Félix Guattari. English]
Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari : intersecting lives / François Dosse.
p. em.—(European perspectives)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-231-14560-2 (cloth : alk. paper)—ISBN 978-0-231-51867-3 (e-book)
1. Deleuze, Gilles, 1925–1995. 2. Guattari, Félix, 1930–1992. I. Title. II. Series.
B2430.D454D6713 2010
194—dc22
[B]
2009047835
Columbia University Press books are printed on permanent and durable acid-f ree paper.
This book is printed on paper with recycled content.
Printed in the United States of America
c 1 0 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
References to Internet Web sites (URLs) w ere accurate at the time of writing. Neither the
author nor Columbia University Press is responsible for URLs that may have expired or
changed since the manuscript was prepared.
Contents
The illustrations follow page 356
Ack nowl edgm ents vii
Introduction: Betwixt or Between 1
Part I. Folds: Parallel Biographies
1. Félix Guattari: The Psychopol itic al Itinerary, 1930–1 964 21
2. La Borde: Between Myth and Reality 40
3. Daily Life at La Borde 55
4. Testing Critical Research Empirically 76
5. Gilles Deleuze: The Hero’s Brother 88
6. The Art of the Portrait 108
7. Nietzs che, Bergson, Spinoza: A Trio for a Vitalist Philosophy 129
8. An Ontology of Diff erence 150
9. The Founding Rupture: May 1968 170
Part II. Unfolding: Intersecting Lives
10. “Psychoanalysm” Under Attack 183
11. Anti-O edipus 206
12. Machine Against Structure 223
13. “Minor” Literature as Seen by Deleuze and Guattari 241
14. A Thousand Plateaus: A Geophilosophy of Politics 249
15. The CERFI at Work 267
16. The “Molecular Revolution”: Italy, Germany, France 284
17. Deleuze and Foucault: A Philosophical Friendship 306
18. An Alternative to Psychiatry? 331
19. Deleuze at Vincennes 344
20. The Year of Combat: 1977 362
vi contents
Part III. Surplices: 1980–2 007
21. Guattari Between Culture and Ecolo gy 383
22. Deleuze Goes to the Movies 397
23. Guattari and Aesthetics: Consolation During the Winter Years 423
24. Deleuze Dialogues with Creation 434
25. An Artist Philosophy 456
26. Winning Over the West 465
27. Around the World 479
28. Two Deaths 492
29. Their Work at Work 502
30. Conclusion 519
Notes 525
Index 617
Ack nowl edgm ents
I would like to thank all those who generously
contributed their time during the interviews that I carried out between
2004 and 2006. Their help was essential for making this biography pos-
sible: Alfred Adler, Éric Alliez, Dudley Andrew, Bernard Andrieu, Manola
Antonioli, Alain Aptekman, Olivier Apprill, Philippe Artières, Zafer
Aracagök, François Aubral, Danièle Auff ray, Jacques Aumont, Kostas
Axelos, Alain Beaulieu, Raymond Bellour, Thomas Bénatouil, Réda Bens-
maïa, Denis Berger, Giuseppe Bianco, Pierre Blanchaud, Pascal Bonitzer,
Julian Bourg, Christian Bourgois, Constantin Boundas, Christine Buci-
Glucksmann, Bernard Cache, Michel Cartry, Pascal Chabot, Pierre-A ntoine
Chardel, Noëlle Châtelet, Jean Chesneaux, Michel Ciment, Pascale Criton,
Andrew Cutrofello, Fanny Deleuze, Christian Descamps, Marc-A lain Des-
camps, Juacques Donzelot, Jean-M aris Doublet, Jean-C laude Dumoncel,
Élie During, Corinne Enaudeau, Jean- Pierre Faye, Pierrette Fleutieux,
François Fourquet, Daniel Franco, Gérard Fromanger, Maurice de Gandil-
lac, Roger Gentis, Fernando Gonzales, Frédéric Gros, Lawrence Gross-
berg, Bruno Guattari, Emmaneulle Guattari, Jean Guattari, Alain et Danièle
Guillerm, Nicole Gullet, Suzanne Hême de Lacotte, Eugene Holland, Mi-
chel Izard, Eleanor Kaufman, Lawrence Kritzman, Christina Kullberg,
D avid Lapoujade, Claude Lemoine, Jean-L ouis Leutrat, Sylvain Loiseau,
Sylvère Lotringer, Yves Mabin, Norman Madarasz, Robert Maggiori, Josée
Manenti, Jean-P aul Manganaro, Patrice Maniglier, Michel Marié, Jean-
Clet Martin, Hervé Maury, Philippe Mengue, Alain Ménil, Catherine Mil-
lot, Olivier Mongin, Pierre Montebello, Liane Mozère, Lion Murard, Jean-
Pierre Muyard, Stéphane Nadaud, Jean Narboni, Toni Negri, Miguel
Norambuena, Jean Oury, François Pain, Dominique Païni, Jo Panaget, Thi-
erry Paquot, André de Souza Parente, Giorgio Passerone, Paul Patton,
Florence Pétry, Richard Pinhas, Rafaël Pividal, Jean-C laude Polack,
viii acknowledgments
Matthieu Potte- Bonneville, Daniel Price, John Protevi, Olivier Querouil,
Anne Querrien, David Rabouin, Jacques Rancière, Francois Regnault, Oliv-
ier Revault D’Allonnes, Judith Revel, Alain Roger, Jacob Rogozinski, Suely
Rolnik, Élisabeth Roudinesco, Jean- Michel Salanskis, Elias Sanbar, Anne
Sauvagnargues, René Schérer, Dominique Séglard, Guillaume Sibertin-
Blanc, Danielle Sivadon, Gérard Soulier, Hidenobu Suzuki, Jean-B aptiste
Thierrée, Simon Tormey, Serge Toubiana, Michel Tournier, Michel Tu-
biana, Guy Trastour, Kuniichi Uno, Janne Vehanen, Paul Veyne, Arnaud
Villani, Tiziana Villani, J. MacGregor Wise, Frédéric Worms, Chris You-
nès, Dork Zabunyan, and François Zourbachivili.
I would also like to thank Virgine Linhart profoundly for having very
generously provided the interviews she conducted for her study of Felix
Guattari’s life with the following: Éric Alliez, Raymond Bellour, Franco Be-
rardi Bifo, Denis Berger, Jacky Berroyer, Novella Bonetti- Bassano, Jack
Brière, Michel Butel, Michel Cartry, Gaby Cohn-B endit, Marie Depussé,
Gisèle Donnard, Jean-M arie Doublet, Hélène Dupuy de Lôme, Mony Elkaïm,
Patrick Farbias, Jean-P ierre Faye, François Fourquet, Gérard Fromanger,
Gervaise Garnaud, Sacha Goldman, Bruno Guattari, Emmanuelle Guattari,
Jean Guattari, Tatiana Kecojevic, Jean-J acques Lebel, Sylvère Lotringer,
Pierre Manart, Lucien Martin, Ramondo Matta, Ginette Michaud, Gian
Marco Montesano, Yann Moulier-B outang, Lion Murard, Toni Negri, Jean
Oury, Pierre Pachet, François Pain, Jo Panaget, Jean-C laude Polack, Anne
Querrien, Jacques Robin, Michel Rostain, Dominique Seglard, Gérard
Soulier, Isabelle Stengers, Massaki Sugimura, Paul Virilio, and Claude
Vivien.
I would also like to thank my friend Jean- Christophe Goddard very
much for having invited me to speak during the exciting two-d ay workshop
on Anti-O edipus that he org an ized at the University of Poitiers on Decem-
ber 2–3 , 2005.
Thanks also to Anne Sauvagnargues and Guillaume Sibertin-B lanc for
having allowed me to come to their seminar, “Reading Deleuze and Guat-
tari’s A Thousand Plateaus,” at the Working Group on Deleuze, Spinoza,
and the Social Sciences at the Center for the Study of Rhetoric, Philoso-
phy, and the History of Ideas (CERPHI) in 2005–2 006.
My thanks also go to Emmanuelle Guattari, for her early support for
this project, and to José Ruiz Funes, for having facilitated my access to the
Guattari collection at the IMEC Archives.
ack nowl edgm ents ix
Thanks also to Fanny Deleuze and Emmanuelle and Bruno Guattari for
having spoken with me and for giving me permission to publish their per-
sonal photographs.
Finally, and with the deepest gratitude, I would like to thank my fi rst
readers, who helped me substantially improve the fi rst draft. I obviously
owe them a great debt for innumerable corrections, information, and sug-
gestions: Manola Antoniolli, Raymond Bellour, François Fourquet, Hugues
Jallon, Thierry Paquot, Guillaume Sibertin-B lanc, and Danielle Sivadon.
And of course, my thanks to Florence Dosse, for having given up her own
research so that I could benefi t from her indispensable skills as a reader.
