Taylor Adkins, @CNoumena, @YAgamben - Wicked Lyotard Pt 6
Mar 16, 2021
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Taylor Adkins, @CNoumena, and @YAgamben discuss Jean Francois Lyotard's Libidinal Economy (1974) in this episode. They explore topics such as the convergence of information, Lacan's influence, heat diffusion, entropy and cybernetics, Freud's work, the ISA and social reproduction, book reception and interpretation, false flags, currency fluctuations, speculation on credit, and labor and value.
Science is driven by a desire to slow down the libidinal band and represent itself as the ultimate explanation of reality.
Leotard challenges the notion that science is an objective knowledge-seeking endeavor and criticizes its attempt to control intensities without acknowledging its limitations.
Leotard's work reflects a transition from embracing Marxist metanarratives to adopting a more skeptical approach, urging a critical examination of scientific claims and a nuanced understanding of human experience.
By questioning the assumptions and limitations of science, Leotard challenges readers to critically engage with dominant narratives and structures shaping our understanding of the world.
Deep dives
The Power of Reproduction in Science
Leotard explores the idea that science is primarily focused on efficiency and power rather than truth. He questions the role of science as a metanarrative and its tendency to represent itself as the ultimate explanation of reality. Leotard argues that science is driven by a desire to slow down the libidinal band, seeking a grade zero of representation. He suggests that science can be viewed as a form of madness, a consensual madness that creates fictions and operates within a cyclical, global, and organic system of reproduction.
The Critique of Metanarratives in Science
Leotard challenges the notion that science is an objective knowledge-seeking endeavor. He claims that science is contingent on reproduction, perpetuating the same conditions and metanarratives. He criticizes science's attempt to represent and control intensities without acknowledging its own limitations. Leotard argues that science often masquerades as a complete representation of reality, while neglecting the complexity and diversity of human experiences. He does not champion intensification for its own sake, but instead seeks to highlight the limitations and biases of scientific discourse.
The Transition to a Critical Episteme
Leotard's work can be seen as a transition from embracing Marxist metanarratives to adopting a more atomized and skeptical approach. He questions the validity and authority of metanarratives, including scientific ones, and calls for a critical examination of their claims. Leotard's engagement with various topics and sources in his writing reflects a move away from relying on overarching narratives and towards a nuanced understanding of the complexities of human experience and knowledge production.
Reevaluating the Role of Science and Reproduction
Leotard's exploration of science as an epistemic endeavor highlights its role in reproducing existing systems and narratives. He argues that science, like other societal institutions, is driven by a desire for reproduction and control. By questioning the assumptions and limitations of science, Leotard challenges readers to critically engage with the dominant narratives and structures that shape our understanding of the world.
The tension between speculation and stability in the economy
Leotard explores the tension between speculation and stability in the economy, focusing on the concept of credit money and its role in buying the future. He discusses how speculation on credit, fueled by businesses rather than banks, intensifies the circulation of commodities and the potential for financial crises. Leotard highlights the imbalance between the ability of individuals with capital to withhold their resources and the pressure on the working class to consume and spend. He also delves into the idea of credit as a sign that refers endlessly to other signs, reinforcing the unreality of advanced money.
The unpredictable nature of the financial market
Leotard discusses the unpredictability of the financial market, using examples such as the Dutch tulip mania and the 1929 stock market crash. He emphasizes how speculation on credit shifts the focus away from tangible goods and services and towards algorithms, high-frequency trading, and derivatives. Leotard illustrates how this shift leads to a paradigm change in the economy, with the working class bearing the brunt of financial crises and subsidizing the risks taken by larger institutions.
The libidinal economy and surplus value
Leotard explores the concept of surplus value and its connection to the libidinal economy. He suggests that surplus in this context is not only derived from exploited or alienated labor, but also from libidinal intensities. Leotard alludes to the oppression and enjoyment experienced by the working class in their own exploitation. He also discusses the idea of surplus value as deriving outside of transactional exchanges, drawing parallels to the empowerment and pleasure experienced by individuals in certain situations.
The tension between equilibrium and surplus
Leotard delves into the tension between equilibrium and surplus in the economy and the concept of settling accounts. He questions the location and generation of surplus, particularly in relation to the equilibrium achieved through transactions. Leotard suggests that surplus exists beyond transactional equivalencies, whether it be surplus labor value or surplus libidinal intensities. He highlights how surplus can be derived from both exploitation and enjoyment outside of traditional transactional exchanges.
Part 6 of a series of discussions with Taylor Adkins, @CNoumena, and @YAgamben on Jean Francois Lyotard's Libidinal Economy (1974). Lyotard referred to it as his evil book, and it was a major influence on Nick Land.
In this episode, we cover chapter 5, Capital (pgs. 201-243) from the Grant translation.
Part 1:
https://soundcloud.com/podcast-co-coopercherry/taylor-adkins-cnoumena-yagamben-wicked-lyotard-pt-1
Part 2: https://soundcloud.com/podcast-co-coopercherry/taylor-adkins-cnoumena-yagamben-wicked-lyotard-pt-2
Part 3: https://soundcloud.com/podcast-co-coopercherry/taylor-adkins-cnoumena-yagamben-wicked-lyotard-pt
Part 4: https://soundcloud.com/podcast-co-coopercherry/taylor-adkins-cnoumena-yagamben-wicked-lyotard-pt-4
Part 5: https://soundcloud.com/podcast-co-coopercherry/taylor-adkins-cnoumena-yagamben-wicked-lyotard-pt-5
Taylor's Links:
https://soundcloud.com/user-659574533
https://soundcloud.com/theory-talk
https://fractalontology.wordpress.com/
https://twitter.com/tadkins613
Cute Noumena:
https://twitter.com/CNoumena
https://linktr.ee/Cute_Noumena
Yung Agamben:
https://twitter.com/YAgamben
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