François Laruelle and Gilles Deleuze are both influential figures in contemporary philosophy, but they differ significantly in their approaches, goals, and key concepts.
### Gilles Deleuze:
- **Philosophical Approach**: Deleuze is known for his development of a "philosophy of difference" that challenges traditional, representational modes of thinking. His work is often associated with poststructuralism, though he himself resisted this label.
- **Key Concepts**: Deleuze's work includes key concepts such as "difference and repetition," "rhizome," "becoming," and "the body without organs." He often collaborated with Félix Guattari, with whom he co-authored influential works like *"A Thousand Plateaus"* and *"Anti-Oedipus."*
- **Goal**: Deleuze sought to create a non-hierarchical, dynamic understanding of reality. He focused on concepts like multiplicity and becoming, aiming to move away from static, identity-based thinking.
- **Relation to Other Philosophers**: Deleuze engaged deeply with the history of philosophy, reinterpreting figures like Spinoza, Nietzsche, and Bergson to develop his ideas. His work is often seen as a radical rethinking of metaphysics, ethics, and aesthetics.
### François Laruelle:
- **Philosophical Approach**: Laruelle developed what he calls "non-philosophy" or "non-standard philosophy." His approach critiques traditional philosophy's tendency to establish itself as a form of transcendental authority. Instead, Laruelle seeks to think "from" the One, a concept that denotes a radical immanence.
- **Key Concepts**: Laruelle's work revolves around the idea of the "One," "unilateral duality," "non-philosophy," and "philosophy as material." He rejects the philosophical pretension to capture the Real, instead proposing a stance of radical immanence where thought is seen as an operation within the Real, rather than a transcendental commentary on it.
- **Goal**: Laruelle aims to democratize thought by breaking down the hierarchical structures within philosophy. He seeks to bypass traditional philosophical systems, creating a new form of thought that does not rely on philosophy's self-legitimizing claims.
- **Relation to Other Philosophers**: Laruelle is highly critical of mainstream philosophical traditions, including those represented by figures like Deleuze. While Deleuze sought to expand and transform philosophical concepts, Laruelle aims to suspend or "bracket" philosophical thought, considering it just one possible mode of thinking rather than a privileged one.
### Key Differences:
1. **Relationship to Philosophy**: Deleuze is a transformative philosopher who works within the tradition to develop new concepts and ways of thinking. Laruelle, on the other hand, seeks to operate outside traditional philosophy, offering a non-philosophical stance that critiques and reconfigures the role of philosophy itself.
2. **Conceptual Framework**: Deleuze’s work is rooted in difference, multiplicity, and becoming, focusing on the dynamic processes of life and thought. Laruelle's framework is centered on the concept of the One and the immanent Real, emphasizing a non-philosophical approach that sidesteps the metaphysical assumptions of traditional philosophy.
3. **Goals**: Deleuze aims to create a new kind of metaphysics and ethics that embraces difference and rejects identity-based thinking. Laruelle aims to democratize thought by challenging the authority of philosophical systems and presenting a more egalitarian approach to thinking.
In summary, while Deleuze expands and radicalizes philosophical thought, Laruelle seeks to transcend it by proposing a new mode of thinking that operates outside the traditional philosophical frameworks.
