Overview

This edited volume deploys Deleuzian thinking to re-theorize fascism as a mutable problem in changing orders of power relations dependent on hitherto misunderstood social and political conditions of formation. It shifts the theory of fascism in International Relations from its prevailing macro-historical moorings to focus on what Deleuze called micro-fascism. It demonstrates the insufficiencies of both traditional and existing critical accounts of relations between fascism and modernity, contextualizing its own Deleuzian account in contrast with the development of historical, liberal, critical and post-structuralist theories of fascism developed to date. The book provides a theoretically distinct approach to the problem of fascism and its relations with liberalism and modernity in both historical and contemporary contexts. It serves as a seminal intervention into the debate over the causes and consequences of contemporary wars and global political conflicts as well as functioning as an accessible guide to the theoretical utilities of Deleuzian thought for IR in a manner that is very much lacking in current debates about International Relations. Recognising that Deleuze & Guttari's account of fascism aligns it with many of the concerns which continue to trouble International Relations theorists today -- not least the global nature of war and the incessant desire for broader securitisation, so engaging with this aspect of their work is more pressing than ever. In light of this, this volume will draw upon their analysis to provide new critical commentaries into the phenomenon of fascism in the 21st Century. Covering a wide array of topics, all within the general remit of International Relations, this volume will provide a set of original contributions focussed in particular upon the contemporary nature of war; the increased priorities afforded to the security imperative; the changing designs of bio-political regimes, fascist aesthetics; nihilistic tendencies & the modernist logic of finitude; the politics of suicide; the specific desires upon which fascism draws and of course the recurring pursuit of power.

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9780415589673

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Reviews

The editors of this superb volume tell us that 'We are all, always, fascists, of multiple kinds'; the fascism that they speak of, via Deleuze, is not limited to the exploits of Hitler and Nazism. This is the fascism of our own time, a fascism that has deepened and extended even since the time that Deleuze and Guattari penned Anti-Oedipus. This is the fascism of liberalism itself, the fascism of Kant, of humanism; it is a fascism of desire turned against itself, of the most basic aspects of power and authority. The authors of this volume, extend upon, argue with, probe, and complicate Deleuze's insights about pervasive fascism; through engagements with western philosophy, science fiction, cinema, Marxism, Foucault, and many other sources, these authors seek to reproblematize and reschematize a fascism that we all partake in, a tendency that, in some sense, we can never fully escape or leave behind. The beauty of this volume is that it explicitly politicizes an endemic crisis, allowing very diverse frames of reference (historical, aesthetic, theoretical) to mutually engage and contest what must be the greatest challenge of the 21st century. James Martel, San Francisco State University, USA

The editors of this superb volume tell us that 'We are all, always, fascists, of multiple kinds'; the fascism that they speak of, via Deleuze, is not limited to the exploits of Hitler and Nazism. This is the fascism of our own time, a fascism that has deepened and extended even since the time that Deleuze and Guattari penned Anti-Oedipus. This is the fascism of liberalism itself, the fascism of Kant, of humanism; it is a fascism of desire turned against itself, of the most basic aspects of power and authority. The authors of this volume, extend upon, argue with, probe, and complicate Deleuze's insights about pervasive fascism; through engagements with western philosophy, science fiction, cinema, Marxism, Foucault, and many other sources, these authors seek to reproblematize and reschematize a fascism that we all partake in, a tendency that, in some sense, we can never fully escape or leave behind. The beauty of this volume is that it explicitly politicizes an endemic crisis, allowing very diverse frames of reference (historical, aesthetic, theoretical) to mutually engage and contest what must be the greatest challenge of the 21st century. James Martel, San Francisco State University, USA When Foucault described Anti-Oedipus as a book for combating the inner fascist in us all his statement was taken at face value and never questioned or investigated. Deleuze and Fascism changes that: it turns Foucault's claim into a question and problematic and pursues the various lines of flight it opens for us. This is a richly interesting collection of essays with a very serious purpose. -- Ian Buchanan, Editor Deleuze Studies

The editors of this superb volume tell us that 'We are all, always, fascists, of multiple kinds'; the fascism that they speak of, via Deleuze, is not limited to the exploits of Hitler and Nazism. This is the fascism of our own time, a fascism that has deepened and extended even since the time that Deleuze and Guattari penned Anti-Oedipus. This is the fascism of liberalism itself, the fascism of Kant, of humanism; it is a fascism of desire turned against itself, of the most basic aspects of power and authority. The authors of this volume, extend upon, argue with, probe, and complicate Deleuze's insights about pervasive fascism; through engagements with western philosophy, science fiction, cinema, Marxism, Foucault, and many other sources, these authors seek to reproblematize and reschematize a fascism that we all partake in, a tendency that, in some sense, we can never fully escape or leave behind. The beauty of this volume is that it explicitly politicizes an endemic crisis, allowing very diverse frames of reference (historical, aesthetic, theoretical) to mutually engage and contest what must be the greatest challenge of the 21st century. James Martel, San Francisco State University, USA When Foucault described Anti-Oedipus as a book for combating the inner fascist in us all his statement was taken at face value and never questioned or investigated. Deleuze and Fascism changes that: it turns Foucault's claim into a question and problematic and pursues the various lines of flight it opens for us. This is a richly interesting collection of essays with a very serious purpose. -- Ian Buchanan, Editor Deleuze Studies

Author Information

Brad Evans is lecturer in the School of Politics & International Studies at the University of Leeds. He is currently working on two edited volumes 1] Deleuze & War for the journal Theory & Event 2] Post-Intervention Societies for the Journal of Intervention and State-Building. He is also working on a monograph titled Terror & the Divine Economy which is due to be completed in 2011. Julian Reid is Reader in International Relations at King's College London. He is the author of The Liberal Way of War (with Michael Dillon) (Routledge, 2009) and The Biopolitics of the War on Terror (Manchester University Press, 2006).

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