How to do 'Jazzy Philosophy': An Interview with Maria daVenza Tillmanns

Interview with the author of "why We are in Need of Tails." Iguana Books, Toronto, Canad

The Event of Revolution

This dissertation studies the question of how to conceive of revolution without necessarily drawing any concepts from the state. When concepts, figures, or objects drawn from the state are assumed to exist following a revolution, the ability of revolution to radically change the state is constrained. This problem limits earlier theories of revolution, such as social contract theory and Marxism, both of which present certain parts of the state as unchangeable. Social contract theorists necessitate that certain elements like the sovereign and the nature of the contract be preserved, while Marxism maintains that the state must follow a trajectory that determines its evolution. A new theory of revolution (called Dynamic Anarchism) is drawn from theorists who theorize events (called `Evental thinkers\u27). It is claimed that revolutions should be seen as separate from the world, and thus are incommensurable, unpredictable, and indiscernible from the state. Outside the state revolutions are anomalies, but they present themselves within the state as catalytic change. Dynamic Anarchism adds to the discussion of events and revolutions by developing notions of complexity, interconnectivity, and interconnectivity to describe how revolutions function. The final chapter of the dissertation consists of an application of the theory of Dynamic Anarchism to the strategies and tactics used in the French and American Revolutions, by Guerrilla Warfare, and in 20th Century American Black Radicalism. Lessons about the practicality of Dynamic Anarchism are drawn from analyses and critiques of these revolutionary movements

Deleuze, Darwin and the Categorisation of Life

I begin with Deleuze's criticism of the Darwinian concept of difference as leading to the inaccurate assumption that difference occurs within individuals and species. Deleuze radicalises Darwin's theory by disrupting the ontological stability of species and extant individualities. I examine how Deleuze's project relates to punctuated equilibrium and the discovery of the amount of variation within the human genome, showing that these recent developments make Deleuze's critique less applicable by showing that Darwinian classification schemes should include a greater openness to difference. A complete alignment between evolutionary biology and Deleuze may be impossible given the limitations of evolutionary biology, but evolutionary biology can rethink the ontological permanence it gives to species and individuals. </jats:p

The Ugliness of Trolls: Comparing the Methodologies of the Alt-Right and the Ku Klux Klan

The alt-right claims it responsibly advocates for its positions while the Ku Klux Klan was “ad-hoc.” This allows them to accept the philosophy of white nationalism while rejecting comparisons with prior white nationalist organizations. I confront this by comparing the methodologies of alt-right trolls and the KKK. After studying each movement’s genesis in pranks done for amusement, I demonstrate that each uses threats to police behavior, encourages comradery around ethnic heritage, and manipulates politics to exclude voices from public deliberation. Differences between alt-right trolls and the KKK originate in the technologies they use, not out of a concern for responsible advocacy

Time Will Tell: A Series on the Philosophy of Time

Time Will Tell” is a series of professional interviews with scholars, both within and outside of philosophy and all with a social justice conscience, all academics who work on some aspect of time and/or temporality and human consciousness. Having worked on the concept for my Master’s thesis in 2004, I’m very interested in everything related to time. We all think about time. The four scholars who graciously agreed to the interviews are doing important and often utterly fascinating work on these topics