Philosophy as Terraforming: Deleuze and Guattari on Designing a New Earth

Abstract:In this article, Deleuze and Guattari emerge as pioneers of a philosophical practice that finds its actualization in processes of terraforming. Whereas the dominant modes of thought and forms of life of our time have resulted in the ravaging of the biosphere and the endangerment of humanity’s future, Deleuze and Guattari’s joint works constitute a field manual for constructing another earth out of the ruins of this one. This paper suggests that the enigmatic figures that populate Deleuze and Guattari’s oeuvre, including sorcerers and artisans, are actually blueprints for forms of philosophical engagement with the power to refashion the world into one habitable for future generations. By building on the references to a “new earth” scattered throughout the works of Deleuze and Guattari, and mining the field of contemporary architecture for projects that anticipate the new earth’s emergence, this paper offers suggestions for how the new earth might be summoned.