Abstract
This episode is part two [Spinoza, 1677] of seven of the lecture series [HTA 8] on affect theory grounded in Baruch Spinoza’s Ethics [1677], excerpt from Part III, and developed through the writings, seminars, and interviews of Walter Benjamin [1940], Gilles Deleuze [1981], Brian Massumi [2015], Justin Hill [2019], and Ed Casey [2022].
Primary Source
Spinoza, Baruch. “Ethics.” In Philosophy of Benedict De Spinoza, translated by R.H.M. Elwes, New Ed., 127–35. New York: Tudor Publishing, Co., 1936.
Spinoza, Baruch. “Introduction [by Frank Sewall, M.A.].” In Philosophy of Benedict De Spinoza, translated by R.H.M. Elwes, New Ed., v-xii. New York: Tudor Publishing, Co., 1936.
Guiding Questions
Baruch Spinoza [1677]
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How does affect refer to emotion, gesture, mood, feeling, impact, cause, effect, capacity, potential, power, and knowledge all at once?
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How does affect get at self-other all at once in the simultaneity of (1)affecting-(2)being-affected, i.e., (1)being-affected-(2)affecting?
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How does affect offer conceptual constructions for a non-linear and zonal metaphysics, i.e., how does affect allow us to think about environments and systems of causation more fluidly and flexibly as a field rather than as causal ‘arrow’ or throughline? Use an example.
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How does individual and environmental historicity impact affect and freedom?