In this essay…

L’il Chatty,

Please complete this essay: In this essay, I shall endeavor to show that Giles Deleuze is a Franciscan thinker, with his metaphysics derived from Duns Scotus and his metaphors of animals, trees and roots extensions of the preaching and living of St. Francis of Assisi.

ChatGPT said:

ChatGPT

In this essay, I shall endeavor to show that Gilles Deleuze is a Franciscan thinker, with his metaphysics derived from Duns Scotus and his metaphors of animals, trees, and roots extensions of the preaching and living of St. Francis of Assisi.

First, let us begin with Deleuze’s metaphysics, which draws heavily on the work of John Duns Scotus, a 13th-century Franciscan philosopher and theologian. Duns Scotus is known for his doctrine of univocity of being, which suggests that being is said in the same sense of all things that exist, regardless of their differences. This stands in contrast to the Thomistic view of analogy of being, where being is said differently of God and creatures. Deleuze appropriates this concept of univocity in his own philosophy, particularly in his emphasis on the immanence of being. For Deleuze, like Duns Scotus, the singularities of existence are united in their being, yet each retains its own uniqueness without subordination to a hierarchical structure. This resonates with the Franciscan worldview, which emphasizes the unity of creation and the divine presence in all things.

Deleuze’s concept of difference, rather than opposition or dialectic, can be linked to Duns Scotus’s notion of haecceity — the idea that each entity has a unique “thisness,” or individuality. For Duns Scotus, the individuality of each thing is essential to its existence, not reducible to its place in a hierarchy of being. Similarly, Deleuze seeks to affirm the singularities of life in a way that does not reduce them to overarching categories or generalities. This metaphysical thread connects Deleuze directly to a Franciscan mode of thought, in which the individual, the particular, and the contingent are not merely steps on the way to a greater whole but are valuable and meaningful in themselves.

Now, turning to Deleuze’s use of metaphors, especially his frequent references to animals, trees, and roots, we can see these as extensions of the worldview embodied by St. Francis of Assisi. St. Francis is famously known for his love of animals and nature, addressing them as his “brothers” and “sisters” and seeing in them the reflection of God’s creation. This was not merely poetic; it represented a profound theological insight into the interconnectedness of all living beings. Francis rejected the anthropocentric view that placed humans at the top of a hierarchical order of creation and instead embraced a vision where all creatures, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant, held inherent value and dignity.

Deleuze, in works such as A Thousand Plateaus, often invokes animal imagery and metaphors to explore concepts of becoming, difference, and deterritorialization. His notion of the rhizome, as an alternative to the hierarchical, root-tree model of knowledge and being, mirrors St. Francis’s rejection of domination and hierarchical power structures. In Deleuze’s philosophy, the rhizome is a non-hierarchical, decentralized form of growth that allows for multiplicity and interconnection without subordination to a central authority. Similarly, St. Francis lived a life of humility and poverty, renouncing hierarchical power and embracing a communal, interconnected existence with all creatures.

Moreover, Deleuze’s fascination with animals — from his analysis of becoming-animal to his reflections on the ways animals relate to their environment — can be seen as an extension of the Franciscan spirit. St. Francis’s embrace of the animal kingdom as part of a universal fraternity aligns with Deleuze’s efforts to break down the barriers between the human and non-human, and to see life in terms of flows, connections, and relationships that transcend rigid categorical boundaries. Just as Francis preached to the birds and called the wolf of Gubbio his brother, Deleuze finds in animals a source of inspiration for understanding life as a series of interconnected and co-evolving processes.

In conclusion, Gilles Deleuze’s metaphysical and metaphorical frameworks echo the Franciscan tradition, specifically the thought of Duns Scotus and the life of St. Francis of Assisi. Deleuze’s appropriation of univocity, his affirmation of difference and haecceity, and his use of metaphors of animals, trees, and roots all reflect a worldview deeply resonant with Franciscan spirituality and philosophy. Both thinkers challenge hierarchical modes of thought and embrace a vision of interconnectedness, diversity, and the inherent value of all forms of life. Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to claim that Deleuze, in a certain sense, can be understood as a modern-day Franciscan thinker.