Was Guattari REALLY an 'Intellectual Imposter'? An Introduction to La Borde and Guattari's Life Work

In this video, we explore the claim that Félix Guattari is an "intellectual imposter", as asserted by Sokal, Bricmont and Dawkins in 1998. What did he do with his life? Why was his work so hard to understand, especially back in 1998? Was he really an "intellectual imposter" with "strong ambitions to succeed in academia"? And will I ever learn how to pronounce words correctly?

MAN i feel dumb for not bringing up electroshock therapy maybe next time

Sources:
- La Borde: A Clinic Unlike Any Other - Félix Guattari (Found in Chaosophy)
- Institutional Intervention - Interview with Félix Guattari (Found in Soft Subversions)
- Psychoanalysis Should Get a Grip on Life - Félix Guattari (Found in Soft Subversions)
- Intersecting Lives - François Dosse

Footage:
- La Borde, le droit à la folie
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[andrewpitel]

the lacan essay argues for the exact opposite claim from the one you attribute to it

[ENGRAINING]

dawkins calling anyone else an "intellectual imposter" is hilariously ironic.

[anonymoushuman]

People mostly don't realize that leading post-structuralists were working, in part, from radically non-ordinary states of consciousness.

[dethkon]

I’m a fan of Lacan/Freud and D&G, but I can’t imagine reading Lacan without knowledge of Freud, or Guattari without knowledge of Lacan. The whole Sokol Affair is amusing at best, but vastly blown out of proportion. Once I studied Lacan, I read anti-Oedipus again and understood what they were trying to do with MUCH more clarity.

[gavinyoung-philosophy]

Thanks for this lovely information contextualizing Guattari’s work! I’ve always found it interesting to mark how Deleuze’s works were influenced by the addition of Guattari in ‘68. For me, Guattari adds a dynamism and unpredictability to the D&G combo and also wider breadth of concepts (ecology, animal behaviors, the refrain as a central focus) that truly elevates their collective work. Love your content :)

[victoralfonssteuck]

There is a saying here in Brazil that goes like this: when you point your finger at someone, there are at least three fingers pointing back at you.
***
Tem um ditado aqui no Brasil que diz o seguinte: quando você aponta o seu dedo pra alguém, tem pelo menos outros 3 dedos que estão apontando de volta pra você mesmo.

[tcmackgeorges]

14:07 I do have to say, that what did they expect? To read something like in the Anti-oedipus would involve an individual to have a decent understanding of a bunch of other philosophers and psychoanalytic traditions, of course it ended up in the hands of out of touch academics and not radicals on the street. That’s not to say that radicals on the street can Take the time to learn about this traditions to read It, it’s just that it is written in a way that is extremely inaccessible to the average person.

[thebaryonacousticoscillati]

A mate of mine summed it up when he said he'd thought about reading Guattari but he had no time deleuze... :)

[ginapetrea]

The not “selling seminars and self-help books” bit ..such a sharp dagger

[bramsanjanssan]

Great work in outlining important en complex matter in a understandable way. I also love the upbeat music!

[JulesEvans]

This is great and deserves more views. thank you for putting it together

[liammcooper]

Excellent work. The whole Sokol thing is hilarious, because you can tell these analytic-empirically minded types thought they were so above it all that they could mock continental philosopher's jargon; but in the last few decades, we've seen the 'repeatability problem' plague the hardest of hard sciences, thereby showing that all academics are essentially making it up -- it's just the continental philosophers are honest about their inability to articulate capital-T 'Truth', while the misguided empiricists still believed in their own dogma.

[lacanian]

Is this footage actually from La Borde? If so, could you provide us with the source?? ☺

[sadiyashiraj]

Hi @PunishedFelix, I just want to say a bit thank you for making this video. As a brown trans Muslim woman I find the people attacking you and Guattari for being too white or pretentious or elitist and justifying their positions under the guise of advocating for marginalised people extremely condescending. Yes, Guattari is difficult to understand, but not if you did the work of engaging with the traditions in which they happen to be coming from, and anyone who resonates with Guattari’s ideas and values will be willing to do the work. Videos like this one actually make it so much easier for people like me who may be able to readily access the actual texts but aren’t as clued in on the academic and historical contexts in which these conversations are happening. Much love ❤

[madeline]

You gotta tell us where all the clips are from!

[Zentapir]

This is a great approach to Guattari and a much needed help to understand French philosophy. Thanks 🌝

[hozting]

The fact that he was a leader doesn’t mean he was an imposter?

[yurisanson]

17 minutos que vc poderia resumir: não, não era um charlatão. Só talvez seja difícil de ler pq eu não sei francês.

[davidmiller]

If hes French then yes highly likely

[DiamorphineDeath]

Curious, what are your critiques of szasz? In a lot of old libertarian circles he was always pushed and well respected, and by thinkers I always respected as well. Yours is the first “cringe” post associated with it I’ve seen, and by that I mean the first dissenting one anyway; just curious as to why as I’ve only heard one side. Appreciate the video dude!