Vital aspirations for geography in an era of negativity: Valuing life differently with Deleuze

Abstract

Human geography has seen a vitalist renaissance over the past decade; however, geography’s concerns are mounting in relation to vitalism’s critical efficacy and political relevance. This article pushes back against these concerns. Drawing on the philosophy of Gilles Deleuze, we engage with vitalism as a critical pause and consequently as a vital aspiration in an intellectual climate that is growing increasingly enamoured of negativity as the barometer of serious thinking. In sum, we show how Deleuze’s ‘non-organic vitalism’ promotes a wilder sense of thinking and a more affirmative politics, without acquiescing to the problems of the present.