Is it possible to think an ecology beyond finitude? There might appear to be an opposition between the mathematical and rational concept of the infinite versus the fragile, interdependent, and single living system that is the Earth. Our current Anthropocenic predicament would seem to force us to recognize that there is only one—now transformed—ecology, with no outside, no exit, and no lifeboats. Despite postapocalyptic fantasies of planetary migration, it is our finitude and immobility that dreams of such an elsewhere betray. Our only strategy is a radical exit strategy because ultimately we are all bound to this finite Earth; the only future is elsewhere. If, however, there is no actual outside when we think ecologically, there is nevertheless an intense imperative for a virtual infinite that practically transforms how we think about ecology. One might argue that infinites are always virtual, but the sense of that virtuality changes when one...
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March 01 2022
The Immanent Infinite
Claire Colebrook
Claire Colebrook
Penn State University
Claire Colebrook is Edwin Erle Sparks professor of English, philosophy and women's and gender studies at Penn State University. She has written books and articles on contemporary European philosophy, literary history, gender studies, queer theory, visual culture, and feminist philosophy. Her most recent book is What Would You Do and Who Would You Kill to Save the World? (Nebraska 2022).
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CR: The New Centennial Review (2022) 22 (1): 37–57.
Citation
Claire Colebrook; The Immanent Infinite. CR: The New Centennial Review 1 March 2022; 22 (1): 37–57. doi: https://doi.org/10.14321/crnewcentrevi.22.1.0037
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