L’ACCELERAZIONE COME STILE DI VITA

LA SPINTA VERSO IL FUTURO TRA VIRUS INFETTIVI E INFEZIONI DEL SAPERE

Federico Squillacioti

Among the hot topics of contemporary philosophy must be counted the proliferation of reflections on the future of capitalism. One branch of this analysis of capitalist reality has taken the name of accelerationism (ACC). In this article we aim to introduce the most relevant authors and main themes related to this philosophical theory, focusing on the Left-Accelerationism side, to guide the reader through a path that, for about thirty years now, has marked the contemporary philosophical mentality interested in some key issues such as anthropocene, wage labour and exploitation, the ecological impact of human action and the relationship with technology. The first section, of an explanatory nature, presents the key concepts of philosophical acceleration (Left, Right, and Unconditional side of it). The second section goes back to the historical/political roots of the critique of capitalism which, although drastically different, is still being pursued by acceleration. The third section will try to draw lessons and sources from the previous historical and methodological parts to bring the theory to bear on the possible practices of Left-acceleration. Particular attention will be paid to the world of work and technological innovation, among the most involved in possible accelerating developments, by focusing on the Left/Acc theory, a peculiar kind of accelerationism strongly influenced by Marxism and Deleuze’s/Guattari’s thinking. The fourth and last section expands on the application of ACC’s ideas and objectives to the world of knowledge as a hybridizable and malleable space, employing the concept of virus as the key to interpreting the processes of diffusion of culture and information.