Assemblage Theory and Affect

Gilles Deleuze considered 'assemblage' theory to be his most significant contribution to philosophy. It is a complex and nuanced concept and one that is central to how Deleuze and Guattari constructed their theoretical work. In Assemblage Theory and Affect Ian Buchanan continues his project of demystifying this key theory and introducing its primary qualities. Buchanan argues that assemblage theory, as conceived by Deleuze and Guattari, is primarily about desire. And, further to that, there is no greater manifestation of desire than 'affect'. Indeed, in order to understand assemblage you also need to understand affect and vice versa.

In this first introduction to how assemblage and affect impact, shape and require each other, Buchanan outlines the meaning of both concepts for contemporary philosophy, art, cultural and critical theory and politics. In applying these theories to real life practices and experiences, the concepts are given clarity and force. An original, lucid and inventive work by one of the foremost Deleuzian thinkers in the world, Assemblage Theory and Affect proposes new avenues for thinking about the contemporary world.