QUERY: How is the self-overcoming of nihilism possible under the Neoliberal Regime?

In our contemporary world, under the pervasive influence of a neoliberal regime, the quest for authentic self-actualization and existential philosophizing encounters significant challenges. This regime, characterized by an unrelenting pursuit of various forms of capital – financial, social, cultural – creates a landscape reminiscent of the chaotic swerve experienced by Er in Plato’s “Republic.” Just as Er, upon his death, finds himself in a liminal space where he gains profound insights into the cycles of life and death, we too, in our neoliberal context, are positioned uniquely to witness the extraordinary beneath the veneer of the ordinary.

The Myth of Er serves as a classic example of the dialogical process – beginning in one state, negating it, and then negating the negation to arrive at a deeper understanding. This mirrors our existential journey within the neoliberal framework, where alienation paradoxically opens avenues for potential transcendence. However, this regime exerts control through a pervasive training culture and a mania of self-assessment, dispersing our attention and diverting us from critical-reflection and self-actualization. This is the existential crisis of our time – the perversion of the Dyad of Engagement (Struggle/Ease) and the Dyad of Entanglement (Guilt/Innocence), where education becomes mere instruction, and self-actualization is twisted into a relentless inner disciplining.

In this context, nihilism is repurposed as a cog in the neoliberal machine, estranging us from others and ourselves. Yet, the existential response to this dilemma is not resignation but the self-overcoming of nihilism. Drawing from Karl Jaspers’ concept of the ‘Encompassing’, we are called to embrace the complexities of existence, transcending the artificial binaries imposed by the neoliberal worldview. This self-overcoming is a sophisticated dance of philosophical engagement, where inundation by images and submersion in information challenge traditional contemplative reflection.

François Laruelle’s non-philosophy further enriches this journey, advocating for a pluralistic stance that respects a spectrum of truths over a singular, hierarchical narrative. This transformative journey, guided by the philosophies of Jaspers and Laruelle, navigates through the labyrinth of neoliberal alienation towards a nuanced understanding of existence. It’s a journey that embraces the complexities of the world rather than simplifying them into a monolithic narrative. [In this regard, it is crucial to see all talk of the Society of Control as DESCRIPTIVE of our situation rather than just another NARRATIVE explaining reality.]

The way forward must adopt the self-overcoming of nihilism within the neoliberal regime as a philosophical odyssey beyond the neoliberal stance–a singular transformation–rather than a direct confrontation. Nonetheless, this will involve a deeper acknowledgment of human knowledge and personal experience, moving away from superficiality and fragmentation towards a holistic and interconnected way of living. Therefore, transistance does not flood-into our thinkering as the eradication of nihilism–shorting-out the negating power–but rather flows-out as a transformative process towards a broader, more inclusive engagement with reality.