Talk:Accelerationism: Difference between revisions

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imagine citing a hate group like the splc as a source on anything lmao — Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.235.238.109 (talk) 19:14, 5 November 2020 (UTC)[reply]

The introductory sentence of this article seems to be incorrect at least according to Peter Wolfendale, whose article on accelerationism is referenced. He writes:

"Capitalism reduces the cost of being alive to a minimum, but just to shrink the worker’s slice as the pie grows. Eventually through this process “it becomes evident” that the owners are parasites, and the expropriated expropriate the expropriators. If all this is the case, then it logically follows that we shouldn’t be trying to slow the expropriation down, but rather we should attempt to speed the system toward its inevitable doom. This dynamic is the premise for the collection #Accelerate, new from the radically odd publisher Urbanomic.”

As Alex Williams has noted before, this is not a position that anyone has ever held. Okay, let’s qualify that a bit. It might be the case that some people have held this position, and that some of them now even think of themselves as ‘accelerationists’. So let’s limit it to the claim that it is not a position that anyone in the #Accelerate reader has ever held.

Morgan Sutherland (talk) 19:52, 11 November 2014 (UTC)[reply]

As the original author of the article I agree with Wolfendale up to a point, actually; I will admit I dashed off the article in a fairly short period of time and just grabbed the most obvious citations to give it some value as a starting point. I do agree that none of the three people I've referenced in the article—that is, Marx, Nietzsche, and Land—can really be described as accelerationist tout court, at least in the sense of the article's first sentence.

To some extent that's irrelevant to the article's lede, though: it seems to me that Wolfendale is making a normative claim about the validity of the definition, and not primarily an empirical claim about how the term is employed in real life (he admits the possibility that there are people who hold those views, just not the ones in the #Accelerate reader). To that extent, the definition expressed in the first sentence of the article is not "simply incorrect"—it's certainly how I've heard the term used the vast majority of the time, and I'd be happy to provide more sources justifying this beyond the Shaviro and Adams books that are already cited.

Note also that merely defining accelerationism as what self-described accelerationists think it is, without further elaboration, would be POV-pushing.

I think there are three distinct definitions operating here:

1. The colloquial usage of the term, which Wolfendale criticises (more or less the current definition in the article: "capitalism should be accelerated so that it can destroy itself");
2. The left-accelerationist usage: roughly, I take it, that the deterriorialising accelerative tendencies that characterised the emancipatory dynamic of early capitalism should be revived under the aegis of a new political project; and
3. Landian or right-accelerationism: capitalism should be accelerated, full stop. N.B.: Still in order to generate radical change, just not in the direction of socialism.

Here's a quick suggestion for a new lede which encompasses these various definitions ecumenically (which I'm sure could be improved upon):

In political and social theory, accelerationism is the belief that either the prevailing system of capitalism, or certain technosocial processes that historically characterised it, should be expanded and accelerated in order to generate radical social change. Contemporary accelerationist philosophy takes as its starting point the Deleuzo-Guattarian theory of deterritorialisation, aiming to identify, deepen, and radicalise the forces of deterritorialisation with a view to overcoming the countervailing tendencies that suppress the possibility of far-reaching social transformation. In colloquial usage, accelerationism may also refer to the specific belief that capitalism's acceleration will lead to its self-destruction.

Let me know what you think. (If no one objects, I'll collect additional references and add this to the article.) --Nizolan (talk) 23:15, 1 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

The opening statement, "In political and social theory, accelerationism is the idea that either the prevailing system of capitalism, or certain technosocial processes that historically characterised it, should be expanded and accelerated in order to generate radical social change" is an excellent general definition. I'm open to suggestion, but cannot think of a use of the term that it does not cover. The opening line of the Accelerationist Reader may be worth citing: "Accelerationism is a political heresy: the insistence that the only radical political response to capitalism is not to protest, disrupt, or critique, nor to await its demise at the hands of its own contradictions, but to accelerate its uprooting, alienating, decoding, abstractive tendencies." (pg 4)

However, I disagree with the D&G tilt to the article - although it's a critical influence on Land, they show up very infrequently in l#a writing so far as I'm able to establish. And historically, as in the Urbanomic reader, there are many antecedents - explicitly, in the reader, Marx (Srnicek and Williams, and the commentators on it in that volume) and Fedorov, Bulgakov and Russian cosmism generally (Singleton essay). Plus of course various futurisms (not just Marinetti!), "NASA cosmism" (von Braun, or Krafft Ehricke and his doctrine of 'the extraterrestrial imperative, etc.). I'm not sure how far this would go in a Wikipedia article - these are possibly just 'related links'.

The term is first used by Zelazny in Lord of Light, 1967. As one of the alien rulers of earth, who in novel masquerade as gods, explains: "“Now then, about Accelerationism-it is a simple doctrine of sharing. It proposes that we of Heaven give unto those who dwell below of our knowledge and powers and substance. This act of charity would be directed to the end of raising their condition of existence to a higher level, akin to that which we ourselves occupy. Then every man would be as a god, you see. The result of this, of course, would be that there would no longer be any gods, only men. We would give them knowledge of the sciences and the arts, which we possess, and in so doing we would destroy their simple faith and remove all basis for their hoping that things will be better-for the best way to destroy faith or hope is to let it be realized. Why should we permit men to suffer this burden of godhood collectively, as the Accelerationists wished, when we do grant it to them individually when they come to deserve it?” (And plenty more quotes to be found in there besides - very l#a-type usage obviously.)

It was later used by Benjamin Noys (of course) in the pejorative. He has said in writing (see preface to Malign Velocities, available here) it was an independent coinage, but he concurs that he had read the book a long time ago and it might have influenced him.

I think it's fair to say that the legacy of the CCRU has been critical in fulminating both 'accelerationism' as a visible contemporary (circa 2013-present) discourse (not just Land, but also Sadie Plant, and the later work of the students who studied under/with them: Luciana Parisi, Mark Fisher, Kodwo Eshun, Steve Goodman, Robin Mackay, etc.), and of course the label (deployed by Noys as a critique of Land, amongst others). — Preceding unsigned comment added by Bestwaysurface (talk • contribs) 23:29, 7 April 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Don't you think some comments on Lenin are needed, wasn't he the one who coined the term and concept 'accelerate the contradictions'

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Peter Wolfendale here. Just pointing out that the blog post you are referencing here has been attributed to Robin MacKay rather than me. I'll edit it quickly, if that's permissible. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 90.253.62.139 (talk) 08:27, 16 November 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Starting this thread for action on the tag. 98.4.103.219 (talk) 18:11, 26 September 2019 (UTC)[reply]

Request placed on talk page of the ip that placed the tag, so will remove it quicker than usual if there is no response. 98.4.103.219 (talk) 00:12, 27 September 2019 (UTC)[reply]

I added a separate headline for far-right accelerationism, seeing as it differs from "traditional" accelerationism (even the right-wing variant of Nick Land) in not focusing on the acceleration of capitalism but rather the acceleration of racial conflict. I won't argue that the far-right version doesn't have anything at all to do with the Deleuzo-Guattarian heritage, but it seems far enough removed to warrant its own headline. Sorbisk fuga (talk) 09:49, 31 May 2020 (UTC)[reply]

I agree. On the other hand, the section needs work and currently lacks citations. Some at George Floyd protests § Reports of extremist activities can likely be used. —PaleoNeonate – 19:13, 1 June 2020 (UTC)[reply]

I think there are absolutely 0 sources tracing racial accelerationism back to true acc, or the deleuzoguattarian framework (or even the term "acceleration" itself, since it's more of an escalation/collapse tactic than a tendency leading to anything new), at least none that I know of Mononononoke (talk) 09:17, 11 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Not only is there little to no connection between racial "accelerationism" and actual accelerationism, but half the page is taken up now with information on far-right accelerationism. This is tantamount to giving National Socialism a section on the Socialism page because it appropriates the term "socialism" despite having little to do with it. At best it deserves a small mention that far-right terrorism in the 2010s began to identify itself as "accelerationist", with a See Also tag for the following: Domestic terrorism in the United States, Terrorism in the United States § Right-wing and anti-government extremism, Terrorism in the United States § White nationalism/White supremacy — Utterly Null (talk) 01:14, 31 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

I've edited down the section to clarify the origins of differing usages of the term "accelerationism", provided links to the relevant information, and noted that the appropriation of terms from other political theories has historically been practiced by far-right movements to explain this. — Utterly Null (talk) 03:32, 31 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Don't do that. I'd say the far right section now contains the bare minimum to explain it. Unfortunate perhaps, but when accelerationism is mentioned in 2020 they're far more likely to think of the terrorist kind of accelerationism than Land's theoretical musings. Words are living things, they evolve and take on new meanings. That's why the page about "gays" is about homosexual rather than happy people. Besides, Land has expressed support for the new kind off accelerationism, further complicating separating them.RKT7789 (talk) 05:01, 31 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Is it, in fact, true that "Land has expressed support for" the "accelerationism" of intensifying racial tension toward race war? He's certainly expressed support for the idea of racial differences, but what I've read of him indicates that he thinks those supposed racial differences will soon be made irrelevant by technological advancement and the effects of class-based assortative mating; e.g. "The Dark Enlightenment" ("For racial nationalists, concerned that their grandchildren should look like them, Campbell is the abyss. Miscegenation doesn’t get close to the issue. Think face tentacles. ... When seen from the bionic horizon, whatever emerges from the dialectics of racial terror remains trapped in trivialities. It’s time to move on.") and "Hyper-Racism" ("This [i.e. genetic diversification due to assortative mating] is not anything that ordinary racism is remotely able to process. That it is a consummate nightmare for anti-racism goes without question, but it is also trans-racial, infra-racial, and hyper-racial in ways that leave ‘race politics’ as a gibbering ruin in its wake. ... [R]acists and anti-racists can be expected to eventually bond in a defensive fraternity, when they recognize that traditionally-differentiated human populations are being torn asunder on an axis of variation that dwarfs all of their established concerns."). -- 2601:80:4580:E0E0:6C0D:F188:6EEC:2D24 (talk) 05:45, 4 March 2021 (UTC)[reply]

So explain why in a manner that does not equate accelerationism to neo-nazi trolls that have taken up the label. Utterly Null is completely correct in their concerns and proposals 73.92.48.129 (talk) 21:24, 9 February 2021 (UTC)[reply]

To make this clearer I have separated the discussion of neo-Nazi racial 'accelerationism' from the discussion of accelerationism in the sense of acceleration of capitalism or technology in the introduction. The statement which was included there about neo-Nazis supporting right-accelerationism does not appear to be supported by the cited sources, which refer solely to "accelerationism" in the neo-Nazi sense of intensification of racial tension, without any reference to acceleration of capitalism. Therefore I have removed that statement and instead clarified the description of the neo-Nazi appropriation of the term at the end of the introduction, to which the supporting sources have been moved. -- 2601:80:4580:E0E0:6C0D:F188:6EEC:2D24 (talk) 05:13, 4 March 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Currently, a piece from Jacobite Magazine is used as a source. I have found only a single source (Vox) mentioning anything at all about Jacobite. They say: "Other places that Wax credits for 'thoughtful discussion' of these issues are Taki’s Mag, the alt-right publication where Derbyshire published his screed about 'the number of blacks,' and VDARE, another leading alt-right publication. (The pro-Trump Journal of American Greatness and the marginal right-wing site Jacobite were also mentioned.)"

The only other places that mention Jacobite seem to be... just... the worst sites I've seen in a while. The difference here is that the currently-used article is by Nick Land, who is an important figure in accelerationism. I think his statements may in fact be due, but it is worth discussion.

Thoughts on this particular use? Any objections to me stripping this source out of most other articles? Thanks for your considerations! Jlevi (talk) 02:11, 27 June 2020 (UTC)[reply]

I see no reason to exclude Jacobite considering that the article is a primary source written by one of the most important figures in accelerationism. That gives it far more credibility than a secondary source writing about accelerationism like a journalism site, since accelerationism is a philosophical/political theory and therefore requires a certain understanding beyond that of a casual outside observer without a background in philosophy or critical theory. — Utterly Null (talk) 03:42, 31 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you for your thoughts! I am unsure how familiar you are with Wikipedia's policies on WP:RSPRIMARY and WP:due weight, but reviewing these core policies may clarify my question. In general, secondary sources are preferred to primary, including on technical topics. Here, Land's writings are pretty clearly primary sources. This doesn't mean they can't be used! But it must be done carefully: "Although specific facts may be taken from primary sources, secondary sources that present the same material are preferred. Large blocks of material based purely on primary sources should be avoided."

Further, when using primary sources, it is often crucial to determine what to include based on secondary sources that contextualizes it. It can often be difficult to see how to lend ideas or statements proper WP:WEIGHT from within primary sources.

So, to conclude, I don't think that your response directly grapples with the questions I bring up, though I appreciate your thoughts. Jlevi (talk) 12:36, 31 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

I added Template:Confusing.

• This article's lead is pretty much unreadable to a layperson because it uses too much jargon. For example, "emancipatory process", "constrictive horizon", "repurposing", "emancipatory ends", "indefinite intensification".
• The rest of the article uses too many quotes and attributions. This article needs more paraphrase of the main ideas, so that the reader can succinctly read what the main ideas are.

I re-wrote the first two sentences so hopefully things are clearer now. I could use some help re-writing the rest of the article. –Novem Linguae (talk) 21:56, 5 January 2021 (UTC)[reply]