This thesis is a comparative study in the History of Modern Philosophy focused on the recourse to physiology on the part of two key figures, Spinoza and Nietzsche. This involves comparative... Show moreThis thesis is a comparative study in the History of Modern Philosophy focused on the recourse to physiology on the part of two key figures, Spinoza and Nietzsche. This involves comparative research into their emphatic appeal to the body as the key to solving fundamental philosophical problems. Both Spinoza and Nietzsche are thinkers of immanence and for both the turn to the body, which is part of their projects of naturalisation, is motivated by theoretical and practical goals. I argue that we can best understand the similarities and differences between their respective philosophical physiologies, and their broader philosophical positions, starting from their shared interest in power ontologies and their commitment to immanence and naturalism. Show less
This thesis interprets the Japanese Buddhist master, Dōgen's metaphysical ideas concerning Buddha-nature, Total-function, and temporality, with the help of Deleuze's pragmatism, in a manner... Show moreThis thesis interprets the Japanese Buddhist master, Dōgen's metaphysical ideas concerning Buddha-nature, Total-function, and temporality, with the help of Deleuze's pragmatism, in a manner congruent with the central Buddhist doctrine of pratītyasamutpāda. In doing so, the research attempts to overcome the problems of what I view as the two opposing poles of Dōgen interpretation: that of the Critical Buddhists who deny Dōgen's metaphysics, claiming that it is in-congruent to pratītyasamutpāda, and the “Comparative Philosophers,” who affirms Dōgen's metaphysics yet in a manner that disregards pratītyasamutpāda. The research reconsiders Dōgen's above metaphysical concepts, of which Critical Buddhism and comparative interpretations gives a shortsighted picture inasmuch as they impose upon Dōgen a “representational epistemology.” This error prevents the former interpretations of Dōgen to acknowledge the potential that Dōgen's metaphysical concepts can have a practical use for an ethics centered on pratītyasamutpāda. Deleuze's philosophy, insofar as it is pragmatist and non-representational, can help to elucidate this limitation, and to create a reinterpretation of Dōgen's doctrine on Total-function, time and Buddha-nature to function as tools for spiritual practice in concurrence to pratītyasamutpāda. Ultimately, I claim that Dōgen's metaphysics is not descriptive or explanatory of reality, but are pragmatically functional tools incorporated into spiritual practice. Show less