Etica e istituzioni in Gilles Deleuze

Ethics and Institutions in Gilles Deleuze One of the most significant trajectories in Gilles Deleuze’s philosophical oeuvre as a whole is his indication of the possibility of opposing to morality, understood in the traditional sense, an ethics that serves as a criterion for evaluating variations in human practical life. It is from this perspective that his engagement with Nietzsche’s thought can be understood, and above all his revival of the Spinozist legacy, which makes it possible to apprehend his “pure” ontology in a properly ethical guise. On this basis, the present contribution seeks to highlight the fundamental – relative – continuity of the French philosopher’s inquiry by identifying the significance of the notion of institution as early as some of his writings from the early 1950s. It relates this significance to the question of the satisfaction of specific human needs, as well as to the importance of their concrete assessment, which is made possible precisely through the establishment of institutions that are as flexible and innovative as possible.