This compelling and highly original book represents a confrontation between two of the most radical thinkers at work in France today: Alain Badiou and the author, François Laruelle.
At face value, the two have much in common: both espouse a position of absolute immanence; both argue that philosophy is conditioned by science; and both command a pluralism of thought.
Anti-Badiou relates the parallel stories of Badiou”s Maoist ”ontology of the void” and Laruelle”s own performative practice of ”non-philosophy” and explains why the two are in fact radically different. Badiou”s entire project aims to re-educate philosophy through one science: mathematics. Laruelle carefully examines Badiou”s
Being and Event and shows how Badiou has created a new aristocracy that crowns his own philosophy as the master of an entire theoretical universe. In turn, Laruelle explains the contrast with his own non-philosophy as a true democracy of thought that breaks philosophy”s continual enthrall with mathematics and instead opens up a myriad of ”non-standard” places where thinking can be found and practised.