par Debaise, Didier
Référence Revue de métaphysique et de morale, 4, page (447-460)
Publication Publié, 2008
Article révisé par les pairs
Résumé : This article aims at following the construction of a "metaphysics of possession" which finds its origin in G. Tarde's philosophy. This metaphysics is characterized by a substitution : to the analysis of the foundations of power it opposes completely different kinds of questions that are more immaterial and more microscopic, such as : how can a being (physical, biological or technical) possess another one ? What does it mean to be possessed by a belief or a desire ? By which ways do ideas and inventions diffuse themselves within a given society ? Under the apparent diversity of these questions, however, it is possible to identify common dynamics. The function of "metaphysics" according to Tarde is to express generic principles that are engaged in the chain of social organizations, from primary biological assemblages up to the most elaborate social associations. Our hypothesis is that taking Tarde as a starting point, an "empiricist metaphysic" emerged in the context of French philosophy, whose inheritors are philosophers as different as H. Bergson, G. Simondon, R. Ruyer, G. Deleuze and F. Guattari, and which is the object of a new rediscovery today.