Posthumanism and Assemblages: Relationships in a Complex World (Copy)
Posthumanism and assemblage theory are two philosophical frameworks that have transformed how we think about the world, particularly in terms of our relationships with the non-human. Both reject traditional, anthropocentric views that privilege humans over other beings and systems. Instead, they emphasize the complex, interconnected nature of existence, highlighting the interdependencies between humans, animals, plants, technologies, and the environment. These frameworks open up new ways of understanding culture, identity, and agency, encouraging us to rethink the role of humans in a world of assemblages—dynamic, evolving configurations of matter, beings, and forces.
In this article, we will explore the emergence of posthumanism and its core principles, identifying key contributors who have shaped this field. We will then delve into how posthumanism intersects with assemblage theory, particularly through its rejection of human exceptionalism and its embrace of complexity science. Finally, we will examine how these two frameworks shape our understanding of culture and how they influence the practice of sensemaking in a world characterized by deep interconnections.
Defining Posthumanism
Posthumanism is a philosophical and cultural movement that questions the traditional human-centered worldview, which places humans at the pinnacle of existence. This perspective challenges the anthropocentric assumptions that have shaped much of Western thought, particularly since the Enlightenment. Posthumanism seeks to decenter the human subject, emphasizing that humans are not the sole agents in the world but are enmeshed within complex systems of relationships involving non-human entities, technologies, and the environment.
The roots of posthumanism can be traced to various intellectual traditions, including cybernetics, feminist theory, and poststructuralism. Scholars such as Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, and Donna Haraway have been instrumental in developing the ideas that underpin posthumanism. For instance, Derrida’s deconstruction of binary oppositions, such as human/animal or nature/culture, challenged the rigid boundaries between categories that are central to humanist thinking. Haraway’s influential work, particularly her concept of the cyborg in her essay “A Cyborg Manifesto” (1985), explored the blurred boundaries between humans, machines, and animals, offering a vision of a posthuman future in which these distinctions become irrelevant.
Posthumanism is also shaped by ecological thinking and critiques of modernity. As scholars such as Rosi Braidotti and Cary Wolfe have argued, posthumanism arises in response to the ecological crises of the Anthropocene—the era in which human activity has become the dominant force shaping the Earth’s ecosystems. Posthumanism, therefore, calls for a more inclusive understanding of agency, recognizing the entanglements between humans, non-human animals, plants, technologies, and geological processes. It encourages us to rethink ethics, politics, and culture in a way that accounts for the intra-actions (to borrow a term from Karen Barad) that continually shape our world.
Core Principles of Posthumanism
The key principles of posthumanism can be understood as a challenge to traditional humanist assumptions, including:
Decentering the Human Subject: Posthumanism rejects the idea that humans are the sole or primary agents in the world. Instead, it emphasizes the distributed agency that exists across humans, animals, plants, technologies, and ecosystems.
Challenging the Human/Animal Divide: Posthumanism questions the sharp distinction between humans and animals, recognizing the ways in which human and non-human lives are intertwined. This also leads to an ethical reevaluation of how humans treat animals and the environment.
Critique of Anthropocentrism: Posthumanism critiques the anthropocentric worldview that places humans at the center of all meaning and value. It calls for a more ecocentric or biocentric perspective that recognizes the intrinsic value of all living and non-living beings.
Interconnectedness and Entanglement: Posthumanism emphasizes the complex entanglements that exist between humans and their environment. Rather than viewing humans as separate from nature, posthumanism sees humans as part of a larger network of intra-actions that shape the world.
Technological Mediation: Posthumanism recognizes that human identity is increasingly mediated by technology. From biotechnology to artificial intelligence, humans are no longer distinct from the machines and tools they create but are shaped by and co-evolve with them.
Contributors to Posthumanism
Several key figures have shaped the development of posthumanist thought:
Donna Haraway: Haraway’s work on cyborgs and companion species has been foundational in posthumanist thinking. She explores how humans and non-humans (especially animals) co-evolve and form relationships that challenge the human/non-human binary.
Rosi Braidotti: Braidotti’s posthuman feminist theory highlights how posthumanism can be a tool for ethical thinking in the face of global challenges like climate change, technological advancement, and biopolitics.
Cary Wolfe: Wolfe’s work focuses on animal studies and the question of non-human agency, particularly through the lens of systems theory and biosemiotics. He critiques the ways in which humanism excludes other forms of life from ethical consideration.
Bruno Latour: Latour’s work in Actor-Network Theory (ANT), although not strictly posthumanist, has been influential in exploring how human and non-human agents (including technologies and objects) form networks that shape reality.
Posthumanism and Assemblage Theory: Weaving Together Complexity
Assemblage theory, as discussed earlier, provides a framework for understanding the world as composed of dynamic, interconnected systems that are always in flux. Posthumanism and assemblage theory intersect in their emphasis on relationality and their rejection of fixed hierarchies. Both frameworks suggest that humans are not autonomous beings acting upon a passive world, but are instead entangled in a web of relationships with other beings, forces, and processes.
Assemblage theory, developed by Deleuze and Guattari, focuses on the idea that entities (whether humans, animals, plants, or objects) are always part of assemblages—networks of relationships that are constantly being reconfigured. An assemblage is not a fixed structure but a process of coming together and changing, based on the interactions between its components. This emphasis on process, fluidity, and emergence aligns closely with posthumanism’s critique of static, human-centered views of the world.
Complexity science also plays a significant role in this intersection. Both posthumanism and assemblage theory recognize that the world is composed of complex adaptive systems—networks of interacting components that are constantly evolving in response to their environment. Complexity science emphasizes the importance of understanding the non-linear dynamics of these systems, where small changes can lead to unpredictable outcomes. This idea resonates with posthumanism’s emphasis on the unpredictability of ecological and technological change, and the need for flexible, adaptive thinking.
For example, in the context of climate change, posthumanism and assemblage theory challenge us to move beyond human-centered solutions and consider how human and non-human forces (such as weather patterns, animal migrations, and technological infrastructures) come together to form complex assemblages that influence ecological outcomes. Climate change is not just a human problem but an assemblage of relationships between greenhouse gases, energy systems, atmospheric processes, and human behavior.
Culture, Sensemaking, and Posthuman Assemblages
One of the key insights of posthumanism and assemblage theory is their potential to reshape how we think about culture. Traditional notions of culture often center on human experiences, practices, and beliefs, with little attention to the role of non-human agents. Posthumanism and assemblage theory, however, suggest that culture is itself an assemblage—a network of interactions between humans, non-humans, technologies, and the environment.
This perspective has profound implications for sensemaking, or the process by which individuals and communities interpret and make sense of their experiences. In a posthumanist framework, sensemaking is not just a human activity but one that is distributed across assemblages. For example, in making sense of ecological changes such as biodiversity loss, communities must take into account the ways in which non-human actors (such as animals, plants, and weather systems) are part of the narrative. Human culture is deeply intertwined with the biophysical processes that sustain life, and sensemaking must reflect this entanglement.
The concept of proximity is crucial here. As posthumanist scholars have argued, the immediacy of ecological changes—such as the loss of local biodiversity or the intensification of weather events—can be a powerful driver of behavioral change in communities. When communities experience the effects of climate change or biodiversity loss in their immediate environment, they are more likely to adopt sustainable practices and re-evaluate their relationship with the natural world. This is an example of how assemblages (in this case, the assemblage of local ecosystems, human behavior, and climate processes) can influence cultural change and sensemaking.
Conclusion: Posthumanism, Assemblages, and the Future of Sensemaking
Posthumanism and assemblage theory offer a radical rethinking of how we understand the world and our place within it. By decentering the human subject and emphasizing the relational, processual nature of existence, these frameworks challenge us to consider the complex assemblages that shape both natural and cultural systems. They push us to recognize that agency is distributed across human and non-human entities, and that the future of
