Dialogues

Zanny and LP—
I decided not to write responses to this final set of papers (the past semester is now past, and a new one—w/ its new set of questions and challenges--is nearly upon us), but yours is such an explicit call for continuing the conversation that I could not but reply.

And there are so many directions for doing so! First is to note the congruence of our metaphorical inclinations; I too have long been fascinated by the rhizome as a metaphor for interdisciplinary work. See The Rhizome’s Revenge —where the real focus is on the notion that 1) rhizomes (like metonymies) figure the unconscious (vs. the branching, tree-like making of binaries that is consciousness); that (most relevant to your project) 2) we need each other (maybe esp. friends? with other lives and experiences? trained in other disciplines?) to facilitate our thinking rhizomically, to access/re-generate the rhizomes (unconscious processes) within; and that this activity 3) gives us a rhizomic pedagogical theory, a rich description of the networked sociality that is most generative of new ideas: the interactions of rhizomic people w/ other rhizomic people multiplies the number of possible paths for exploration, reminds us that novelty will be continuously generated...

The turn of the screw @ the end of that talk was provided by two friends, both gardeners, who reminded me that flowers “will stop blooming unless their rhizomes are dug up, cleaned up, and given more space." I thought, then, that the role of the teacher (maybe?) is that pruner/ cleaner-outer-of-over-crowded rhizomes...

One place where such a pruning might take place is in your exploration of mapping, inevitably an activity of selecting, of leaving some things out (see Betsy Reese’s talk on The Secret Life of Maps….)

OTOH, I like very much your notion that posting this project on-line makes it less closed-off, less complete, more inviting of further conversation: multiple entryways, multiple exits (hence this reply….)

Grateful for your explorations,
And in hope of further—
A.