Chapter 8 A Voyage in Immanence: Alberto Caeiro as an Expression of Spinoza’s Ethics
In: Literature and the Encounter with ImmanenceSearch for other papers by Bartholomew Ryan in
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Abstract: This essay argues that Fernando Pessoa’s heteronym Alberto Caeiro is an important literary expression of Spinoza’s philosophy. In making this case I apply Deleuze’s concept of “a voyage in immanence” to bring Spinoza’s Ethics and Caeiro’s poetry into conversation. The qualities of the Ethics that make it a voyage in immanence are also found in Caeiro’s poems. First I read the speculative themes far from human pain and confusion in “The Keeper of Sheep” and then the second quality through accidental encounters, time, doubt, and passions in “The Shepherd in Love” and other poems. The essay locates two distinct moments of intersection with Spinoza, “The Non-Teleological Journey” and “Every Victory is a Defeat” in order to show how Caeiro can be both a celebration and critique of Spinoza’s thought.