Speculative realism

Speculative realism is a movement in contemporary Continental-inspired philosophy (also known as post-Continental philosophy)^[1] that defines itself loosely in its stance of metaphysical realism against its interpretation of the dominant forms of post-Kantian philosophy (or what it terms "correlationism").^[2]

Speculative realism takes its name from a conference held at Goldsmiths College, University of London in April 2007.^[3] The conference was moderated by Alberto Toscano of Goldsmiths College, and featured presentations by Ray Brassier of American University of Beirut (then at Middlesex University), Iain Hamilton Grant of the University of the West of England, Graham Harman of the American University in Cairo, and Quentin Meillassoux of the École Normale Supérieure in Paris. Credit for the name "speculative realism" is generally ascribed to Brassier,^[4] though Meillassoux had already used the term "speculative materialism" to describe his own position.^[4]

A second conference, entitled "Speculative Realism/Speculative Materialism", took place at the UWE Bristol on Friday 24 April 2009, two years after the original event at Goldsmiths.^[5] The line-up consisted of Ray Brassier, Iain Hamilton Grant, Graham Harman, and (in place of Meillassoux, who was unable to attend) Alberto Toscano.^[5]

A third conference, entitled "Object Oriented Ontology: A Symposium", was held at Georgia Institute of Technology's School of Literature, Communication and Culture (now the School of Literature, Media, and Communication) on April 23, 2010.^[6] This symposium was hosted by Ian Bogost and included Levi Bryant, Graham Harman, Steven Shaviro, Hugh Crawford, Carl DiSalvo, John Johnston, Barbara Maria Stafford, and Eugene Thacker.

While speculative realism's status has gained significant popularity, there are philosophical positions which some consider analogous. According to Graham Harman's forward in Maurizio Ferraris' Manifesto of New Realism,^[7] contemporary writings in "new realism" are thematically parallel to speculative realism, sharing common themes and interests. Harman states that it was an "inadvertent injustice" to not include Ferraris' ideas among contemporary continental realists, as he had held this philosophical position earlier than speculative realists at a time when realism in the continental tradition was a "lonelier" commitment. However, despite analogous interests, the two perspectives of realism remain mostly separate conversations. In Hysteresis,^[8] a book published in Edinburgh's Speculative Realism series, Ferraris positioned his thoughts more explicitly in relation to the works of many of the names previously mentioned. He fashions a critique similar to Meillassoux's of Kant.