Nicole Grimaldi

This condensed study interfaces Theodor W. Adorno’s scathing analysis of linguistic jargon as mounted in his critique of existentialism (in the Jargon of Authenticity in particular) with Félix Guattari’s view that creating the conditions for a transformative micropolitics relies on the utilization of words as jargon (as well as other forms of disruptive semiotic practice). The article explores jargon in each thinker’s oeuvre as related to their views on subjectivity, meaning, praxis, and philosophical system building, while considering how their observations shed light on the use of jargon in our contemporary social climate (including in corporate spheres). I ultimately illustrate that while jargon in Adorno’s sense entails the evacuation of philosophical thought and the deployment of shallow buzzwords operating by virtue of auratic affect rather than through the implements of critical reason, jargon in Guattari’s sense (differently conceived as a form of systematic disruption rather than itself an impoverished system) can dilute the tyranny of dominant sign regimes and instigate transformational social praxis. I conclude by suggesting that how Adorno and Guattari conceptualize linguistic jargon as contributing to or else foreclosing social transformation may hinge on how each understands philosophy’s proximity to or distance from artistic practice.