Gilles Deleuze

He studied under Canguilhem and Hyppolite. Tournier was a fellow-student, and said he transformed his peers’ ideas into cannon-balls of iron and steel. Foucault proposed Deleuze for his university post and became a close friend; Guattari (with whom he wrote his most influential works), Derrida (another close friend) and Lyotard were also colleagues at Vincennes. Deleuze wanted to publish a long impromptu conversation with Derrida, but it never happened. Virilio and he were politically at odds with each other. When Lacan stayed with him after an ‘unbelieveable’ seminar, he had to drink a ‘special’ whisky.