Rhizomatic space

between codes and territories

Abstract

From a post-structuralist geographical perspective, the theoretical discussion of rhizomatic space is approached through the lens of the relationship between territories and codes. Initially, systematic approaches (with points connected by lines) are contrasted with rhizomatic ones (with lines connected by points). From this, a conceptual review leads to the geographical question of the rhizome through two lines of analysis: 1) Rhizomatic space, explored through the investigation of lines; 2) Territories and codes, explored through the investigation of points. Put simply: rhizomatic space is the multiplicity of spaces: social spaces, political spaces, cultural spaces, economic spaces, natural spaces, and so on. Lines represent movement and process, weaving together multiple spaces and enabling multiple spatialities. Points represent matter and the concrete, connecting reality in strata: grounded in two facets, code (as expression) and territory (as content). In fact, history is the segmentation of lines into codes, while geography is the stratification of points into territories. In this sense, one moves from the rhizome to reality, guided by discontinuities toward a geography of differences.