Rhythm, Contraction, Expansion

Two intimate examples of biological Rhythm are the contraction-expansion patterns of both breathing and the heartbeat. Deleuze distinguishes that biological sense of 'contraction' from a mental one, which, as he argues, is not complemented by a corresponding 'expansion'. On his analysis, Repetition is the product of mental contraction, i. e. of a synthesis that generalizes the multiplicity of elements occurring in a variety of cases, as one formulation, e. g. Hume's Constant Conjunction as Habit. Hence, Repetition, for him, is always, and only, a mental construct. He thus overlooks that to repeat is to enact the product of that mental construct, not merely to entertain it, in the process missing the opportunity to consider that such an enactment functions as an 'expansion' corresponding to the 'contraction' that produces it. In other words, his concept of Repetition inadequately represents the fundamental rhythms of life.