My entry into theory came by way of my family's unexpected proletarianization during adolescence. The sudden confrontation with the vagaries of a life subordinated to the vicissitudes of market activity elicited an interest in understanding the origins and logic of the class system in which my family and I were enmeshed.

As a youth, elitist theory initially resonated with me, albeit with a vaguely anti-capitalist inflection. Philosophically, this provoked an early reading of Nietzsche; scientifically, an affinity with reductive Darwinian paradigms; and sociologically, a qualified acceptance of elements of the Italian School. I also developed an interest in European history, psychology, and anthropology during these years.

Prior to attending college, my (largely autodidactic) scholarly pursuits accompanied an active life in the punk rock music scene and its subculture. It was following the dissolution of the band in which I was involved that my readings broadened. Working through the Greco-Roman canon and German idealist tradition, a concurrent study of Marx's political economy and anarchist political philosophy (the latter motivated by my discovery of my great-grandfathers' participation in the Spanish Civil War), and a good-faith study of dialectical approaches to the biological sciences fundamentally altered my normative commitments, as well as my ontological and epistemic convictions.