Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Biographical chronology
- Introduction: Derrida and the future of …
- Chapter 1 The future of the profession or the university without condition (thanks to the “Humanities,” what could take place tomorrow)
- Chapter 2 Derrida and literature
- Chapter 3 Derrida and gender: the other sexual difference
- Chapter 4 Derrida and aesthetics: Lemming (reframing the abyss)
- Chapter 5 Derrida and representation: mimesis, presentation, and representation
- Chapter 6 Derrida and philosophy: acts of engagement
- Chapter 7 Derrida and ethics: hospitable thought
- Chapter 8 Derrida and politics
- Chapter 9 Derrida and law: legitimate fictions
- Chapter 10 Derrida and technology: fidelity at the limits of deconstruction and the prosthesis of faith
- Chapter 11 Derrida and history: some questions Derrida pursues in his early writings
- Chapter 12 Derrida and psychoanalysis: desistantial psychoanalysis
- Glossary
- Index
- References
Chapter 8 - Derrida and politics
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 22 September 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Biographical chronology
- Introduction: Derrida and the future of …
- Chapter 1 The future of the profession or the university without condition (thanks to the “Humanities,” what could take place tomorrow)
- Chapter 2 Derrida and literature
- Chapter 3 Derrida and gender: the other sexual difference
- Chapter 4 Derrida and aesthetics: Lemming (reframing the abyss)
- Chapter 5 Derrida and representation: mimesis, presentation, and representation
- Chapter 6 Derrida and philosophy: acts of engagement
- Chapter 7 Derrida and ethics: hospitable thought
- Chapter 8 Derrida and politics
- Chapter 9 Derrida and law: legitimate fictions
- Chapter 10 Derrida and technology: fidelity at the limits of deconstruction and the prosthesis of faith
- Chapter 11 Derrida and history: some questions Derrida pursues in his early writings
- Chapter 12 Derrida and psychoanalysis: desistantial psychoanalysis
- Glossary
- Index
- References
Summary
Which means that, too political for some, [deconstruction] can appear to be demobilizing to those who only recognize the political by means of pre-war signposts.
I believe in the necessity of a certain tradition, in particular for political reasons.
Derrida has never written a work of political philosophy. But given how radical his work appears, how far-reaching in its claims about metaphysics, it is not surprising that the reception of that work, at least in the English-speaking countries, has always involved an expectation or even a demand that it should give rise to a politics or a political philosophy. And although Derrida has been rather more chary than the traditional French Intellectual about taking up political positions, it has always seemed obvious that his work must have, at the very least, “political implications,” but less obvious what those implications might be – and it is probably true that Derrida has never been embraced unequivocally by any particular political persuasion, although the political center of gravity of debate (rather than just denunciation or diatribe) around his work has undoubtedly been the Left. Derrida is, obviously and self-proclaimedly, on the Left. But on the Left, there has always been a desire for Derrida to “come clean” about politics, and a lurking suspicion that his (at least apparent) failure to do so was in principle a reason for dissatisfaction.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Jacques Derrida and the HumanitiesA Critical Reader, pp. 193 - 212Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2002
References
- 1
- Cited by