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Deconstruction in a nutshell : a conversation with Jacques Derrida / edited with a commentary by John D. Caputo.

By: Contributor(s): Material type: TextTextSeries: Perspectives in continental philosophy ; no. 1.Publication details: New York : Fordham University Press, 1996.Description: p. cmISBN:
  • 082321754X
  • 0823217558
Subject(s): DDC classification:
  • 194 DER
Holdings
Item type Current library Call number Copy number Status Date due Barcode
Standard Loan LSAD Library Main Collection 194 DER (Browse shelf(Opens below)) 1 Available 39002100348201

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Responding to questions put to him at a Roundtable held at Villanova University in 1994, Jacques Derrida leads the reader through an illuminating discussion of the central themes of deconstruction. Speaking in English and extemporaneously, Derrida takes up with unusual clarity and great eloquence such topics as the task of philosophy, the Greeks, justice, responsibility, the gift, the community, the distinction between the messianic and the concrete messianisms, and his interpretation of James Joyce. Derrida convincingly refutes the charges of relativism and nihilism that are often leveled at deconstruction by its critics and sets forth the profoundly affirmative and ethico-political thrust of his work. The "Roundtable" is marked by the unusual clarity of Derrida's presentation and by the deep respect for the great works of the philosophical and literary tradition with which he characterizes his philosophical work.
The Roundtable is annotated by John D. Caputo, the David R. Cook Professor of Philosophy at Villanova University, who has supplied cross references to Derrida's writings where the reader may find further discussion on these topics. Professor Caputo has also supplied a commentary which elaborates the principal issues raised in the Roundtable.
In all, this volume represents one of the most lucid, compact and reliable introductions to Derrida and deconstruction available in any language. An ideal volume for students approaching Derrida for the first time, Deconstruction in a Nutshell will prove instructive and illuminating as well for those already familiar with Derrida's work.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

  • Acknowledgments (p. ix)
  • Abbreviations (p. xi)
  • Part 1 The Villanova Roundtable (p. 1)
  • Editorial Note (p. 3)
  • Part 2 A Commentary: Deconstruction in a Nutshell (p. 29)
  • 1 Deconstruction in a Nutshell: The Very Idea (!) (p. 31)
  • 2 The Right to Philosophy (p. 49)
  • 3 Khôra: Being Serious with Plato (p. 71)
  • 4 Community Without Community (p. 106)
  • 5 Justice, If Such a Thing Exists (p. 125)
  • 6 The Messianic: Waiting for the Future (p. 156)
  • 7 Re-Joyce, Say Yes (p. 181)
  • A Concluding Amen (p. 201)
  • Bibliography (p. 203)
  • Index of Names (p. 209)
  • Index of Subjects (p. 213)

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Jacques Derrida was born in El-Biar, Algeria on July 15, 1930. He graduated from the École Normal Supérieure in 1956. He taught philosophy and logic at both the University of Paris and the École Normal Supérieure for around 30 years. His works of philosophy and linguistics form the basis of the school of criticism known as deconstruction. This theory states that language is an inadequate method to give an unambiguous definition of a work, as the meaning of text can differ depending on reader, time, and context.

During his lifetime, he wrote more than 40 books on various aspects of deconstruction including Of Grammatology, Glas, The Postcard: From Socrates to Freud and Beyond, and Ulysses Gramophone: Hear Say Yes in Joyce. He died of pancreatic cancer on October 9, 2004 at the age of 74.

(Bowker Author Biography)

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