Deconstruction and Criticism

by Jacques Derrida, Paul De Man, Geoffrey H. Hartman

Five essential and challenging essays by leading post-modern theorists on the art and nature of interpretation: Jacques Derrida, Harold Bloom, Geoffrey Hartman, Paul de Man, and J. Hillis Miller.

Genres: Literary Criticism, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Criticism, Theory, Linguistics, Academic

224 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1979

About the author

Jacques Derrida was a French philosopher best known for developing deconstruction, a method of critical analysis that questioned the stability of meaning in language, texts, and Western metaphysical thought. Born in Algeria, he studied at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, where he was influenced by philosophers such as Heidegger, Husserl, and Levinas. His groundbreaking works, including Of Grammatology (1967), Writing and Difference (1967), and Speech and Phenomena (1967), positioned him at the center of intellectual debates on language, meaning, and interpretation.
Derrida argued that Western philosophy was structured around binary oppositions—such as speech over writing, presence over absence, or reason over emotion—that falsely privileged one term over the other. He introduced the concept of différance, which suggests that meaning is constantly deferred and never fully present, destabilizing the idea of fixed truth. His work engaged with a wide range of disciplines, including literature, psychoanalysis, political theory, and law, challenging conventional ways of thinking and interpretation.
Throughout his career, Derrida continued to explore ethical and political questions, particularly in works such as Specters of Marx (1993) and The Politics of Friendship (1994), which addressed democracy, justice, and responsibility. He held academic positions at institutions such as the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales and the University of California, Irvine, and remained an influential figure in both European and American intellectual circles. Despite criticism for his complex writing style and abstract concepts, Derrida’s ideas have left a lasting impact on contemporary philosophy, literary theory, and cultural criticism, reshaping the way meaning and language are understood in the modern world.

Reviews

[Gerhard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Strange times we are living in, indeed, when Harold Bloom, that literary curmudgeon, is a comfort read.

[Agustina de Diego · Rating 5 out of 5]

El libro que hizo que se me despierte una nueva obsesión: Derrida

[Louis · Rating 5 out of 5]

About a hundred pages of this book are full of the essay "Living On: Borderlines," and that essay is as close as philosophy can be to poetry. Your mind feels different when you come out of it, and there's no going back. Of course, as with a poem, anyone who tells you they wholly totally understand it, really, really doesn't.

[Aryan Kato · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think Bloom is claiming that one thing that is not deconstructable is his own theory of interpoetic-anxiety. Bloom, of course, has insisted his inclusion in the collection as a personal joke, as revealed in an interview of him in a book of interviews titled Criticism in Society.

[Kit · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had the weird experience (for me) of thinking Derrida's piece to be the least useful, most ponderous of the lot. Many essays read around Shelley's poem The Triumph of Life. To paraphrase Miles Davis, Harold Bloom can write like a m-f-.

[Alberto Martínez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Este libro no se lee tan fácil y es casi imposible comprenderlo en su totalidad (de hecho esto mismo en sí es un postulado de los críticos que escriben aquí) sin embargo sí me dejó la sensación de entrar a un nuveo mundo, conocer algo distinto y aprecié cada palabra y cada texto.

[Ietrio · Rating 1 out of 5]

A work against reason. A work to expand the horizons of the adepts and initiates. European (white) quack gurus.

[Ryan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gave up on page 140. I literally couldn’t stop nodding off

[Eyasped Tesfaye · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think I have to go on with Chomsky on this one.

[Pedro · Rating 5 out of 5]

li quase até o final do texto "sobreviver", não li nessa edição

[Lance Grabmiller · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think my initial review (when I was about halfway through) has been eaten by cyberspace. no matter. the first half of the book is plodding through Bloom and suffering through de Man (to be honest, with little understanding) until I finally came to the pure joy of Derrida....

(then I finished the rest of the book)

...and a second joy from Derrida with that little band, or note to the translator(s). Then a pleasant surprise from Hartman and Miller. This little book certainly isn't for eceryone, but an essential document on how 'deconstruction' landed here (in the states). And for me privately, I can never have enough Derrida. It's a personal problem and I'm working my way through it. I almost wish the de Man and Bloom had been left out or left to the end, BUT, despite my hatred, the Bloom piece is oft cited throughout the book and the de Man brought Shelley's Triumph of Life into the foreground (more or less), so I suppose they must be included (and for historical accuracy - in a way). Would have been five stars for Derrida, four for Hartman and Miller and one or two for Bloom and de Man - their importance not withstanding...

[Stacia · Rating 3 out of 5]

has anyone bought this to look smart and actually made it past the forward? just wondering...