Read complete books and articles on: Poststructuralism

Deconstruction - in linguistics, philosophy, and literary theory, the exposure and undermining of the metaphysical assumptions involved in systematic attempts to ground knowledge, especially in academic disciplines such as structuralism and semiotics. The term "deconstruction" was coined by French philosopher Jacques Derrida in the 1960s. In general, deconstruction is a

Extending the philosophical excursions of Nietzsche and Heidegger, Derrida criticized the entire tradition of Western philosophy's search to discover the essential structure of knowledge and reality, ultimately confronting the limits of human thought. As an extension of his theory of logocentrism, Derrida posited that all texts are based on hierarchical dualisms (e.g., being/nonbeing, reality/appearance, male/female), where the first element is regarded as stronger and thus essentially true and that all systems of thought have an assumed center, or Archimedean point, upon which they are based. In a deconstructionist reading, this unconscious and unarticulated point is revealed, and in this revelation the binary structure upon which the text rests is imploded. Thus what appears stable and logical is revealed to be illogical and paradoxical, and interpretation is by its very nature misinterpretation.

To a deconstructionist, meaning includes what is left out of the text or ignored or silenced by it. Because deconstruction is an attack on the very existence of theories and conceptual systems, its exposition by Derrida and others purposely resists logical definitions and explanations, opting instead for alinear presentations based on extensive wordplay and puns. Deconstructionists tend to concentrate on close readings of particular texts, focusing on how these texts refer to other texts. Certain scholars have severely criticized this movement on this basic point.

Nevertheless, deconstruction, especially as articulated in Derrida's writings and as promoted by Paul de Man and others, has had a profound effect on many fields of knowledge in American universities, particularly during the 1970s and 80s. In addition to philosophy and literary theory, the techniques and ideas of deconstruction have been employed by scholars in history, sociology, educational theory, linguistics, art, and architecture. While the theory has lost much of its intellectual currency, the general acceptance and popularity of interdisciplinary scholarship in the 1980s and 90s are regarded by many as an outgrowth of deconstruction.

See J. Culler, On Deconstruction (1982); R. Gasche, The Tain of the Mirror: Derrida and the Philosophy of Reflection (1986); P. Kamuf, A Derrida Reader: Between the Blinds (1991).

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12 of the Best Books and Articles on: Poststructuralism

as selected by Questia librarians

1.

Post-Structuralism: A Very Short Introduction » Read Now
by Catherine Belsey. 116 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

Poststructuralism changes the way we understand the relations between human beings, their culture, and the world. Following a brief account of the historical relationship between structuralism and poststructuralism, this Very Short Introduction traces the key arguments that have led...
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Poststructuralism changes the way we understand the relations between human beings, their culture, and the world. Following a brief account of the historical relationship between structuralism and poststructuralism, this Very Short Introduction traces the key arguments that have led poststructuralists to challenge traditional theories of language and culture. Whilst the author discusses such well-known figures as Barthes, Foucault, Derrida, and Lacan, she also draws pertinentexamples from literature, art, film, and popular culture, unfolding the postructuralist account of what it means to be a human being.
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2.

The Moral Theory of Poststructuralism » Read Now
by Todd May. 152 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

...The Moral Theory of Poststructuralism Todd May The Moral Theory of Poststructuralism The Pennsylvania State University...May Todd, 1955- The moral theory of...
3.

Poststructuralism, Politics, and Education » Read Now
by Michael Peters. 216 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Education, Entire Library

The poststructuralist critique of subject-centered reason is investigated, both historically and theoretically, against the background of the modernity/postmodernity and "information society" debates. Peters criticizes neoliberal constructions of the subject in education that rest heavily on the...
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The poststructuralist critique of subject-centered reason is investigated, both historically and theoretically, against the background of the modernity/postmodernity and "information society" debates. Peters criticizes neoliberal constructions of the subject in education that rest heavily on the assumption of "economic man." He searches for viable contemporary political forms by investigating the role of intellectuals and education in postmodern culture; the neoliberal doctrine of the self-limiting state; and its construction of "market" subjects such as education and the politics of space, ethics after Auschwitz, science and technology, the critical role of mass media, cybernetics and cyberspace, democracy and the politics of difference.
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4.

Culture and Critique: An Introduction to the Critical Discourses of Cultural Studies (Chap. 7 "Poststructuralist and Postmodernist Discourses") » Read Now
by Jere Paul Surber. 294 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

"From culture to critique, Kant to Gadamer, Marx to Bourdieu, this detailed & brilliantly argued account of the history, theory, & practice of cultural studies is the best introduction to the subject that we have." Eric Gould University of Denver "An excellent pathway through a diverse field.... The...
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"From culture to critique, Kant to Gadamer, Marx to Bourdieu, this detailed & brilliantly argued account of the history, theory, & practice of cultural studies is the best introduction to the subject that we have." Eric Gould University of Denver "An excellent pathway through a diverse field.... The special appeal of this book is to clarify the role of the critic, who is both immanent & transcendent, participant & objective observer alike.... It places current trends from Deconstruction Semiotics into Postmodernism & Poststructuralism in their historical & theoretical background, ranging from Hermeneutics to Marxism. In a truly Renaissance manner, Dr. Surber has incorporated the diverse trends in a loose, yet clear structure." Achim D. Koddermann SUNY at Oneonta
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5.

Contemporary Cultural Theory (Chap. 4 "Semiology: From Structuralism to Post-Structuralism") » Read Now
by Andrew Milner, Jeff Browitt. 280 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

A fully revised edition of this highly regarded concise introduction to cultural theory.
6.

Mappings: Feminism and the Cultural Geographies of Encounter (Part III "Feminism/Poststructuralism") » Read Now
by Susan Stanford Friedman. 308 pgs.

Collections: Entire Library

In this powerful work, Susan Friedman moves feminist theory out of paralyzing debates about us and them, white and other, first and third world, and victimizers and victims. Throughout, Friedman adapts current cultural theory from global and transnational studies, anthropology, and geography to...
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In this powerful work, Susan Friedman moves feminist theory out of paralyzing debates about us and them, white and other, first and third world, and victimizers and victims. Throughout, Friedman adapts current cultural theory from global and transnational studies, anthropology, and geography to challenge modes of thought that exaggerate the boundaries of gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality, class, and national origin. The author promotes a transnational and heterogeneous feminism, which, she maintains, can replace the proliferation of feminisms based on difference. She argues for a feminist geopolitical literacy that goes beyond fundamentalist identity politics and absolutist poststructuralist theory, and she continually focuses the reader's attention on those locations where differences are negotiated and transformed.
Pervading the book is a concern with narrative: the way stories and cultural narratives serve as a primary mode of thinking about the politically explosive question of identity. Drawing freely on modernist novels, contemporary film, popular fiction, poetry, and mass media, the work features narratives of such writers a
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7.

The Emperor Redressed: Critiquing Critical Theory ("The End of the Poststructuralist Era" begins on p. 45) » Read Now
by Dwight Eddins. 232 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Literature, Entire Library

The essays in this volume represent a collective questioning of the poststructuralist ascendancy, and of the assumptions involved therein, by a group of prominent scholars and critics: M. H. Abrams, Nina Baym, Frederick Crews, Ihab Hassan, David Lehman, Richard Levin, Paisley Livingston, Saul...
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The essays in this volume represent a collective questioning of the poststructuralist ascendancy, and of the assumptions involved therein, by a group of prominent scholars and critics: M. H. Abrams, Nina Baym, Frederick Crews, Ihab Hassan, David Lehman, Richard Levin, Paisley Livingston, Saul Morson, and John Searle. Assembled at The University of Alabama for the 1992 symposium from which this book takes its title, these scholars were charged with the task of examining the truth-value, methodology, practice, and humanistic status of poststructuralist theories and with speculating on what their conclusions portend for the future of theory. Some of the deficiencies "uncovered" in the emperor's apparel include the failure of poststructuralist theory to answer to the complexities of literary experience, its tendency to be self-ratifying, its betrayal of the feminist achievement, its conflation of style and logic, its attempt to impose apocalyptic finalities on history's open-endedness, and its ignorance of much,in current language philosophy. The writings of Jacques Derrida, in particular, come in for skeptical scrutiny by Abrams, Livingston, and Searle. The book concludes with a lively panel discussion in which the audience joins the fray.
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8.

Marx and the Postmodernism Debates: An Agenda for Critical Theory (Chap. 2 "Critical Theory, Poststructuralism, and Postmodernism") » Read Now
by Lorraine Y. Landry. 236 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Entire Library

This book is a meticulous argument for the contemporary value of Marx's democratic theory as an interpretive key for the postmodernism debates. Landry uses the works of Derrida, Foucault, and Lyotard to represent the poststructuralist camp and the writings of Habermas to represent the rationalist...
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This book is a meticulous argument for the contemporary value of Marx's democratic theory as an interpretive key for the postmodernism debates. Landry uses the works of Derrida, Foucault, and Lyotard to represent the poststructuralist camp and the writings of Habermas to represent the rationalist camp. Viable social critique, argues Landry, mediates between "pure social constructivist" and "pure realist" metaphysics. Postmodernism, although critical of Marx, aided the broader project of critical social theory, particularly Marx's critique of social-material contexts of oppression. Indeed, significant positive affiliations among Marx, Habermas, and the poststructuralists are found in their commitment to criticizing ideological aspects of bourgeois Enlightenment rationality and modernity.
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9.

Naming the Multiple: Poststructuralism and Education » Read Now
by Michael Peters. 274 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Education, Entire Library

Poststructuralism--as a name for a mode of thinking, a style of philosophizing, a kind of writing--has exercised a profound influence upon contemporary Western thought and the institution of the university. As a French and predominantly Parisian affair, poststructuralism is inseparable from the...
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Poststructuralism--as a name for a mode of thinking, a style of philosophizing, a kind of writing--has exercised a profound influence upon contemporary Western thought and the institution of the university. As a French and predominantly Parisian affair, poststructuralism is inseparable from the intellectual milieu of postwar France, a world dominated by Alexandre Kojeve's and Jean Hyppolite's interpretations of Hegel, Jacques Lacan's reading of Freud, Gaston Bachelard's epistemology, George Canguilhem's studies of science, and Jean-Paul Sartre's existentialism. It is also inseparable from the "structuralist" tradition of linguistics based upon the work of Ferdinand de Saussure and Roman Jacobson, and the structuralist interpretations of Claude Levi-Strauss, Roland Barthes, Louis Althusser, and the early Michel Foucault. Poststructuralism, considered in terms of contemporary cultural history, can be understood as belonging to the broad movement of European formalism, with explicit historical linksto both Formalist and Futurist linguistics and poetics, and with aspects of the European avant-garde, especially Andre Breton's surrealism. Each essay in this unique collection by and for educators is devoted to the work and educational significance of one of ten major poststructuralist philosophers.
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10.

Thinking Again: Education after Postmodernism (Chap. 1 "Poststructuralism and the Spectre of Relativism") » Read Now
by Nigel Blake, Paul Smeyers, Richard Smith, Paul Standish. 202 pgs.

Collections: Philosophy, Education, Entire Library

The 'postmodern condition, ' in which instrumentalism finally usurps all other considerations, has produced a kind of intellectual paralysis in the world of education. The authors of this book show how such postmodernist thinkers as Derrida, Foucault, and Lyotard illuminate puzzling aspects of...
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The 'postmodern condition, ' in which instrumentalism finally usurps all other considerations, has produced a kind of intellectual paralysis in the world of education. The authors of this book show how such postmodernist thinkers as Derrida, Foucault, and Lyotard illuminate puzzling aspects of education, arguing that educational theory is currently at an impasse. They postulate that we need these new and disturbing ideas in order to "think again" fruitfully and creatively about education.
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11.

An Introduction to a Postmodern Approach to Educational Research: Discourse Analysis, in Education » Read Now
by Laetitia Zeeman, Marie Poggenpoel, C.P.H. Myburgh, N. Van Der Linde. 7 pgs.

Collections: Education, Entire Library

...broader paradigmatic context namely: Poststructuralism and Social constructionism. "Poststructuralism and Social constructionism developed...ideas need to be highlighted...
12.

Bringing It All Back Home: Essays on Cultural Studies ("The Ideology of Communication: Poststructuralism and the Limits of Communication" begins on p. 49) » Read Now
by Lawrence Grossberg. 434 pgs.

Collections: Entire Library

The essays in 'Bringing It All Back Home' bring a sense of history, depth, and contestation to the current success of cultural studies while charting Grossberg's intellectual and theoretical developments from his time at Birmingham to the present.