From: Patrick Angeles/BTEC/US Date: 10 Aug 95 10:17:51 Subject: Re: deconstruction v. genealogy I tend to side with the view that Foucault and Derrida (or at least Genealogy and Deconstruction, if we figure these two discourses to be separate from their authors) have a lot in common. As to the perceived difference, i.e., that Deconstruction appears to have a more radical, liberating impetus, I have some comments. I think its safe to say that while Foucault's writings gave new breath to the Feminist and Ethnic (for lack of a better word) movement, Deconstruction has a much more immediate and profound effect on the structure of academia. A concrete example would be the decentering of the literary canon. All of a sudden questions such as "what/who/how should we teach in our schools" become valid. I guess the point I'm getting at is that Decon is perceive to be more radical because of its particular challenge to the academic establishment. And while there is this notion of a decentering activity in Foucault's work, the dynamic is not so much a "deconstructing of the center". Rather, it is an identification of forces that govern systems of thought. To further my point, one might compare two essays dealing with the same subject: Barthes' "Death of the Author" and Foucault's "What is an Author?" The titles alone are very revealing. -PA ------------------
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