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Latest comment: 1 month ago16 comments8 people in discussion
I think the article needs a section on how to translate Derrida's ideas into terms intelligible to people here on earth. EEng08:13, 27 June 2023 (UTC)Reply
Bickering about whether it's all just rubbish or not
It is all just rubbish, but useful, because if you read anything that quotes him, or Heidegger too, you can just chuck away what you are reading. Esedowns (talk) 16:19, 31 July 2023 (UTC)Reply
The Criticism from Anglophone philosophers section does a good job of demolishing his would-be status as an philosopher. The quote of Roger Scruton says it all: "He's difficult to summarise because it's nonsense. He argues that the meaning of a sign is never revealed in the sign but deferred indefinitely and that a sign only means something by virtue of its difference from something else. For Derrida, there is no such thing as meaning – it always eludes us and therefore anything goes." Carlstak (talk) 23:07, 30 August 2023 (UTC)Reply
I had the opportunity to study under Roger Scruton during his tenure at Birkbeck, and I distinctly recall him expressing admiration for Derrida's intellect, even admitting to a sense of envy. Moreover, any earnest student delving into Derrida's philosophy understands that the core of deconstruction is to illustrate how meaning is perpetually deferred. 94.205.38.119 (talk) 15:19, 8 February 2024 (UTC)Reply
So what's the point of this discussion? Wikipedia talk pages are not meant to be platforms to discuss of the subject of the article, but to discuss the article itself. Hugo P. Behrmann (☎)18:03, 27 August 2026 (UTC)Reply
The OP (who was me, I suddenly realize) suggested a section on how to translate Derrida's ideas into terms intelligible to people here on earth. That proposal for improving the article's still on the table (though I'm taking an extended wikibreak, I hasten to add). EEng02:15, 8 September 2026 (UTC)Reply
Back to the OP: the question of translating Derrida is a fascinating one, and has plenty of reliable sources available. Here's a starter set:
The article should absolutely have a section #Translating_Derrida. In fact, it is no doubt notable enough for a standalone article, which I'd love to see. But starting with a section here is the right first step. Thanks, Mathglot (talk) 09:21, 8 September 2026 (UTC)Reply
But if we have such an article (let's call it Article 0), won't we need an Article 1 explaining the meaning of Article 0, and then an Article 2 explaining Article 1, indeed an infinite regress of articles that will grow without bounds until Wikipedia's servers are overwhelmed with deferred meaning? EEng21:08, 8 September 2026 (UTC)Reply
level-4 vital article is rated B-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.
