Deconstruction

According to Encyclopedia Britannica, deconstruction is "(a) form of philosophical and literary analysis, derived mainly from the work begun in the 1960s by the French philosopher Jacques Derrida, that questions the fundamental conceptual distinctions, or 'oppositions,' in Western philosophy through a close examination of the language and logic of philosophical and literary texts." Deconstructive readings do not focus on "the harmonious fusion of literal and figurative meanings" (Encyclopedia Britannica), but rather on the conflict of meanings and their relation to other works of art and philosophy. The deconstructive approach postulates that the meaning of words in a language arises only through the contrast between words. Deconstruction tries to find the contradictions and "the hidden" in the text.

Deconstruction uses several techniques to uncover these hidden meanings:

1. Textual Play: Meaning in a text is never constant; language is unstable. A play on words allows us to interpret the text in many ways. The meaning is contextual.

2. Binary Oppositions: Many binary oppositions can be found in various texts (e.g., good/evil, male/female). Deconstruction shows that there is a hierarchy within these dualisms and aims to show that one term cannot exist without the other.

3. Intertextuality: No text exists just on its own. Its meaning is derived from other texts because every text references and is influenced by other works.

4. Undermining Author's Intent: The author's intention is not the only meaning that can be assigned to a text. As readers, we are allowed to make our own interpretations.

5. Internal Contradictions: Deconstruction looks for ambiguity, paradoxes, or tensions within a text. 

Examples : In Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot, we never learn if Godot ever arrives or what he represents — this is left open to interpretation. The repetitive and cyclical nature of the characters' conversation stands in stark contrast to the traditional notion of storytelling. 

James Joyce's Ulysses is famous for its intertextuality—motifs from the Bible, Homer's Odyssey, Shakespeare, and many others are extensively used throughout the book. 

William Shakespeare's Hamlet has been interpreted in many ways. For example, Sigmund Freud argued that "Shakespeare's Hamlet is rooted in the same soil as Oedipus Rex," suggesting an Oedipal conflict in Shakespeare´s work and thus undermining author´s intent.

Works cited:

Emily Rodriguez, Grace Young, Gloria Lotha, Adam Augustyn, Brian Duignan, Surabhi Sinha, Amy Tikkanen and the Editors of Encyclopaedia Brittanica (https://www.britannica.com/topic/deconstruction/additional-info#history) "Deconstruction", Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., Nov 13 2024

https://www.britannica.com/topic/deconstruction

Freud, Sigmund. The Interpretation of Dreams. Translated by A. A. Brill. 3rd ed. New York: Macmillan, 1955. 

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