Derrida and Saussure, My Buddies.

Okay, so please bear with me as I am a layman and this is all very new to me and yet I feel that I should know it for some reason. Perhaps it is because I have practiced these theories nearly all my adult life yet am just now understanding and differentiating these terms like Structuralism and Post Structuralism. As far as I can tell, Structuralism is the term which was developed by Ferdinand de Saussure which sates that you must know evil to know good. This is the theory of binary opposites. I get this. Cool. Up and down, pain and joy, love and hate etc. Of course then there’s this non-essentialism nonsense which says that it’s not possible to truly understand what it is to be human because there are no known traits which could define a human. Lost? Me too. Maybe a banana is just a banana. But for arguments sake let’s continue. Then comes Jacques Derrida who is considered the biggest name in post structuralism and deconstruction. Let’s define post structuralism. It varies but can be broadly be summed up with this: it challenges the ideas of structuralism. It challenges the norm that you cannot judge evil by knowing good. That these terms are open to interpretation and that truth is relative - as according to Derrida. Okay. Lost? Maybe just a little. I felt like a deer in the headlights in class for several weeks and blurted out the dumbest things possible in an attempt to try to understand this concept. 

Structuralism was developed to give society and those thinking within it an understanding by defining language. This language was meant to be associated with an object. Like giving a berry with a blue color a blueberry. Yes, I know. But I’m new to this. If we accept this then we can call an onion which is colored red a red onion. I know. I’m reaching but it’s the best example I can come up with on such short notice. I procrastinated with my homework. Derrida comes along and says that these terms are relative. Truth in fact is relative. What can I say to that. I can go along. Let’s take a page out of Derrida’s book and apply it to Professor’s Wexler’s class. The class is called Pop Culture. Right? Nonsense. It is a philosophy class. Right? We discuss Derrida, Saussure and other nonsense like the Chiquita Banana lady and what her symbol means. But if Derrida is correct and truth is relative then this class could be an understanding of physical therapy. Perhaps this class is merely set up for our amusement? WH knows. Maybe this class is a gateway to another universe? Perhaps we are being tested? Lunacy? Yes. Derrida’s theories are just such. Theories which an average student just debunked. This class is good for several things. It allows for me to peel away the layers of preconceived notions and allows for me to think about what I am doing in this world. Thank you Derrida and Saussure.