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Glite Dictionary
Jacques Derrida

Jacques Derrida

1 9.9
A French thinker who said texts can have many meanings
  • proper noun
  • /ʒɑk dɛʁida/
: Jacques Derrida
  • Many consider Jacques Derrida the father of deconstruction.

Examples

  • Many scholars have studied the works of Jacques Derrida to understand deconstruction.

  • The writings of Jacques Derrida continue to inspire debates in literary theory.

  • Jacques Derrida delivered his influential lectures on philosophy in Paris.

  • Did Jacques Derrida influence modern literary theory?

  • Many scholars have studied the works of Jacques Derrida to understand deconstruction.

  • Jacques Derrida delivered his influential lectures on philosophy in Paris.

  • The writings of Jacques Derrida continue to inspire debates in literary theory.

Surface Forms

Jacques Derrida main

Morphology

Jacques + Derrida

This is a proper name referring to a specific individual (a French philosopher) and that biographical/professional meaning cannot be derived from the constituents 'Jacques' and 'Derrida', which are simply a given name and surname. Proper names are referential and require world knowledge or prior exposure, so a B1 learner who only knows the surface forms would not infer the intended meaning.

Etymology

Jacques Derrida is the name of a French thinker who developed 'deconstruction', a way of reading books and ideas that looks for hidden meanings and contradictions. That's why his name is often used to mean that kind of careful, questioning reading.