On Deconstruction: Theory and Criticism After Structuralism

With an emphasis on readers and reading, Jonathan Culler considered deconstruction in terms of the questions raised by psychoanalytic, feminist, and reader-response criticism. On Deconstruction is both an authoritative synthesis of Derrida's thought and an analysis of the often-problematic relation between his philosophical writings and the work of literary critics. Culler's book is an indispensable guide for anyone interested in understanding modern critical thought. This edition marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the first publication of this landmark work and includes a new preface by the author that surveys deconstruction's history since the 1980s and assesses its place within cultural theory today.

Table of Contents:
Preface to the 25th Anniversary Edition Preface to the First Edition Introduction Chapter One. Readers and Reading 1. New Fortunes 2. Reading as a Woman 3. Stories of Reading Chapter Two. Deconstruction 1. Writing and Logocentrism 2. Meaning and Iterability 3. Grafts and Graft 4. Institutions and Inversions 5. Critical Consequences Chapter Three. Deconstructive Criticism Bibliography Translations Bibliography Bibliography for the 25th Anniversary Edition Index

About the Author :
Jonathan Culler is Class of 1916 Professor of English at Cornell University. His book, Structuralist Poetics: Structuralism, Linguistics, and the Study of Literature, won MLA's Lowell Prize and established his reputation as analyst and expositor of critical theory. His other books include On Deconstruction: Theory and Criticism after Structuralism; The Pursuit of Signs: Semiotics, Literature, Deconstruction; and Ferdinand de Saussure (all published by Cornell), as well as Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction and Theory of the Lyric.

Review :
"Academic literary criticism continues to be dominated by 'theory' and the struggle between deconstructionist and humanist approaches to the business of reading. Jonathan Culler's On Deconstruction is a typically patient, thoughtful, illuminating exposition of the ideas of Jacques Derrida and their application to literary studies."-David Lodge, Commonweal "Culler is lucid and thorough, can move into and out of other people's arguments without losing the sense of his own voice and argument, and can manage to seem equally at home with Freudianism, feminism, and traditional literary criticism."-Times Literary Supplement "As a practicing critic, Culler has always been a deconstructor, and he approaches this topic with special immediacy and force. In On Deconstruction, he offers generous summaries of numerous representative articles and a fine annotated bibliography... His magisterial way of tracing particular topics and techniques through our diaspora of critical texts, and his provocative analyses, cannot fail to focus any critic's thinking about deconstruction."-Modern Language Quarterly "Gifted with grace and clarity, Culler provides us with a stimulating survey of contemporary literary criticism."-Antioch Review