Yes, Doug's posting of Butler was asking for it. Martha Nussbaum's judgment - 'Professor of Parody' - is to the point. Butler seems to me to be one of those clever people who has nothing much to say, but manages to say it in a way that strikes a chord. But I think her popularity reflects more badly on her fans than on her personally. Speaking of which, did anyone read the Axel Honneth/Nancy Fraser debate in 'Redistribution or Recognition'? I'm firmly against Honneth, but it was wonderful to read his thorough demolition of Fraser, who is another in the Butler hasn't-much-to-say vein. I was wincing by the end. I don't like Derrida, but he is a thinker in a way that Butler and Fraser never will be. James Greenstein --- "Michael Dawson" wrote: From: "Michael Dawson" Date: Tue, 26 Oct 2004 08:50:25 -0700 To: Subject: RE: [lbo-talk] Butler on Derrida I don't object to what Butler said, but rather to the length and artificial complexity with which she said it. "Jacques Derrida is my favorite and he taught much about how to do what I do." That's all she said. A good writer would have found a powerful way of saying that in two paragraphs, then gone on to explain the importance of "what I do" might be. This was supposed to be an intellectual obituary, so it's pretty embarrassing to leave out that last part. Of course, when the answer is "little," there's silence on that point. -----Original Message----- From: lbo-talk-bounces@lbo-talk.org [mailto:lbo-talk-bounces@lbo-talk.org] On Behalf Of Jeffrey Fisher Sent: Tuesday, October 26, 2004 4:14 AM To: lbo-talk@lbo-talk.org Subject: Re: [lbo-talk] Butler on Derrida the negative theology-related stuff is outstanding (of course, that is *exactly* what i do), but apparently politically incorrect, because it involves difficulty, i suppose, and what we're about as good dialectical materialists is reducing all of life to the simple (so it can be understood and used by "the people", who are, i guess, simple -- except when they're reading kapital). i'm just guessing, there, since i don't pretend to psychoanalyze all this derrida-hating the way derrida-haters presume to psychoanalyze derrida and deconstructionists. gag, gag, gag, indeed. oh my god! someone likes being famous! that bastard! and wrt michael's comment, what more does judith butler need to say (in a god-damn memorial piece, for chrissakes) than that she likes derrida and owes him a debt, as do we all? i suppose she should have properly deconstructed death, or something (actually, she nearly does this, but then that will only make her that much more reprehensible). j On Tue, 26 Oct 2004 03:54:38 -0700 (PDT), Chris Doss wrote: > > What's up with all the Derrida-bashing? I thought his > stuff on Heidegger was annoying and the Post Card too, > but Of Grammatology and Speach and Phenomena were not > bad at all. His negative theology was pretty cool, if > you're into that kind of thing. > > ===== > Nu, zayats, pogodi! > > > __________________________________ > Do you Yahoo!? > Read only the mail you want - Yahoo! Mail SpamGuard. > http://promotions.yahoo.com/new_mail > > > ___________________________________ > http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/mailman/listinfo/lbo-talk > ___________________________________ http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/mailman/listinfo/lbo-talk ___________________________________ http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/mailman/listinfo/lbo-talk