The Philosophical Foundations of the Grammatological Reading of the Political in Derrida's Thought
Subject Areas : Research in Theoritical Politics
1 - Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.
Keywords: Derrida, grammatology, politics, justice, democracy.,
Abstract :
The Philosophical Foundations of the Grammatological
Reading of the Political in Derrida's Thought
Hamed Aliakbarzadeh*
This article first examines the way Jacques Derrida’s philosophical project connects to the political realm, demonstrating how his grammatological interpretation of being opens a pathway toward contingent and practical domains, particularly the political sphere. The article then explores the implications of this project, showing that Derrida’s political philosophy is less a fixed or determinate framework and more an effort to liberate political thought from rigid and systematic forms characteristic of both classical and modern philosophy. His approach enables the deconstruction, reconstruction, and continuous formation of new ideas within the political domain.
Keywords: Derrida, grammatology, politics, justice, democracy.
Introduction
A central component of any philosophical idea is its connection to contingent realities such as politics, law, economics, and society. If a philosophical idea cannot establish such a connection, it is likely to be excluded from meaningful philosophical discourse. Philosophers have historically sought to create these links, and many contemporary thinkers focus on questions of language, arguing that it is through the linguistic context of thought that philosophical ideas relate to culture, society, and other contingent domains.
Jacques Derrida’s philosophy, like many contemporary European philosophies, is closely tied to language. By emphasizing the linguistic dimension, Derrida establishes the science of “grammatology,” through which he opens a path toward examining contingent domains, especially the political realm, including concepts such as democracy and justice. This article first explores how Derrida conceives of being as a textual and linguistic phenomenon and then shows how, through grammatology, he links his philosophical ideas to political concerns. It further demonstrates the consequences of this linkage for Derrida’s political philosophy.
The Linguistic Fabric of Being in Derrida’s Philosophy
Derrida’s philosophical project begins with a critical engagement with the history of Western philosophy, which he regards as dominated by “logocentrism.” Understanding logocentrism requires recognizing that, in Derrida’s view, Western metaphysics—from Plato to the present—rests upon binary oppositions, such as substance/accident, universal/particular, finite/infinite, and speech/writing. These oppositions constitute the foundation of metaphysical thought in the West. According to Derrida, the privileging of speech over writing originates in Plato, particularly in the Phaedrus, where speech is favored over writing.
In this framework, speech conveys the speaker’s immediate thought more directly than writing, making speech a representation of presence, while writing, as a mere transcript, represents absence. Speech is associated with revelation and the unfolding of truth, whereas writing is linked to memory and deferral. From Plato onward, Western philosophy has maintained this privileging of speech over writing—a metaphysics of presence. Derrida terms this historical dominance “the metaphysics of presence.” Logocentrism, in his analysis, is another expression of this metaphysics, an enduring rationalism oriented toward speech and presence.
Derrida observes that this speech-centered orientation manifests in philosophical concepts such as substance, essence, existence, consciousness, and subjectivity. In the history of Western metaphysics, the predominance of speech over writing effectively defers and marginalizes the Other. When the Other is negated or relegated, there is little space for social or political engagement. To address the political realm, Derrida seeks a foundation for knowledge that allows access to the Other.
Grammatology: The Condition for the Contingency of Philosophy
In developing this science, Derrida shifts emphasis from speech to writing. This move is not merely linguistic but establishes a new mode of thinking about being, which he names grammatology. Grammatology is a comprehensive science in which writing is central. The primacy of writing corresponds to the primacy of the Other. This shift from speech to writing represents a fundamental reorientation away from the logocentric metaphysics of Western philosophy. Grammatology enables reflection on being as textual and written. By conceptualizing being in this manner, Derrida opens a new horizon for engaging with contingent realities. He develops a strategy, called “deconstruction,” to systematically account for the linguistic and textual aspects of philosophical reflection.
The Strategy of Deconstruction
Central to deconstruction is the problem of meaning. Meaning is established through differences from other meanings, yet this establishment is always inherently unstable. Consequently, there is no fixed, central, or overarching meaning; each concept must be continuously decentered. Deconstruction is therefore a strategy of non-determination dependent on the Other. By employing deconstruction, Derrida creates space for the Other, thereby opening the possibility of a political domain oriented toward the Other. But how does Derrida, through grammatology and deconstruction, engage political concepts?
The Political and Its Relation to Derrida’s Philosophical Ideas
For Derrida, political concepts, like all concepts, are in constant flux and indeterminate. They continuously evolve, and no fixed or complete realization is ever achieved. Thus, concepts such as democracy or justice are perpetually unfolding, never fully attainable.
Democracy
Democracy, from Derrida’s perspective, is always in a state of becoming. It is endless—“democracy to come.” Its meaning is continually in the process of realization, yet never fully captured. Democracy is not a completed system but an ongoing project, requiring perpetual reflection and reassessment.
Justice
Derrida’s approach to justice follows a similar logic. Justice is impossible—not in the sense of being unattainable, but always deferred. True justice is always on its way; it is justice in process. Experiencing justice involves confronting the uncalculable and engaging with uncertainty. As Derrida suggests, justice is like a guest who always arrives late—yet this very delay enables critical reflection and ethical engagement.
Conclusion
For Derrida, written language provides the starting point for speaking about reality and being. Grammatology allows engagement with being as a linguistic phenomenon. From this perspective, all ideas and concepts, including political concepts, are subject to deconstruction. Deconstruction challenges the stability, determinacy, and realizability of concepts. In Derrida’s thought, no political concept remains fixed; they are continually recreated, inspiring movement, reflection, and renewal. Derrida represents the beginning of a new approach to Western political philosophy—a beginning without a predetermined end. Derridean politics is an “impossible politics,” seeking liberation from rigid frameworks in order to enable continuous self-reconstruction. The most significant implication of Derrida’s approach is that concepts such as democracy and justice shift from being static political or legal ideas to “perpetually open philosophical questions.”
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* Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.
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