Eyes of the University: Right to Philosophy 2

by Jacques Derrida

Completing the translation of Derrida's monumental work Right to Philosophy (the first part of which has already appeared under the title of Who's Afraid of Philosophy? ), Eyes of the University brings together many of the philosopher's most important texts on the university and, more broadly, on the languages and institutions of philosophy. In addition to considerations of the implications for literature and philosophy of French becoming a state language, of Descartes' writing of the Discourse on Method in French, and of Kant's and Schelling's philosophies of the university, the volume reflects on the current state of research and teaching in philosophy and on the question of what Derrida calls a "university responsibility." Examining the political and institutional conditions of philosophy, the essays collected here question the growing tendency to orient research and teaching towards a programmable and profitable end. The volume is therefore invaluable for the light it throws upon an underappreciated aspect of Derrida's own engagement, both philosophical and political, in struggles against the stifling of philosophical research and teaching. As a founding member of the Research Group on the Teaching of Philosophy and as one of the conveners of the Estates General of Philosophy, Derrida was at the forefront of the struggle to preserve and extend the teaching of philosophy as a distinct discipline, in secondary education and beyond, in the face of conservative government education reforms in France. As one of the founders of the Collège International de Philosophie, he worked to provide a space for research in and around philosophy that was not accepted or legitimated in other institutions. Documenting and reflecting upon these engagements, Eyes of the University brings together some of the most important and incisive of Derrida's works.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction

328 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Jacques Derrida was a French philosopher best known for developing deconstruction, a method of critical analysis that questioned the stability of meaning in language, texts, and Western metaphysical thought. Born in Algeria, he studied at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, where he was influenced by philosophers such as Heidegger, Husserl, and Levinas. His groundbreaking works, including Of Grammatology (1967), Writing and Difference (1967), and Speech and Phenomena (1967), positioned him at the center of intellectual debates on language, meaning, and interpretation.
Derrida argued that Western philosophy was structured around binary oppositions—such as speech over writing, presence over absence, or reason over emotion—that falsely privileged one term over the other. He introduced the concept of différance, which suggests that meaning is constantly deferred and never fully present, destabilizing the idea of fixed truth. His work engaged with a wide range of disciplines, including literature, psychoanalysis, political theory, and law, challenging conventional ways of thinking and interpretation.
Throughout his career, Derrida continued to explore ethical and political questions, particularly in works such as Specters of Marx (1993) and The Politics of Friendship (1994), which addressed democracy, justice, and responsibility. He held academic positions at institutions such as the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales and the University of California, Irvine, and remained an influential figure in both European and American intellectual circles. Despite criticism for his complex writing style and abstract concepts, Derrida’s ideas have left a lasting impact on contemporary philosophy, literary theory, and cultural criticism, reshaping the way meaning and language are understood in the modern world.

Reviews

[Kev Nickells]

I'm terribly fond of dear Jacky so this was a lovely read for my holidays. I guess I'm that kind of person.

Where it sits in Derrida's oeuvre is that it's a close and assiduous reading of the construction of the concept of 'the university' and how that concept's construction is modified, or being-modified, by the changing approach to the university in France, in the 1970s and 80s.

So what we see is an analysis of how knowledge was stratified in the time of Descartes, how the tension between university-state changed over time. Also how the university was qualified and sanctioned by various subjects - Theology-state as supreme legislator, and later the capital-state as same.

It's fascinating to read this given what followed - Derrida is writing in a moment of university where its connection to the state is complex; by the time of the 21st-century one of the persistent issues with universities is how to survive with minimal state endorsement, and the state's relationship to the university in terms of public funding. This book is bang at the beginning - and perhaps prefatory to - of the issues the university faces in 2023 (I'm thinking of Brighton and Sussex universities, local to me, struggling massively to reconcile the aims of teaching with the context of rampant capitalism eating into everything)

Perhaps most surprising of all - given that Derrida is sometimes criticised for being an airy, highly abstracted hermeneutical writer - is that there are substantial parts of this book where he writes, in concrete terms, how he recommends that philosophy be taught, and in fact that philosophy deserves to take a central if not executive place for teaching [in France] in general. In that sense, this is a good book to show to people who might claim that Derrida's work is too abstract - throughout the collection of essays Derrida builds a case for philosophy in general and then uses that case to argue for the centrality of philosophy to French education - arguing philosophy in plain terms to the highest level of the French state.

I'm not sure who is the model reader for this book. It's certainly of interest to those who are interested in the history of West European philosophy (Descartes to 1970s). There's a lot on the enlightenment narrative of subjects becoming less entangled - and the way in which philosophy / politics / theology all interrelate with the state. There's a lot here that's useful in terms of how a socialist or anarchist - with their implied quarrel with the state and its functions - might conceptualise the university, with its distinctly complex relationship to the state. It's fair to say that in many ways Derrida complicates how one might think of the state-university relationship but there's plenty here that could be used to criticise the 21st century university from a socialist perspective.

If you're not a fan of how Derrida writes then you're only going to get so far with this - I'd argue this is largely more readable than (say) Of Grammatology but the perennial demand with Derrida is to accept that his highly abstracted writing is necessary for his project and points. It's about the most approachable book of his I've read - consisting largely of papers for conferences, and thus with a view to terse simplicity. But that's not going to persuade your average Derrida-disliker.

For me, he's the master of reading things closely and pulling apart a concept to see how it is understood and what it means. And this is, as ever, an elegant and punchy exposition of his philosophy in general, applied to the history of the university.

[Mariam Rawwas]

Not sure how I feel about this "genealogical" approach to the history of pedagogical approach, especially as regards philosophy, as I'm unsure how influential this history is to our current situation.

[William Zeng]

every step you take... i'll be watching

[Jason]

I love you, Derrida.