Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
submittedVersion
Publication Date
11-2014
Abstract
This article argues that Derrida’s thinking is relevant to comparative philosophy. To illustrate this, at various stages classical Daoism is compared with Derrida’s thought, to highlight Derrida’s “applicability” and to see how using Derrida can contribute to new interpretations of Daoism. The article first looks into Derrida’s engagement (or lack thereof) with non-Western thought, and then proceeds to his extensive work regarding language and translation, comparing this with views on classical Chinese language and translation of key Daoist characters. It then explores Derrida’s efforts at opening up philosophy to its outside, and argues that he was very much concerned with other ways of thinking and their possible influence on Western thought. The final section argues both that Derrida’s abiding concern with otherness and alterity forms a fertile background from which to reinvestigate traditional interpretations of classical Daoism and that employing his way of thought can lead us to interesting new perspectives on Daoism.
Keywords
Jacques Derrida, comparative philosophy, Daoism, Chinese philosophy, language
Discipline
Comparative Philosophy | Philosophy
Research Areas
Humanities
Publication
Comparative and Continental Philosophy
Volume
6
Issue
2
First Page
125
Last Page
142
ISSN
1757-0638
Identifier
10.1179/1757063814Z.00000000037
Publisher
Equinox Publishing
Citation
BURIK, Steven.(2014). Derrida and Comparative Philosophy. Comparative and Continental Philosophy, 6(2), 125-142.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/1551
Copyright Owner and License
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1179/1757063814Z.00000000037