Brookes77, Jaques Derrida

“Within a language, within the system of language there are only differences. A taxonomic operation can accordingly undertake its systematic, statistical, and classificatory inventory…these differences play a role in language, in speech as well, and in the exchange between language and speech” (129). This quote from Jaques Derrida was part of the reading that really stuck out to me. Derrida’s reading relates much to what we learned before the first exam from Macherey and De Saussure about signs and language. From what I understood to me he was talking about how everywhere, for everyone language is different. Certain words, and signs mean different things in every culture and language, this notion of “difference” can not be defined because what is different, everything is different to somebody. Although then Derrida goes on saying that the notion of “difference” did not just suddenly appear out of thin air, that it had to be produced somewhere, and then goes on explaining that “difference” can be broken down and cause effects, such as emotions, views, etc. This reading also made me think of Hebdige and his notion of sameness. Hedbige talked about how we either other new trends, ideas, and classify them as exoticism them or make them normal. I think that this can be related with some of what Derrida is explaining how there really is no difference, or being different because our culture normalizes something that is at first “different” that may cause effects ( may make peoples heads turn at first), yet then we give acceptance or we make it avant guard, which in a way is normalizing something by bringing up, and giving it attention, which eventually makes this thing not as “different” anymore,; even though it is not a trend, it is still known. So I do agree, that one can not state: “What differs? Who Differs? What is Difference” (130) because “difference” can not be classified like thing it must be broken down into a cycle. “ … the system of differences, or at least to the general law of difference, by conforming to that law of language which Saussure calls ‘ language without speech” (130) This sentence summarized what I was saying above, how basically how we think that others in other languages are different, and the other people believe we are different, making this language of differences on both sides normal. These thoughts about each different languages causes effects, representations, stereotypes, yet it is the same everywhere.