Description: This book collects ten years of Peggy Kamuf's writing on the work and friendship of Jacques Derrida. The majority of the chapters discuss a key aspect of Derrida's thought, either from a single work or across several texts. Kamuf engages with a broad array of his work, from the 1960s to the posthumous publication of his teaching seminars. She also considers press interviews and the collaboration on a film. These close readings are punctuated by brief recollections from their long friendship.The chapters trace a reflection that undergoes the sudden event of Derrida's death. Rather than take this interruption as its premise, however, the book sets out from Derrida's own teaching that mourning begins with friendship and not just at the death of the friend. Thus, the strict chronology of the chapters, from 2000 to 2010, highlights a general illusion of 'before' and 'after' that comes undone over the course of the sequence.
Brief description: Peggy Kamuf writes on literary theory and contemporary French thought, particularly that of Jacques Derrida. She has translated numerous texts by Derrida and several works by Hélène Cixous, including Insister of Jacques Derrida (EUP 2007). Director of the Derrida Seminars Translation Project, she also co-edits the series publishing Derrida's teaching seminars in English. She is Marion Frances Chevalier Professor of French and Comparative Literature at the University of Southern California.
Review Quotes: Already recognized as one of the most brilliant and resourceful critical voices on both sides of the Atlantic, Peggy Kamuf's new book once again demonstrates her exemplarity as a reader of Derrida's texts. From her remarks on sovereignty and possibility to her commentaries on death and mourning, Kamuf's writing bears witness to an outstanding mind at work.--Lawrence D. Kritzman, John D. Willard Professor of French, Oratory and Comparative Literature Dartmouth