A fresh look at the influential French philosopher which argues that Derridacannot be fully understood without considering the Jewish dimension of histhought an... » 

A fresh look at the influential French philosopher which argues that Derridacannot be fully understood without considering the Jewish dimension of histhought and offers a dramatic reappraisal of his work.Until now no critical work has touched on the Jewish dimension in JacquesDerridas philosophical oeuvre. Ofrat notes that early Derridean workscontained few if any references to Jewish writers concepts or issues. Atfirst glance Judaism itself along with all other structures found intraditional Western metaphysics would appear to have no place in Derridasthought but Ofrat argues that Derrida cannot be thoroughly understood withoutelucidating the Jewish current running through his philosophy right down tothe scar of his circumcision. A FrenchAlgerian Jew Derrida broke free of theJewish consciousness and culture of his childhood but taught that leavingsomething is a precondition for recognizing its significance. Ofrat suggeststhat Derridas philosophy grew from these early influences and the fragments ofhis Jewish identity and he offers a comprehensive reading of Derrideanwritings and strong grounding in Jewish tradition. By approaching Derridasphilosophical poetic and artistic themes through a Jewish lens Ofrat gives asophisticated subtle entirely fresh reading of one of the most influentialthinkers of the twentieth century. «