The Problem of Genesis in Husserl's Philosophy

This translation of a 1990 reprinting of Derrida's 1953-54 dissertation for his diplome d'etudes superieures by its nature contains a certain deconstructive vibration, voices impacted within voices and language pried opened for close inspection. Even the juxtaposition of annotations--the translator's notes, nested beside the editor's notes, nested inside the author's translations--produces a certain Derridean experience of intertextuality. Adding to the complication, the subject matter here is ""genesis"" in the work of German philosopher Edmund Husserl, a perfect template for circular locutions on the unplaceable origins of thought and identity. ""Just when I am getting to the end and when everything is finished for me, I know that I must start everything again from the beginning,"" Husserl is quoted to say. For those enamored of Derrida's often mind-blowing writing style, part philosophy and part Talmudic incantation, this manuscript will prove fascinating material. Chided by instructor Louis Althusser to show a certain level of professionalism in his academic prose, the young Derrida moves relatively methodically over the body of Husserl's work, treating the twin themes of the history of philosophy and the philosophy of history. In this nascent effort, we glimpse a singular mind as it dwells on its own formation.