Post-structuralism is among other things a kind of theoretical hangover from the failed uprising of '68, a way of keeping the revolution warm at the level of language, blending the euphoric libertarianism of that moment with the stoical melancholia of its aftermath.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Post-structuralism is framed as a theoretical continuation of the 1968 uprising.
- In plain terms
- Post-structuralism keeps the spirit of 1968 alive.
- What can you take from it?
- Theory carries revolutionary spirit.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Does theory need to be revolutionary?
- Is post-structuralism just a hangover?
Another view
It reduces theory to mere historical aftermath.
More from Terry Eagleton
It is silly to call fat people 'gravitationally challenged', a self-righteous fetishism of language which is no more than a symptom of political frustration.
Permalink to quote #4 Literature transforms and intensifies ordinary language, deviates systematically from everyday speech. If you approach me at a bus stop and murmur 'Thou still …
Permalink to quote #6 What persuades men and women to mistake each other from time to time for gods or vermin is ideology. One can understand well enough how human beings may strugg…
Permalink to quote #3
Related quotes
In einem kurzen Weilchen, meine Herren, sehen wir uns ohnehin alle wieder. Das ist das Los aller Menschen. Es lebe Deutschland. Es lebe Argentinien. Es lebe Os…
Adolf EichmannAdolf Eichmann quote #5 It is clear that the arm of criticism cannot replace the criticism of arms. Material force can only be overthrown by material force, but theory itself becomes …
Karl MarxKarl Marx quote #5 The condition of Man...is a condition of Warre of every one against every one.
Thomas HobbesThomas Hobbes quote #6