Derrida and Madness

Abstract

Evangelou explores Derrida’s main criticism of Foucault’s project and his objection that Foucault—or anyone—could let madness speak for itself. He illustrates how the justification of Derrida’s objection relies on his key distinction between history and historicity, which is what enables him to argue that both madness and reason emerged (as distinct from each other) at the same time; this is an ahistorical emergence. Whatever madness is, then, it is not to be blindly attributed to an oppressive act of reason as Foucault claims. Apart from tracing Derrida’s attempt to prove the unsurpassability of reason, Evangelou explains Derrida’s insistence that the philosophical act is just a disturbance to reason and evaluates his praise of Foucault for his pathos.