Signature Event Context PDF

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Summary of "Signature, Event, Context" by Derrida - Professor Shershow...

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Signature, Event, Context

In his essay “Signature, Event, Context,” Derrida examines the concept of communication. There are various definitions of the term communication; of which Derrida considers writing to be the most extended means. Writing is secondary to spoken communication, and is representative of ideas that have already been expressed with actions and words. However, unlike oral and gestural communication, writing is not bound by time and space; but rather writing allows one to communicate with those who are absent. This absence also relates to the person who does the writing as text detaches from the writer. As the notion of absence is a central idea to the concept of written communication, writing must be legible (even to those it is not addressed to) in order to function. Derrida terms this “iterability” and determines that all writing to be structured by this concept. Therefore, it is essential that for writing to be considered writing it must continue to function in the disappearance of the author....