Between Foucault and Derrida

Explores the biographical, historical and philosophical connections between Jacques Derrida and Michel Foucault Derrida and Foucault are unquestionably two of the most influential philosophers of the 20th century. Both share a similar motivation to challenge our fundamental structures of meaning – in texts, political structures, and epistemic and discursive practices – in order to inspire new ways of thinking. Between Foucault and Derrida explores the notorious Cogito debate and includes: the central articles, an important piece by Jean-Marie Beyssade, along with a letter Foucault wrote to Beyssade in response – both these pieces available for the first time in English translation. In the second part of the book, 10 essays written by some of the most well-known scholars working in contemporary continental philosophy address the various philosophical intersections and divergences of these two profoundly important thinkers. The first collection of the central essays involved in the Cogito debate between Foucault and DerridaIncludes the first English translations of Jean-Marie Beyssade’s important 1973 article on the debate and Foucault's letter in response to itSome of the best-known scholars working in continental philosophy today examine where Foucault and Derrida converge and diverge, and how they ultimately shaped each other’s projectsContributors Amy Allen • Ellen Armour • Yubraj Aryal • Jean-Marie Beyssade • Vernon W. Cisney • Jacques Derrida • Fred Evans • Michele Foucault • Peter Gratton • Leonard Lawlor • Edward McGushin • Nicolae Morar • Jeff Nealon • Christopher Penfield • Arkady Plotnitsk • Paul Rekret • Alan Schrift

Yubraj Aryal is a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Montreal and Visiting Scholar at New York University. He is also the editor of Journal of Philosophy: A Cross-Disciplinary Inquiry. Dr. Aryal has interviewed Brian Massumi, Kwami Anthony Appiah, Lauren Berlant, Paul Patton, Richard Rorty, Robert Young and others. Vernon W. Cisney is Assistant Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies and Philosophy at Gettysburg College. He is the author of Deleuze and Derrida: Difference and the Power of the Negative (Edinburgh University Press, 2018) and Derrida’s Voice and Phenomenon: An Edinburgh Philosophical Guide (Edinburgh University Press, 2014). He is the co-editor of Between Foucault and Derrida (Edinburgh University Press, 2016); The Way of Nature and the Way of Grace: Philosophical Footholds on Terrence Malick’s Tree of Life (Northwestern University Press, 2016); and Biopower: Foucault and Beyond (University of Chicago Press, 2015). Nicolae Morar is Assistant Professor in Philosophy and Environmental Studies and an Associate Member with the Institute of Ecology and Evolution at the University of Oregon. Christopher Penfield is Charles A. Dana Associate Professor of Philosophy at Sweet Briar College. He is the co-editor of Between Foucault and Derrida (EUP, 2016) and author of numerous articles on contemporary French philosophy, social and political theory, and aesthetics, including those published in or by Deleuze and Guattari Studies, The Journal of Speculative Philosophy, Tate Publishing, Foucault Studies and The Cambridge Foucault Lexicon.