summary --- Summary Poststructuralism emerged in France in the 1960s, setting into motion a philosophical revolution that would change the course of French philosophy for the remainder of the twentieth century. Although there are differences between the thinkers characterized as poststructuralist, nevertheless certain themes and trends distinguish poststructuralist thinkers, in particular Michel Foucault, Gilles Deleuze, and Jacques Derrida, from their structuralist predecessors. In some cases, these should be seen as correctives to the excesses of structuralism; in others as ways in which these thinkers gave expression to the Nietzschean-Freudian-Marxian spirit of the times. What is emphasized is the way poststructuralist thinkers reaffirmed the value of philosophical thinking. Where the structuralist theorists had turned away from philosophy, theorists following structuralism readily identify themselves as philosophers. Situating these philosophical thinkers after structuralism, four themes are highlighted: the return to thinking historically; the return of thinking about the subject; the emphasis on difference; and the return to thinking philosophically about ethics.

Source author: Mohammad Daud Mahmoody dauodmahmoody@gmail.com