Thinking Activity : Derrida and Deconstruction
I am Emisha Ravani, Writing this blog as a thinking activity for the concept of Derrida and Deconstruction. Which is given by Prof.Dr.Dilip Barad there is an another blog for this idea with informative videos You can have a look to it by clicking here. And here I will discuss other things like what is the understanding by Deconstruction'? and practicing it here by some of attempts.
Derrida is saying that Deconstruction is not Destruction.
Then what is Deconstruction?
Defining this term can be especially difficult and confusing one. Derrida once said It is a necessary confusion since it is criticizing the very simplified explanation of the reasoning behind this theory that I found helpful. So here, Derrida himself is accepting and attempting that the idea or the concept of Deconstruction is too hard nut to crack itself.
So now I am going to deconstruct some of words or dialogues from very pertinent
scenes for understanding Binary Opposition in the easy way. The oppositions challenged by deconstruction, which have been inherent in Western philosophy since the time of the ancient Greeks, are characteristically “binary” and “hierarchical,” involving a pair of terms in which one member of the pair is assumed to be primary or fundamental, the other secondary or derivative. Examples include nature and culture, speech and writing, mind and body, presence and absence, inside and outside, literal and metaphorical, intelligible and sensible, and form and meaning, among many others. To “deconstruct” an opposition is to explore the tensions and contradictions between the hierarchical ordering assumed (and sometimes explicitly asserted) in the text and other aspects of the text’s meaning, especially those that are indirect or implicit or that rely on figurative or performative uses of language. Through this analysis, the opposition is shown to be a product, or “construction,” of the text rather than something given independently of it.
The scene from movie Mardaani 2
A police officer's search for a missing teenage girl leads her to the depraved world of child trafficking. What follows is a cat-and-mouse game between the officer and a mafia kingpin.
Sunny, a psychopath working for a politician, brutally rapes and murders innocent women, leaving a trail of battered bodies in his wake. However, SP Shivani Roy vows to catch and bring him to justice.
Even when we see the poster of the movie we think it is having the feminine voice at all. But when go into deep study by the various kind of perspective we come to know many things along with it.
This is the scene where we come to know that the interview is going on of a female police officer. Here also there is male who is taking interview and questioning very weirdly to the one who is answering and being deconstructed by her own answers. It is showing that no matter woman is standing, no matter which position she is having but she will be always questionable one. Even the professions have their narrow path to walk by this zander binaries or opposition. When we take a look to the post-colonial idea we come to know that from the old time male hierarchy and the act of privileging over other is playing vital role everywhere and every aspect of the social lance. We always have that idea of binary in our subconscious mind no matter the one is male or female. But if one is male then always think about the privileging over the female more.
First question is only like, A murdering rapist trying to impress you or to take revenge on you. Straps a time bomb to an innocent girl. Don’t you think having a male officer in your place could have prevented this disaster? Is it not time for women to introspect a little?
We can observe that the question is a very big question to itself. When we see by the perspective of the binary opposition. How the whole society is presented by this male interviewer.
Female police officer = woman’s voice
Male interviewer = male dominated society
Further he is going with a question like when Mother Nature has created a difference between men and women. Who are we to dispute it?
In this question here also mentioned the religious concerns by questioning the character of Sita. In the ending of video there is the idea of Equality as well as capacities.
The scene from movie Pink
After being molested, Minal, along with her friends, tries to file an FIR against a politician's nephew. When the subsequent case gets rigged, Deepak, a retired lawyer, helps them to fight the case.
The scene open with the question Are you Virgin? By the lawyer to the Minal in the court. Here we can see the idea of ‘Virginity’ has come always with the women concerns. We never find it around any man. Also, the judge asks to have Incamera at that time Minal Arora does not know the next question though she denied to have Incamera session she says I will give answers in open court because I did not do anything wrong. So, why women are always being questionable in this thing! She answered even the question like, she is not virgin and at nineteen she lost her virginity. So, lawyer is going further with the flow very pertinently and striking questions are there.
When it comes to virginity
the society always have those notions in the mind that it always the rape cases
playing the role. Society never thinks in a way of consents from the both
sides. In this way it is all about the human will not every time it is the case
of rape or any other things. Because the people always make women’s characters
in fault. Human will is at center. Also, we can observe the questions those are
asked to the male character and female character while they are standing in the
court to be questioned.
Mainly this movie is not about the one molested female case, rather than it is more about the human will or consent as it focused by the lance of the lawyer. He is telling that these many things girls cannot do with the references of consents. Also, how these things are same but for girls it is not same!
Minal and her friends state that the men tried to sexually assault them. Minal alleges that Rajveer tried to rape her, and she attacked him with the bottle in self-defence. Deepak’s argument focuses on the issue of consent and a woman’s right to say no. A series of interesting and chilling courtroom arguments ensues in the following days. Towards the end of the trial, Rajveer becomes enraged and provoked by Deepak, revealing the truth by stating that the women “got what they deserved”. Deepak criticizes the regressed views of the society where women are stereotyped as prostitutes if they come home late, move out of their home, want to be independent, drink and so on, but none of these applies to men. In his closing remarks, Deepak mentions that his client said “no”. No means no and does not require further explanation. The women are acquitted while Rajveer, Ankit, and Dumpy are charged. Vishwa Jyoti is let off with a warning.
Here I would like to mention the preface by Kamala Das in her book Selected Poems. And it is directly deconstructing the very core idea of feminine here. Also there is a prominent figure here to mention.
Here, Simone de Beauvoir has put out many ideas around it and how it is promiscuous evils.
Phallogocentrism is very core concept about binary opposition like in that as we have seen the idea of how male is privileging over female. At center men and periphery women.
Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak Indian literary theorist, feminist critic, postcolonial theorist, and professor of comparative literature noted for her personal brand of deconstructive criticism, which she called “interventionist.”
THANK YOU!
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