Structure, Sign & Play...

Structuralism by definition refers to that way in which one analyzes culture by looking at structures or how a society is organized. For example a teacher is viewed very differently outside of the classroom as compared to inside the classroom because of the role in which they play at that given time. Post-Modernism on the other hand is less organized and structured and is more along the lines of doing whatever one chooses to do; allowing for much more freedom, color, and imagination. An example of Post Modernism in today’s culture would be punk rock music because it is a cluster of genres that have formed its identity as punk rock. Or another example could be the way that we dress today in comparison to the trends and fads of the early 1900’s.

Jaques Derrida

Jaques Derrida illustrates in his Structure, Sign, and Play, various examples of this as well as his interpretation on the use of signs and there meaning. First, before moving further it is important to note that Derrida is very important and significant for his creation of the word “deconstruct” which historically is interpreted as “there is nothing outside of the text”. In other words Derrida believes that deconstruction is an effort to understand a text through its relationship to various contexts. Derrida is famously noted as being a philosopher that applies much of what he writes about to the way he writes, which means that majority of what he talks about is much more than what is perceived on the surface. He advises that we as readers search for meaning not only through declarative and prescriptive passages of text, but also in margins as well as gaps or basically “reading between the lines”.

He starts in his writing by insinuating at an event also referred to in his writing as a “rupture”, which is what he noted brought about change in regards to the concept of structure. He then goes on to say that “rupture” marks the transition from structuralism which noted at the beginning is described as the way we analyze society, to post modernism which is described as this freedom and vivid use of imagination and creativity. In regards to structure he portrays that the entire history of the concept of structure functions as “one system”, “one structure”, which is parallel to that of metaphysics. What these all have in common is the idea that they visualize structure as being something that molds around a center.

Post-Modernism (example)

But since the center (whether it be God, man, happiness, or our conscience) cannot be effected by the structure surrounding it, rather it has been residing outside of the system which means it does not actually mold around the center. To understand this idea better he goes more into depth by talking about the use of signs and says that the face that signs define themselves by their relationships to other signs implies that there cannot be “a center”; neither within or without the structure or system, since the transcendental signifier or in other words the ultimate sign could not be demarcated without allusion to another sign.

Example Of How Signs Differenciate Based Upon Audience

When thinking of examples of how Derrida’s writing and explanation of sign and how sign could not be interpreted without the presence of another sign I thought immediately of gang signs in comparison to sign language. Although this may seem far-fetched, growing up in a high gang populated region of inner city Los Angeles, the use of gang signs and communication amongst gang members is vital for one’s survival. Although the use of hand signals to relay messages goes back as far as slavery in African American culture, today it plays a vital role in protecting gangs turf and keeping a sense of order within the neighborhood. Now at this point I’m sure you are wondering well how does gang signs relate to Derrida but don’t worry I’m getting there now.  



Basic Gang Signs

Gang symbols and signs are very basic hand gestures which although may be simple to impersonate, have a great deal of meaning and symbolism from one gang member to another. Though one gesture may not seem to mean much due to its simplicity, it has much more meaning to those who understand the lingo or slang. These gestures relay messages about rival gangs, police activity, drug dealing, war, or even a basic gesture of acknowledging a friend such as saying “what’s up”. Now comparing it to sign language, it is safe to say that many of the symbols and gestures that gang signs have now began to use have come directly from sign language. Even though sign language is much more complex than gang signs in a since that sign language spells out entire words and sentences, gang symbols act somewhat as abbreviations for sign language with very different meanings.

Sign Language Alphabet

Derrida would approach this idea of use of sign by saying first on behalf of his deconstruction creation that as stated before deconstruction acts as an effort to understand or comprehend the use of sign based upon its relationship to other contexts. He would then go on to talk about how there is not center to this use of sign because the use of signs as communication originated long before gangs were even created. Along with this idea, the idea that the same sign could have two very different meanings in regards to gang signs and sign language act as an illustration that there cannot be a center.