Monday October 11, 2004

Derrida in Oz

Jacques Derrida has died. I spent a large part of the ’90s studying his work, and I even met him once — poolside at a sprawling ranch house near the University of Memphis. He was controversial then, and maybe still is, although I haven’t kept up with his work for almost a decade. He was very short — movie star short — and he was smoking a large cigar.

The best Derrida story I’ve ever heard allegedly happened at a conference in Kansas. Taking advantage of the setting, a questioner from the audience brought up the scene from The Wizard of Oz in which Dorothy and company finally meet the wizard. He is powerful and overwhelming, at least until Toto pulls away the curtain to reveal a very small man.

“Professor Derrida. Are you like that?” the audience member supposedly asked.

Derrida paused before answering.

“You mean like zee dog?” he asked.

My psychiatrist — who practices on Park Avenue and doesn’t have an accent — looks very much like Derrida. He is short, he has a healthy tan and a full head of snow white hair. I look forward to my next appointment so I can confirm, once and for all, that they are not in fact the same person.

Posted by jim at 10:18 AM ||