- Collection Overview
- Collection Description & Creator Information
- Access & Use
- Collection History
- Find Related Materials
Expanded View
Collection Overview
- Creator:
- Derrida, Jacques
- Collector:
- Princeton University. Library. Special Collections
- Title:
- The Library of Jacques Derrida, House Series
- Repository:
- Rare Book Division
- Permanent URL:
- http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/bc386m969
- Dates:
- 1793-2013
- Size:
- 675 boxes and 16 items
- Storage Note:
- This is stored in multiple locations.
- Firestone Library (scaex): Boxes B-000109 to B-000137, B-000139 to B-000140, B-000175, B-000240 to B-000251, B-000253 to B-000254, B-000256 to B-000257, B-000260 to B-000261, B-000263 to B-000269, B-000272, B-000274 to B-000282, B-000301 to B-000304, B-000308, B-000322 to B-000462, B-000464 to B-000528, B-000530 to B-000548, B-000550 to B-000562, B-000564 to B-000568, B-000570 to B-000572, B-000576 to B-000588, B-000590 to B-000613, B-000617 to B-000621, B-000627, B-000629 to B-000634, B-000637, P-000019 to P-000035
- ReCAP (scarcpxr): Boxes 146, 149 to 150, 155, 165, 169, 171 to 172, 174, 176, 179 to 180, 182, 185, 188 to 189, 207, 209, 211, 215, 217, 219, 223, 226, 228 to 229, 231, 233, 235, 239, 321, 334, 337 to 338, 340 to 341, 354 to 355, 376, 379, 381, 389, 392, 402, 405, 409 to 410, 414, 417, 426, 428, 439, 445, 453, 455, 467 to 468, 473, 478 to 479, 488, 498, 502, 513, 515, 522, 531, 534, 542, 544, 549, 552, 555, 561, 566, 574, 576, 580, 587, 589, 602 to 603, 61, 610, 615, 617, 620, 623, 628, 630 to 631, 636, 638 to 639, 641 to 642, 645, 650, 653, 655 to 656, 658 to 659, 661, 663, 666, 669 to 670, 672 to 673, 676, 679, 682, 684, 687, 692, 694 to 695, 697 to 698, 700, 702, 705, 707, 711, 715, 718, 720, 726 to 727, 729, 732, 734 to 735, 737 to 738, 740 to 741, 743, 746, 748, 751, 753, 759, 761, 763, 770, 772 to 773, 775, 777, 779, 781, 784, 787, 789, 794, 796, 800, 803 to 804, 806 to 807, 809, 811, 814, 816, 819, 821, 823, 825, 827, 837, 839 to 840, 842, 844, 846, 860, 862, 864, 866, 874, 876, 878, 887, 891, 896, 898, 900, 902, 904, 914, 919, 921
- Language:
- Undetermined
Abstract
Consists of the personal library of French philosopher Jacques Derrida and members of his household.
Collection Description & Creator Information
- Scope and Contents
The Library of Jacques Derrida comprises the library of the Derrida household, including Jacques Derrida's working library as well as books belonging, jointly or separately, to Jacques and Marguerite Derrida and, to some degree, their two sons, Jean and Pierre. It consists of volumes, serial issues, offprints, clippings, and papers accumulated in the course of Jacques and Marguerite's professional activities as well as books representing the family's far-reaching interests and leisure reading.
The thematic scope of the collection is expansive and polyglot, spanning some twenty languages and topics ranging, among many others, from capital punishment to photography, comparative law to James Joyce, the history of Algeria to animal rights, psychoanalysis to Iceland, mourning to Jewelry factories in Russia, Bushisms, and Asterix.
Jacques Derrida's working library is the result of decades of acquisitions of a scholar who preferred to work from home. Shelfmarks from an inventory conducted in 2011, with the workspace largely untouched in the seven intervening years since Derrida's passing, allow the virtual reconstruction of the contextual placement of works on his Studio shelves. Multiple copies of works, some with different sets of annotations, bear witness to a practice of re-reading as well as obtaining additional copies when those already owned were unavailable. A run of books received as gifts, several thousand items strong and including a number of volumes with uncut pages or still in their original shrinkwrap, offers evidence of Derrida's famous refusal to discard any books. Insertions related by subject offer a fascinating glimpse of an alternate use of the Library as an ad-hoc topical filing system.
The Library includes items added by Marguerite Derrida after Jacques Derrida's death. Also included are individual items bearing owner's marks of or inscriptions to Marguerite Derrida and Marguerite and Jacques Derrida's sons, Pierre and Jean.
Dealer notes regarding annotations employ a numeric scale from 0-3, with "0" denoting the absence of annotations, "1" the presence of some markings (typically underlines or vertical lines marking a phrase), "2" the presence of more substantive markings, and "3" heavy markings and marginalia.
- Arrangement
Arrangement is by studio and rest of the house and follows the original placement of items on the shelves, or packing order where original arrangement was no longer discernible.
- Collection Creator Biography:
Derrida, Jacques
Jacques Derrida (July 15, 1930 – October 9, 2004) was a French philosopher, born in French Algeria. Derrida is best known for developing a form of semiotic analysis known as deconstruction. He is one of the major figures associated with post-structuralism and postmodern philosophy. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Derrida)
- General
RBD1
Collection History
- Acquisition:
Acquired 2015.
- Processing Information
Processed based on dealer data using a database and XQuery workflow by Regine Heberlein and Donald Thornbury. Data entry and other invaluable assistance provided by Nick Williams '15 and Donald Thermesi.
Access & Use
- Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
- Conditions Governing Use
Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.
- Credit this material:
The Library of Jacques Derrida, House Series; Rare Book Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library
- Permanent URL:
- http://arks.princeton.edu/ark:/88435/bc386m969
- Location:
-
Firestone LibraryOne Washington RoadPrinceton, NJ 08544, USA
- Storage Note:
- This is stored in multiple locations.
- Firestone Library (scaex): Boxes B-000109 to B-000137, B-000139 to B-000140, B-000175, B-000240 to B-000251, B-000253 to B-000254, B-000256 to B-000257, B-000260 to B-000261, B-000263 to B-000269, B-000272, B-000274 to B-000282, B-000301 to B-000304, B-000308, B-000322 to B-000462, B-000464 to B-000528, B-000530 to B-000548, B-000550 to B-000562, B-000564 to B-000568, B-000570 to B-000572, B-000576 to B-000588, B-000590 to B-000613, B-000617 to B-000621, B-000627, B-000629 to B-000634, B-000637, P-000019 to P-000035
- ReCAP (scarcpxr): Boxes 146, 149 to 150, 155, 165, 169, 171 to 172, 174, 176, 179 to 180, 182, 185, 188 to 189, 207, 209, 211, 215, 217, 219, 223, 226, 228 to 229, 231, 233, 235, 239, 321, 334, 337 to 338, 340 to 341, 354 to 355, 376, 379, 381, 389, 392, 402, 405, 409 to 410, 414, 417, 426, 428, 439, 445, 453, 455, 467 to 468, 473, 478 to 479, 488, 498, 502, 513, 515, 522, 531, 534, 542, 544, 549, 552, 555, 561, 566, 574, 576, 580, 587, 589, 602 to 603, 61, 610, 615, 617, 620, 623, 628, 630 to 631, 636, 638 to 639, 641 to 642, 645, 650, 653, 655 to 656, 658 to 659, 661, 663, 666, 669 to 670, 672 to 673, 676, 679, 682, 684, 687, 692, 694 to 695, 697 to 698, 700, 702, 705, 707, 711, 715, 718, 720, 726 to 727, 729, 732, 734 to 735, 737 to 738, 740 to 741, 743, 746, 748, 751, 753, 759, 761, 763, 770, 772 to 773, 775, 777, 779, 781, 784, 787, 789, 794, 796, 800, 803 to 804, 806 to 807, 809, 811, 814, 816, 819, 821, 823, 825, 827, 837, 839 to 840, 842, 844, 846, 860, 862, 864, 866, 874, 876, 878, 887, 891, 896, 898, 900, 902, 904, 914, 919, 921
Find More
- Other Finding Aids
Click here to access the full inventory of the Studio series.
- Separated Materials
At the time of acquisition, inserted material had been systematically removed from a subset of volumes and placed in a number of subject-based boxes and envelopes. Notes received by PUL from the dealer reflect this and are quoted in this finding aid in the interest of making the history of the collection's custodial interventions fully transparent.
All separated insertions received by PUL were re-inserted upon receipt of the collection in an effort to preserve archival context and service the collection as close as possible to its working state.
A small number of separated insertions were not received by PUL and are so identified in the finding aid.
- Subject Terms:
- Alferi, Pierre
Deconstruction
Derrida, Jacques -- Library
Derrida, Jean
Derrida, Marguerite -- Library
Philosophers -- France -- 20th century
Philosophy, French -- Sources -- 20th century
Philosophy, Modern -- 20th century - Genre Terms:
- Private libraries
