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Bloom, Derrida, and the Kabbalah: the Invocation of Ancestral Voices
Author(s) -
Siegumfeldt Inge Birgitte
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
orbis litterarum
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.109
H-Index - 8
eISSN - 1600-0730
pISSN - 0105-7510
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0730.1994.tb00061.x
Subject(s) - invocation , judaism , kabbalah , contest , deconstruction (building) , literature , jewish studies , demonization , history , philosophy , art , theology , archaeology , law , ecology , biology , politics , political science
The cornerstones of our Western culture were cast in a contest between Hellenism and Judaism. Until the 20th century, the former has presided, the latter has been reduced to an undercurrent. The present deconstruction of philosophy and literary theory, however, is arguably indicative of a reversal of the roles; a substitution of Greco‐Christian values for Jewish‐kabbalistic speculation. Among Yale School critics, Harold Bloom alone acknowledges the influence of his Jewish ancestors. In Derridean theory, nevertheless, there are several trends which seem to resound the wisdom of the ancient Kabbalists.