Post-structuralism
Post-structuralism is, as the name implies, a direct response to Structuralism. It argues that, while structure is helpful to understand culture, the structures are not as clear-cut as Structuralism believes--so Post-structuralism is less likely to see everything in terms of opposition (e.g. male/female, good/evil). In other words, while Structuralism uses analytical concepts from the humanities to interpret structures, Post-structuralism argues that such analyses are biased because history and culture affect both the text presented and the way the reader uses the lens. So in order to study a text in a post-structuralist way, one must analyze both the text itself and the knowledge and processes that created the text. Jacques Derrida's Of Grammatology is one of the most important works of this movement, and it led to the most influential school of thought within Post-structuralism: Deconstruction. While Post-structuralism questions the structure present in the text, Deconstruction is more specific: it also seeks to destroy it in order to analyze its components and then rebuild it to create different meanings. Thus, a Post-structuralist approach will always yield multiple, irreconcilable readings.
Post-structuralism is, as the name implies, a direct response to Structuralism. It argues that, while structure is helpful to understand culture, the structures are not as clear-cut as Structuralism believes--so Post-structuralism is less likely to see everything in terms of opposition (e.g. male/female, good/evil). In other words, while Structuralism uses analytical concepts from the humanities to interpret structures, Post-structuralism argues that such analyses are biased because history and culture affect both the text presented and the way the reader uses the lens. So in order to study a text in a post-structuralist way, one must analyze both the text itself and the knowledge and processes that created the text. Jacques Derrida's Of Grammatology is one of the most important works of this movement, and it led to the most influential school of thought within Post-structuralism: Deconstruction. While Post-structuralism questions the structure present in the text, Deconstruction is more specific: it also seeks to destroy it in order to analyze its components and then rebuild it to create different meanings. Thus, a Post-structuralist approach will always yield multiple, irreconcilable readings.