Derrida: A Biography

The Territories of Deconstruction 1984–1986 361

overwork, excessive dispersal of activities, fatigue, desire to

keep some strength in reserve for another type of work, after

what is, after all, three years of service to the Collège.^15

Throughout this year, in spite of the success of many of its activi-
ties, the Collège International de Philosophie continued to be a
source of worries for Derrida. He found the administrative tasks
especially burdensome as the diffi culties with Faye were still unre-
solved, in spite of several attempts at a rapprochement. But, on a
deeper level, it was the very spirit of the CIPh that did not live up to
his wishes. As René Major puts it:

To begin with, Derrida was the life and soul of the Collège,

but he didn’t stay so for long. With Lyotard and a few other

prestigious organizers, he used to come to a great number of

the sessions. But quickly – even more quickly than for other

institutions – the CIPh was overtaken by – or fell back into –

shortcomings that we couldn’t tolerate in other contexts. We’d

dreamed of a freer, more open, more international system than

the one that soon imposed itself.^16

When the Collège celebrated its twentieth birthday, Derrida did
not hesitate to ask, forthrightly, whether it had done any more than
just ‘survive’. Had the CIPh that had been kept going and grown the
one they had dreamed of? ‘We must always try to know what price
we pay for our continual existence, and what are the limits of the
acceptable concessions or compromises or surrenders.’^17 Over and
above theoretical arguments, we should not forget that Derrida’s
own temperament played a part in this rapid move away from the
Collège, which was repeated in the case of several other projects.

I loved the Collège a great deal, since I was one of those who

had dreamed of it and founded it. But, very soon, I couldn’t stay

in the Collège any longer. First, being director is too big a job.

And even in general, I’m not enough of a community person

to put up with cliques. So I quickly withdrew, while retaining

my liking, my solidarity, my friendship for the Collège and for

many of its members. But, as a space, it didn’t suit me at all.^18

This underlying reluctance did not, however, stop Derrida demon-
strating his solidarity with the Collège International de Philosophie
every time it experienced diffi culties or its very existence was
threatened.

In Derrida’s case, as in many others, the United States acted as a
hub for internationalization. Translations of his works, initially