5 At the Frontiers of the Institution 1991–1992
At the beginning of 1991, Seuil published in its series ‘Les
Contemporains’ the book Jacques Derrida, by Derrida and
Geoff rey Bennington. This would long remain the best introduc-
tion to Derrida’s work. Derrida’s contribution to the book did not
consist merely in ‘Circumfession’. He was also the main author
of the part called ‘The law of the genre’, which, for many years,
would constitute the most complete chronology, together with
several photos. ‘Even if I signed the biographical parts,’ explains
Bennington, ‘he actually wrote most of it. Denis Roche insisted
on their being factual elements, but neither Derrida nor I wanted
anything resembling a traditional biography. The ellipses are his.
I worked on the basis of the material that he was prepared to give
me.’^1 While there are several remarks about Derrida’s private life,
his family, childhood, and youth, including the ‘serious depres-
sive episode’ in Le Mans, the chronology becomes purely factual
once he starts publishing: ‘I have selected only the public “deeds”,
i.e. overexposed ones, or, as they say, “objectively verifi able” on
the basis of accessible documents. Everyone knows that these are
not always the most signifi cant, the most interesting, or the most
determining.’ Most of these biographical markers, Bennington
emphasizes, were communicated to him ‘by J.D. in a rather dis-
continuous or aleatory way [.. .] with an enthusiasm that was, let’s
say, uneven.’^2
On publication, the book earned Derrida emotional letters from
several friends of his youth. Continuing to call him ‘Jackie’, ‘so as to
go against the current of the offi cial “Jacques” ’, Jean Bellemin-Noël
told him he had read his text with ‘tears of intellectual emotion’.
‘Circumfession’ had made him remember a ‘certain form of pres-
ence’ of Jackie in his life, ‘preserved, as if outside of time’. ‘I was
really very moved by all that. Surprised: attacked, but from on high;
and obliged, to keep a brave face on things, to look up.’^3 Other com-
panions of Derrida’s younger years, such as Robert Abirached and
Pierre Foucher, felt the same thing.