deconstructionism

[ dee-kuhn-struhk-shuh-niz-uhm ]

noun

1. the theory or principles of a philosophical and critical movement that questions all traditional assumptions about the ability of language to represent reality and emphasizes that a text has no stable reference or meaning.
2. the theory or principles of a critical movement that questions forms, hierarchies, and assumptions that are thought to be fixed because of the language traditionally used to describe those forms, hierarchies, and assumptions.

Other Words From

• de·con·struc·tion·ist adjective noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of deconstructionism¹

First recorded in 1975–80

Example Sentences

The teacher was explaining how critical race theory works, Byard said, as one of several theories studied including structuralism, deconstructionism and feminism.

From Washington Post

"Other theories such as structuralism, deconstructionism, and feminism were also shared."

From Fox News

In 1966, he organized an academic conference that introduced Jacques Derrida and other French critics to the nation, along with the new academic concept of deconstructionism.

From Washington Post

With other colleagues, he resisted diversifying the English department’s faculty and curriculum, according to the Columbia notice, and generally opposed emerging literary schools such as feminism, deconstructionism and post-colonialism.

From Washington Post

They spent their undergraduate years focusing on deconstructionism, not databases, or poli-sci, not programming.

From Seattle Times