HTML Giant ran a review of Jacques Derrida’s The Animal That Therefore I Am on Friday. A translation of Derrida’s 1997 lecture at the Cérisy conference titled “The Autobiographical Animal,” the book ruminates on the distinction between humans and animals. Derrida philosophizes through the eyes of his cat, who followed him into the bathroom each morning. He wondered what the cat saw and thought when presented with his body. “In his trademark elliptical, recursive, persistently deferring style, he raises this issue of being naked in front of that which we call animal, what it means to be naked, how that which we call animal cannot be naked, what it means to be seen by that which we call animal, and what it means for a human to see themselves in the eyes of that which we call animal.” (HTML Giant) The assertion that philosophers have always misinterpreted the ontological difference between man and animal serves as the backbone of the book.
In his review, Christopher Higgs writes, “For Derrida, the fact that we refer to all living creatures that are not human as “animals” is absurdly reductive. He makes a good point. Lumping together the cricket and the whale, the mountain lion and the parakeet, the giraffe and the marmot, seems lazy and dismissive, yet, as Derrida points out, this is exactly what philosophers from Aristotle to Heidegger are guilty of doing. And part of his project is to shine a light on this unexamined assumption.”
Along this vein of questioning on the distinction between human and animal, this week’s podcast of “This American Life” tells the story of Lucy, a chimpanzee that was adopted by an American couple, who raised her as a human. They treated her upbringing as an experiment in just how human an animal can become–with tragic results. The story is fascinating, heartbreaking, and thought-provoking. The story comes from WNYC’s Radiolab show.
HTML Giant ran a review of Jacques Derrida’s The Animal That Therefore I Am on Friday. A translation of Derrida’s 1997 lecture at the Cérisy conference titled “The Autobiographical Animal,” the book ruminates on the distinction between humans and animals. Derrida philosophizes … Full Story
Abraham Lincoln has remained a powerful and haunting icon of American history for nearly two centuries. Perhaps even more than his legacy of helping to end slavery and the Civil War, his violent death has cemented his place in the collective American consciousness as a hero, a veritable giant of leadership, grace, and integrity. Seth Grahame-Smith, author of 
George Washington chopped down a cherry tree, had wooden teeth, and wore a wig. He was the first President of the United States, his face is on the dollar bill, and he fought the English during the Revolutionary War. At least, these are the facts we are taught about Washington, the mythology that has grown around his name for the past three centuries. But what’s behind all of these legends?
Friday, February 12 not only marked what would have been Abraham Lincoln’s 201st birthday but also the start of the Winter 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. The United States has had a strong week, leading the medal count as of Sunday night. Wednesday was a particularly stellar showing for the US, with gold medals for Shani Davis in the men’s speedskating 1000 meters, Lindsey Vonn in women’s downhill alpine skiing, and Shaun White in the men’s snowboarding halfpipe. The weekend saw more victories for the United States, with golds for figure skater Evan Lysacek and skier Bode Miller, among others. 
Today we celebrate our founding fathers with President’s Day! Abraham Lincoln’s birthday is February 12–premier Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer’s new collection, 