DERRIDA AND HUSSERL ON TIME

LUKE FISCHER

University of Sydney

Abstract. In this essay I take issue with Derrida's interpretation of Husserl's phe-
nomenology of intemal time-consciousness in Speech and Phenomena. Derrida's
critique of Husserl's phenomenology of time also forms the basis for what Derrida
regards to be an undermining of phenomenological philosophy itself. After first
disagreeing with Derrida's interpretation of Husserl's understanding of time I proceed
to object to his „undermining" of phenomenology. I attempt to illustrate that his
critique of phenomenology is unconvincing.

I.

Derrida's Speech and Phenomena is primarily a critique of Husserl's theo-

ry of signs as this is elaborated in Logical Investigations; at least this is
what SP ostensibly claims to be.' Derrida suggests that essential distinc-
tions are made in this early text of Husserl's that determine, though perhaps
in a concealed manner, much of his later philosophical work (Derrida 1973,
pp. 3-5). However, SP claims to be much more than this; we are given to
think, by the author, that a refutation, or at least a problematisation of the
possibility of phenomenology is demonstrated. This is obviously no small
claim - a refutation of arguably the most influential European philosophy
of the twentieth century. As Natalie Alexander points out, Derrida's whole
demonstration hinges on the fifth chapter of SP, which supposedly focuses
on Husserl's phenomenology of intemal time-consciousness (Alexander 1995,
p. 124). It is with this chapter that we shall primarily concern ourselves.

I will refer to Jacques Derrida's Speech and Phenomena as SP.

FORUM PHILOSOPHICUM 12 (2007), pp. 345-357

346 LUKE FISCHER

Derrida claims, in SP, to be giving a critique of phenomenology's cen-

tral concepts, thus rendering them problematic; however, anyone familiar
with phenomenological thought knows that phenomenology is not so much
a system or body of concepts as a particular way of doing philosophy. Phe-
nomenology is essentially a method that claims to ground its insights in the
„things themselves". To problematise phenomenology is to problematise
a method, a way of thinking, which distances itself from „ungrounded spec-
ulations".
Any critique of a thinker (in this case Husserl) involves a presentation
of the views of the thinker in question. Critique and refutation of another's
thoughts always requires that one first present the other's thoughts in order
to then demonstrate their failings or falsities. When it comes to interpreting
philosophical texts we all know that there is much room for interpretation;
it would be hard to state that there is ever a definitive interpretation of any
text; after all, this interpretation would itself be open to differences in inter-
pretations etc. Transparency of meaning may be an ideal, for most writers,
but there is always room for different angles on a text, different under-
standings of central terms etc. However, despite this essential character of
texts in general, it is usually possible for interpreters to come to some agree-
ment concerning the basic concepts of a thinker. For instance, if someone
put forth the view that Being and Time is a work of science fiction most
people (or anyone who has read Being and Time) would disagree. Hence,
there is a degree of (mis)interpretation which we can positively regard as
mis-representation. In this essay I am essentially going to argue that Derr-
ida provides a caricature of Husserl's thoughts concerning internal time-
consciousness; hence, the Husserl he claims to present, to criticize, and
then to supersede in his thinking of différance, is essentially his own fabri-
cation or mis-representation. However, even though this may be the case
there is still the possibility that some of Derrida's criticisms of phenome-
nology will hold. Concerning the latter possibility I will attempt to show
that Derrrida's thought is essentially self-refuting. I will argue that phe-
nomenology's most definitive self-articulation in Husserl's „principle of
principles" is essentially irrefutable. Denying this principle amounts to a self-
undermining scepticism.
Derrida places much weight on the fact that phenomenology does not
have its own specific language; it must communicate itself in German, En-
glish, French etc., languages imbued with a specific manner of conceptual-
izing the world, and a particular metaphysical history. In view of this it is
surprising that Derrida does not take heed of the one central directive given
 DERRIDA AND HUSSERL ON TIME 347

concerning the language of phenomenology^ Phenomenological language

claims to be a description arising out of an evident perception of the phe-
nomenon under discussion; phenomenological thought claims to have its
source in a reflective grasp of the phenomenon thematized.
We shall give a particular illustration of the character of phenomeno-
logical thought through presenting an analogy. If someone says to me: „there
is a shovel in the shed", the truth or falsity of the statement can only be
determined by going and looking to see if there is actually a shovel in the
shed. Moreover, suppose I do not know what a shovel is. Attempting to
relieve me of my ignorance the person claiming that there is a shovel in the
shed attempts to describe, as best they can, what a shovel looks like. I then
go to the shed and look for the thing which matches, to some degree, what
I have imagined on the basis of the description given. If I did not go to the
shed I would neither determine the truth or falsity of the statement nor would
I even really know what was meant by the word „shovel". Having only the
vague image I could only infer the meaning on the basis of the verbal de-
scription (think how difficult it is to convey the looks of a person to some-
one who has not met the person being described). Analogously, „phenom-
enological language", to be understood, requires that one bring the phe-
nomenon in question into one's reflective regard and the truth or falsity of
a „phenomenological claim" can also only be validated on this basis - by
seeing whether what the language seems to be claiming matches up with
what one reflectively beholds concerning the phenomenon in question.
Derrida does not read Husserl in a phenomenological manner and there-
fore misconstrues what is being stated. Because of this his criticisms for the
most part show themselves to be irrelevant or invalid.
Chapter 5 oiSP begins with the following: „The force of this demonstra-
tion [Husserl's demonstration] presupposes the instant as a point, the identi-
ty of experience instantaneously present to itself." (Derrida 1973, p. 60).
This is already a distortion of Husserl's conception. Firstly, when Hus-
serl speaks ofthe temporal instant he frequently refers to it as the boundary
point of a sequence of retentions (Husserl 1964, p. 95). Husserl's concept
of „retention" is, in the first instance, an attempt to describe and account for
the fact that when I hear a melody, for instance, I am conscious of the hav-
ing-been of tones which are no longer sounding. The very perception of
a sequence of notes requires this; if the tones simply disappeared out of

' Derrida, in SP, refers again and again to the problem of a phenomenological language.
348 LUKE FISCHER

existence as soon as they ceased to sound there would be no possibility for

me to be conscious of the developing melody or of any succession of notes.
Consciousness would then have to be viewed as a light continuously switch-
ing on and off. If consciousness did have this character then we could have
no awareness of any kind of temporal continuity, duration or succession.
The now-point, or present instant, as it appears in Husserl's text refers to
the fact that new tones are continually sounding. In terms of the sensation-
content I am only given the now but I also have, necessarily, the series of
retentions flowing-off, and the further away from the now-point they are -
the having-been of the previously sounding tones - the more they fade out
of my consciousness. The now-point for Husserl is always only the bound-
ary of a series of retentions, and I am never aware of a now-content with-
out it having a trail of retentions (Husserl 1964, pp. 92-95). Derrida, at
certain points shows that he recognizes this, but he nevertheless affirms
that Husserl's description of time-consciousness is governed by a notion of
instantaneous punctuality.
On the succeeding page of the text Derrida acknowledges that in Hus-
serl's view temporal-consciousness is consciousness of a temporal spread
but he then states: „This spread is nonetheless thought and described on the
basis ofthe now as point, as a „source-point"." (Derrida 1973, p. 60).
When Husserl refers to the now as a „source point" he is, for the most
part, referring to the beginning of the immanent existence of a temporal
object such as the first sounding note of a melody; he is not referring to just
any now (Husserl 1964, p. 50). We say, for instance, that any piece of mu-
sic has its first note and last note; the whole piece is this temporally extend-
ed whole. Derrida goes on to describe the „source-point", in this sense, as
an „absolute beginning", implying that nothing comes before (Derrida 1973,
p. 60).
This shows Derrida's lack of attention to what, phenomenologically, is
being described, and specifically to Husserl's distinctions between the dif-
ferent strata of consciousness. With reference to these strata, Husserl refers
to the absolute fiux, or absolute subjectivity, within which any immanent
temporal object is constituted; any moment is only a moment within the
fiux and is not therefore self-subsistent (Husserl 1964, pp. 149-155). I think
it is necessary to bring into view the types of phenomena to which Husserl
is referring. Let us take the example of a bird in fiight. Suppose I am stand-
ing at the top of a valley and I suddenly see a black bird wing its way on
a particular fiight path into the valley. The first moment at which the bird
enters my vision could be said to be the „source-point" and it seems com-
 DERRIDA AND HUSSERL ON TIME 349

pletely unproblematic to state that a new sensation has entered my field of

vision. However, united with this are apprehensional characteristics; I do
not see a black shape moving in the air (and even if I could only make out
„a black moving shape" this is still an apprehension) I see a gliding bird;
I see the changing movements of a bird. Perception always involves appre-
hension for Husserl; it is these apprehensions in their unity with sensation
(even sensation-contents involve a conceptual content - 1 see „black" or
„red") which mark out or constitute the immanent unity of the temporally
apprehended object. The immanent temporal object in this instance fades
gradually out of retentive awareness just after the bird disappears from
sight or when I look away to another object - in which case another imma-
nent temporal unity is constituted. As a phenomenological description of
the nature of the „source-point" and the running-off of the temporal object
Husserl's concepts seem completely accurate, hence I cannot see Derrida's
problem with the concept of the „source-point". Perhaps it is due to the fact
that he thitiks any consciousness of identity involves an awareness of dif-
ference. However, Husserl is aware that consciousness of a now is always
an awareness of a difference - temporal and apprehensional; the now is
always relative to retentional modifications (Derrida 1973, pp. 92-93).

II.

Derrida continues his discussion by pointing to Husserl's statement that the

now is a „form that persists through continuous change of matter." (Derrida
1973, p. 62).
Derrida then states:
Moreover, within philosophy there is no possible objection concerning this priv-
ilege of the present-now; it defines the very element of philosophical thought, it
is evidence itself, conscious thought itself, it governs every possible concept of
truth and sense. No sooner do we question this privilege than we begin to get at
the core of consciousness itself from a region that lies elsewhere than philoso-
phy, a procedure that would remove every possible security and ground from
discourse (Derrida 1973, p. 62).
The above passage sounds very profound. Derrida is going to lead us to
a kind of thinking that moves beyond evidence. But this impressive rheto-
ric is actually self-refuting. Firstly, is Derrida suggesting that we forego
„conscious thought", as if „unconscious thought" would be the move be-

Forum... - 10
350 LUKE FISCHER

yond philosophy? Moreover, the above suggests that Husserl is stuck with
the notion of the now as something purely punctual; however, Husserl is
aware that many judgments, for instance, require a complex line of reten-
tions; this is in complete opposition to any atomistic concept of the now
(Husserl 1964, pp. 182-188). For instance, the stages of a mathematical
proof require the retention of previous stages - these must be kept in mind
so that I can come to the next judgment. Another good example is the act of
reading a text. A sentence takes time to read, the meaning is not grasped till
the end of the sentence. Each word one reads requires the retention of what
has already been read and a protention to be fulfilled by the following words;
each word in turn modifies the meaning of the whole. However, under-
standing a sentence also requires that I retain what has already been under-
stood. Husserl is aware of these structures and Derrida's reading of Husserl
as committed to an atomistic conception of the now is completely mislead-
ing. We can state the following concerning the issue of evidence. To deny
the primacy of evidence is to relegate oneself to meaninglessness. Is not
Derrida trying to make something evident to us concerning Husserl's
thought? AH understanding involves a kind of evidence. Derrida claims to
be uncovering the shifting ground of discourse. Is this evident to him? Is
the shifting ground of discourse evident to Derrida? We are not denying
that it might be, but if it is then Derrida's discourse operates within the
sphere of evidence. To deny the primacy of evidence is to affirm skepti-
cism, an ancient metaphysical standpoint, and a self-refuting one at that.
Why would Derrida write if he did not believe in the possibility of others
understanding him, thus of his thought becoming evident for the reader?
Derrida goes on to state that what is at stake is the privilege of the present.
In relation to this he states: „This conflict, necessarily unlike any other, is
between philosophy, which is always a philosophy of presence, and
a meditation on nonpresence..." (Derrida 1973, p. 63).
Is Derridean thinking a meditation on the non-presence of non-pres-
ence? Or is it a meditation on the presence of non-presence? If it is the
former, if there is no evidence for the being of non-presence why would the
thought occur to one, and if it did why would it not be just a fantasy unwor-
thy of thought? We presume that Derrida has reasons, or insights or at least
intimations concerning the need for a meditation on non-presence. Howev-
er, this means that there is evidence for non-presence, non-presence is some-
thing th&t presences in Derrida's thinking. With this we have answered our
second question above; the presence of non-presence reinstates the prima-
cy of evidence. More generally, to further emphasize our statements con-
 DERRIDA AND HUSSERL ON TIME 351

ceming evidence; to show the lack of primacy of evidence would require

that this lack become evident; but this again would be evidence. Although
in many respects Derrida is self-reflective in his way of writing and think-
ing, self-canceling statements such as the above show that he has not thought
the content of his thoughts against their very character as thoughts. Derri-
da's statements are akin to the following well-known philosophical exam-
ples of self-canceling statements:
1) There is no such thing as truth.
2) All generalizations are wrong.
Following his self-refuting statements concerning evidence Derrida re-
fers to Husserl's denial of the possibility of an unconscious content. It is
true that Husserl states this in his early lectures on internal time-conscious-
ness, but this is not true of Husserl's later views. In later elaborations of his
phenomenology of time-consciousness Husserl mentions the possibility of
an unconscious content (Husserl 1964, pp. 393-394; Seehohm 1995,
pp. 190-192). However, this need not concern us here.
After ascribing an atomistic concept of the present to Husserl and link-
ing this to the idea of evidence (also described as implying the now as
a pure instant) Derrida goes on to show that actually Husserl does not hold
a notion of the now as something instantaneous. In relation to this Derrida
states that „one sees quickly that the presence of the perceived present can
appear as such only inasmuch as it is continuously compounded with
a nonpresence and nonperception, with primary memory and expectation
(retention and protention) (Derrida 1973, p. 64). Here, as elsewhere, Derr-
ida fails to appreciate the context of Husserl's statements, which makes,
clear the specific meaning being stated. Derrida quotes the following from
Husserl's lectures on time-consciousness:
[l]f we call perception the act in which all „origination" lies, which constitutes
originarily, then primary remembrance is perception. For only in primary re-
membrance do we see what is past; only in it is the past constituted, i.e., not in
a representative but in a presentative way (Derrida 1973, p. 64).
This is one of a string of related quotations from Husserl's Lectures on the
Phenomenology of Internal Time-Consciousness that Derrida turns to. Al-
exander points out that the order in which Derrida quotes Husserl is almost
the reverse of the order of their appearance in the text; she suggests that
Husserl is progressively building a more complex picture and that these
quotations must be understood within this context (Alexander 1995,
pp. 137-138). We shall illustrate to what extent this is the case.
352 LUKE FISCHER

The next quotation from Husserl in SP is the following:

If we now relate what has been said about perception to the differences of the
givenness with which temporal Objects make their appearance, then the antith-
esis of perception is primary rememberance, which appears here, and primary
expectation (retention and protention), whereby perception and non-perception
continually pass over into one another (Derrida 1973, p. 65).
Derrida then quotes Husserl again. These quotations all serve, for Derrida,
to show that there is a kind of tension between thinking of retention as
perception (something present) and retention as non-perception (according
to Derrida absence or non-evidence).
Derrida states:
The difference between retention and reproduction, between primary and sec-
ondary memory, is not the radical difference Husserl wanted between percep-
tion and nonperception; it is rather a difference between two modifications of
nonperception (Derrida 1973, p. 65).
Let us now illustrate why this is a misunderstanding or misrepresentation
of Husserl. In the first quotation above Husserl speaks of originary con-
sciousness. In this sense retention differs from reproductive consciousness
and can therefore be called perception. Why is this the case? The reason
Husserl affirms this difference seems fairly unproblematic. How could we
recollect something that we experienced or saw if we had not first per-
ceived it? If recollection of something did not involve an interior represen-
tation of something perceived (or thought or believed) , i.e. at one time
presented , then it would be no different from a mere fantasy, a fiction.
I simply could not recollect the manner in which the bird glided into the
valley -the bird I saw yesterday - if I had not first seen the bird glide into
the valley. However, this originary perception necessarily involves reten-
tion; any perception of movement across time requires retention. I could
not be aware ofthe bird's gliding deeper into the valley if, at the point when
the bird is deeper in the valley, I did not preserve a sense for where it was
a moment ago and the moment before that etc. If the bird is gliding in a curve
I have a remembrance of the curve at the point of the flowing now; I see
the bird's path of flight. Since this seeing would be impossible without
retention, retention can be called perception. It differs from secondary re-
membrance - recollection and memory etc. - because reproductive con-
sciousness in principle requires an originary perception. We can now turn
to the second quotation. If we consider the notion of perception in a narrower
 DERRIDA AND HUSSERL ON TIME 353

sense we shall see why retention might be the antithesis of perception. The
example of a melody will provide perhaps the clearest illustration. Let us
consider the first note of a melody; let us imagine the point at which the
tone first reaches my hearing - the very instant it first sounds or first ar-
rives in consciousness. There is a sense in which one could call this a pure
perception or a consciousness of the pure now. However, as Husserl notes,
to speak in this way is, in a sense, to speak of an abstraction, a mere ideal
limit. But if this is the case then why speak of it at all? This follows from
the fact that if we are to speak of retention we implicitly assume something
that was first given so as to be able to pass over into retention. It implies
something first perceived in the now and from then retained - a move from
sensation to retention; hence, in principle, to be retained something must
first be given in the form of the now. Although the now-form always im-
plies and relates to retention and protention one can see how perception in
the strictest sense can only be such a pure now. Hence, in this sense, it
makes perfect sense to speak of retention as the antithesis to perception;
however, it also makes perfect sense to point out that retention is a form of
originary givenness because without it no immanent temporal object could
be constituted, or be. I would not even to be able to state with certainty that
I am now sitting in front of a computer if it were not for retention. We can
also see, in the sense in which reproductive consciousness is dependent
upon retentional consciousness, the necessity for the important distinction
between them.
Derrida claims that an uneasiness that can be detected in Husserl's de-
sire to keep retention in the realm of primordiality and contrast it, to such
a degree, with secondary remembrance (Derrida 1973, pp. 66-67). We do
not regard this as stemming from any uneasiness, but as an attempt to re-
main true to the manner in which temporal phenomena show themselves.
Derrida suggests that a comparison of (a) and (b) reveals a tension in Hus-
serl's thought:
(a) The living now is constituted as the absolute perceptual source only in a state
of continuity with retention taken as nonperception...(b) The souree of certi-
tude in general is the primordial character of the living now; it is necessary
therefore to keep retention in the sphere of primordial certitude and to shift the
frontier between the primordial and the nonprimordial... (Derrida 1973, p. 67).
In responding to (b) we can dissolve this „apparent" tension. Derrida im-
plies that Husserl keeps retention in the sphere of the primordial because
phenomenology would collapse if the evidence of the „living now" were
354 LUKE FISCHER

undermined (Derrida 1973, p. 66). We read Husserl differently. We can,

firstly, approach this issue from a more Kantian perspective. The very con-
dition of the possibility of experience requires that there be an evidence-
giving retention. Without retention we would simply not be able to have
the most basic experiences and perceptions. The perception of duration, or
succession, for example, would simply be impossible and surely no one
would doubt that we have an awareness of succession. Even from a practical
point of view retention, and protention, prove to be absolutely necessary.
I would not even be capable of crossing a road; without retention and pro-
tention, I would not be able to cognize the fact that cars are progressively
approaching me. A second argument, more in line with the general spirit of
Husserl's phenomenology than a Kantian-like transcendental idealist argu-
ment concerning the conditions of the possibility of experience, is based on
a more directly phenomenological grasp of temporal phenomena. Let us
imagine that I am hearing „ringing bells"; on reflecting on such an experi-
ence I find that my awareness is of enduring tones and my awareness is
most clear and fresh around the now-phase of the ringing tones - suggest-
ing the continuity of shading back from the now-point. Hence, the primor-
dial character of retention is something which is clearly phenomenologi-
cally ascertainable. The shift between the primordial and the non-primordi-
al, from the polarity between perception in the idealized (abstractive) sense
and retention, to perception in a broader sense (retention, primal impres-
sion, protention) and re-presentation, follows from the numerous arguments
we have given.
From this point on, on the basis of mis-representations and mis-concep-
tions of Husserl's phenomenology of time-consciousness Derrida introduces
his famous concepts, or, rather, „non-concepts", of the „trace" and „dif-
férance" (Derrida 1973, pp. 67-104). It is of interest to note here that Hus-
serl already, in a certain sense, had a concept of „différance". For instance,
he talks of the pure now as being in a relation of difference to the modifica-
tions of retention; there is a contrast of the ever emerging new sensation-
content united with apprehensional characters in the flowing now with the
continual modification of primal sensation into retention; this difference is
constitutive of the identity of the ever-emerging new-contents (Husserl 1964,
p. 91). Hence, self-identity is here constituted by a difference. Although
this is not identical to Derrida's notion of différance it further illustrates the
fact that Husserl does not have a crude notion of the self-identity of the
instant.
 DERRIDA AND HUSSERL ON TIME 355

III.

We have illustrated some of the many problems with Derrida's account of

Husserl. However, we may still ask whether Derrida has any arguments,
aside from the already described mis-representation of Husserl's thought,
which threaten the very possibility of phenomenology. If anything could
serve this purpose it would be his stress on the primacy of différance. In
this respect, the most crucial aspect of Derrida's notion of différance is its
questioning of the legitimacy of phenomenological reflection. Phenome-
nology claims to be the science of lived experience. However, the grasping
of something phenomenologically always has a reflective character. For
instance, earlier I asked the reader to imagine the flight of a bird in order to
illustrate essential things concerning the structure of the „living percep-
tion" of such a phenomenon. However, none of us were actually seeing
a bird fly into a valley while we reflected on the character of an actual
seeing. One might argue, from a Derridean perspective, that this example
reveals the primordiality of différance. We are neither in the same time nor
in the same mode of consciousness as the event itself, yet we are claiming
implicitly that a reflective consciousness can grasp the essential structures
of the living perception of a transcendent object. It is this absence, which
stands between phenomenological practice and the „things themselves",
that is really at the heart of Derrida's critique of phenomenology. However,
this becomes a problem only if we agree that „différance" justifles a certain
sort of skepticism. Husserl met similar objections in his own day and re-
sponded to them; we can turn to one such response, in Ideas I, in order to
evaluate whether an objection such as Derrida brings actually poses a threat
to phenomenology. We shall turn to two quotations from Watt, dealing with
issues which Husserl addresses in Ideas I and which we claim to be essen-
tially the same as Derrida's questioning of the possibility of phenomenolo-
gy. Watt states:

each of us lives mentally. Only he does not know it. And if he were to know it,
how can he know that his mental living is in actuality as he thinks it is? (...) Is
a phenomenology possible and in which sense? (Husserl 1998, p. 183).
We think this is essentially the same concern as Derrida's in that Derrida
believes that because of the „différance" separating „lived experiences"
from reflective awareness we can never be sure we are grasping the very
character of „lived experiences". Husserl, in relation to another statement,
similar in essence to the statement by Watt quoted above, asks whether it is
356 LUKE FISCHER

too much to State that just a moment ago I was attending to this book (Hus-
serl 1998, p. 185). Clearly such a.reflective awareness is, for any sound-
minded, normally functioning human mind, so self-evident that it would
simply be foolish to doubt it. The specific statement by Watt that Husserl
responds to in this way is the following: „psychology must make it clear
that in the case of self-observation the relation to something objective per-
taining to mental processes changes." (Husserl 1998, p. 185).
Husserl points out that such statements make evident a certain self-re-
futing skepticism. This is the kind of skepticism that we have ascribed to
Derrida. For does not the claim that something changes in the transition
from perception to reflection itself presuppose an access to this change or
difference.
Husserl states:
All genuine skepticism of whatever kind and persuasion is indicated by the
essentially necessary countersense that, in its argumentations, it implicitly pre-
supposes as conditions of the possibility of its validity precisely what it denies
in its theses. (Husserl 1998, p. 185).
We already drew attention to Derrida's skepticism, already in discussing
his notions of nonpresence and „non-evidence". However, we believe that
our criticism of his skepticism holds also for his claims concerning the
priority of „différance" and his afflrmation of „absence". Does not the claim
concerning the priority of „absence" and „différance" presuppose that one
has caught sight of the facticity of absence? If this is the case then, through
the very fact of showing that „différance" is more basic than presence one
is in fact demonstrating the evidence of „différance". If „différance" is ev-
ident then consciousness is not ruled primarily by „différance", but tran-
scends this difference. Hence, contrary to Derrida's claim that „différance"
provides the condition of the possibility of their being a transcendental sub-
ject (Husserl 1998, p. 185), we reafflrm the priority of cognition - of the
acts of transcendental subjectivity.
We have demonstrated that Derrida presents an extremely distorted pic-
ture of Husserl's thoughts concerning time-consciousness and have shown
that, far from refuting the possibility of a phenomenological philosophy,
Derrida's thought, in SP, turns out to be a self-canceling skepticism. Let us
end with an afflrmation of phenomenology's unshakable „principle of prin-
ciples":
No conceivable theory can make us err with regard to the principle of princi-
ples: that every originary presentive intuition is a legitimizing source of cogni-
 DERRIDA AND HUSSERL ON TIME 357

tion, that everything originarily (so to speak, in its "personal" actuality) offered
to us in "intuition" is to be accepted simply as what it is presented as being, but
also only within the limits in which it is presented there (Husserl 1998, p. 185).

References

Alexander, N., 1995, "The Hollow Deconstruction of Time", in W.R. McKenna,

J.c. Evans (eds.), Derrida and Phenomenology, Dordrecht: Kluwer:
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