Jacques Derrida

Are you [ever] afraid to write? Do you take the act of writing seriously as Jacques Derrida?

            I am not afraid to write as much as I am worried about how my writing is going to be perceived.  For example, I have no fears writing my opinions on a controversial subject, but I do worry that if I offend someone, they will make bizarre threats to me.  There are crazy people on the Internet and I am against publically blogging my personal opinions for this reason.  I don’t mind sharing my personal opinions in my writing with sane people, because I firmly believe in my values.  However, I am concerned about the repercussions from fanatics while discussing religious, economic, and political issues.  Similar to Jacques Derrida, I do not regret what I write.  I couldn’t care less if I said something you don’t agree with and you think of me as an arrogant snob; just don’t make threats to injure me or my family.  I am straight-shooter and will tell you exactly how I feel (depending on the given situation.  I refuse to throw people under the bus unless they deserve it).  Moreover, going back to the perception point, I have no fear writing an in-class essay, but I am concerned my professor will give me a less than satisfactory mark (anything lower than an “A”) if I don’t express the same viewpoint as him or her.

            I doubt anyone can take the act of writing as seriously as Jacques Derrida and I would be lying if I said I did.  I can honestly say that I have never awakened from a nap nor stayed awake during “nap time” questioning myself and worrying about offending people in my recent writings.  Once the writing is out of my hands, it is out of my mind until I get it back (if it is a graded piece).  However, if someone refutes a point that I have made, and they have successfully argued their point, I believe I am intelligent enough to revisit the issue.