Arche-writing

Concept in the philosophy of language

In the philosophy of language, "Arche-writing" is a concept introduced by French philosopher Jacques Derrida which refers to an abstract kind of writing that precedes both speech and actual writing. In the West, phonetic writing was considered as a secondary imitation of speech, a poor copy of the immediate living act of speech. Arche-writing is, in a sense, language, in that it is already there before we use it, it already has a pregiven, yet malleable, structure/genesis, which is a semi-fixed set-up of different words and syntax. This fixedness is the writing to which Derrida refers; such a 'writing' can even be seen in cultures that do not employ writing, it could be seen in notches on a rope or barrel, fixed customs, or placements around the living areas.

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