The New Jersey Institute of Technology's
Electronic Theses & Dissertations Project

Title:	Indifférance
Author:	Pohorylo, John F.
View Online:	njit-etd1998-014 (94 pages ~ 6.6 MB pdf)
Department:	School of Architecture
Degree:	Master of Architecture
Program:	Architecture
Document Type:	Thesis
Advisory Committee:	Celik, Zeynep (Committee chair) Franck, Karen A. (Committee member) Wall, Donald (Committee member)
Date:	1998-05
Keywords:	Deconstructivism
Availability:	Unrestricted
Abstract:	The main intention of this thesis is to wrestle Derrida's notion of différance from an endless free-play of signification into some sense of boundedness, and to release meaning, knowledge and understanding from its relentless grasp. In achieving this goal, an entirely new field of "value" and "Quality" based discourse would open up within applied schismatic architectural theory. Robert Pirsig offers a strong alternative to différance with his discourse on the Metaphysics of Quality, wherein he defines "Quality" as a pre-intellectual reality. This pre-intellectual reality, which I call "indifférance", is made up of the lenses of inorganic, organic and social Quality that effect the intellectual Quality that ultimately interprets each experience that we encounter. "Indifférance", marks a small fissure in the armour of difference overlooked by Derrida, which defines a whole new avenue of metaphysical discourse that applied schismatic architectural theorists can explore further.