How is logocentrism connected to the preference for speech over writing in Derrida’s thought?

In the philosophy of Jacques Derrida, the preference for speech over writing is a central manifestation of logocentrism—the pervasive Western assumption that a realm of "truth" or "meaning" exists independently of linguistic representation.

Logocentrism relies on what Derrida calls the "metaphysics of presence," which prioritizes concepts like essence, origin, and identity. Within this framework, speech is idealized as a more authentic form of language because it suggests that a speaker’s intentions are immediately "present" to the listener. Conversely, writing is viewed as secondary, derivative, and "absent," as it removes the author from the immediate context of communication, thereby increasing the risk of misunderstanding.

Derrida challenges this hierarchy by arguing that speech itself functions through the same mechanisms of "absence" and "difference" traditionally attributed to writing. He contends that meaning is never fully present but is instead endlessly deferred through a play of linguistic differences, a process he termed différance. By demonstrating that speech relies on these same structural features, Derrida displaces the binary opposition, showing that neither term is truly primary.1