How did Jacques Derrida use deconstruction to challenge philosophical oppositions?

Jacques Derrida utilized deconstruction to challenge the binary and hierarchical oppositions—such as nature/culture, speech/writing, and mind/body—that have defined Western philosophy since antiquity.21

In these traditional frameworks, one term is typically privileged as primary or fundamental, while the other is relegated to a secondary or derivative status. Derrida’s method involved a close examination of texts to reveal internal tensions and contradictions where the "secondary" term is shown to be essential to the "primary" one.21

For example, while Western thought often prioritizes speech as an authentic presence over the "absent" nature of writing, Derrida argued that speech itself relies on the characteristics of writing—such as repeatability and the potential for misunderstanding—to function as language. Rather than simply inverting these hierarchies, Derrida sought to "displace" them, demonstrating that neither term is truly primary. He grounded this in the concept of différance, suggesting that meaning is never fully present but is instead endlessly deferred through an infinite play of linguistic differences.21