America's Tolerance for French Radicalism

The publication of Francois Cusset's "French Theory" raises a series of fascinating questions concerning the trans-Atlantic transmission and circulation of ideas. Most important, it impels everyone to inquire why for a time French thought managed to flourish in American universities while French intellectuals rapidly abandoned the entire paradigm. During the 1980s, students and professors of literary theory fervently imbibed the classic texts of "French theory"--what came to be known on America as "poststructuralism." In this article, the author discusses the factors that accounts for French theory's warmer reception in America.