Jean-Claude Milner
Encyclopedia
Jean-Claude Milner is a linguist, philosopher and a French essayist. In particular, he is a specialist in the field of both linguistics (which he studied with Roland Barthes
) and psychoanalysis (through the teaching and friendship of Jacques Lacan
). Milner performed part of his studies in the United States at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
and that led to his French translation of Noam Chomsky
's "Aspects of Syntactic Theory" in 1971. This translation of Chomsky's work established the terminology in the French school of generative grammar
and contributed strongly to the reception of this theory in France. He is now a Professor at the University Paris Diderot
and an Alsatian
mother of Protestant tradition.
After studies in second year preparatory class for humanities during high school, Milner studied at both École Normale Supérieure
and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
. Not only was his education shaped by the thought and teaching of Louis Althusser
, it was influenced by his friendship with Jacques-Alain Miller
, the future son-in-law of Jacques Lacan
. Both Miller and Milner attended Lacan's seminars held at the ENS
and their friendship would be instrumental in the founding and direction of the Cahiers pour l’Analyse several years later.
Affiliated with the Maoist movement of proletarian Left
from 1968 to 1971, Milner would find his own political evolution through his association with Benny Lévy
(not to be confused with Bernard-Henri Lévy
). Finally of note, is the importance for Milner of his training and education under the tutelage of Roland Barthes
combined with a close reading of Roman Jakobson
.
After his initial association with Chomsky's linguistic theories, Milner's work took a different turn. His "Introduction to a Science of Language" (1989) melds a general linguistics theory that rests on a radical separation between sense and syntax (theory of syntactic positions) together with an epistemology combining contributions of Karl Popper
and Imre Lakatos
and was thus able to tackle a key epistemological problem of the scientific status of Lacan's theories. In this way, Milner followed upon the subsequent developments of Chomskyian theory though he did not adhere to the hypothesis of a biological justification for it defended by Chomsky.
Milner's later work, such as the English publication of For the Love of Language, has been called a "path-breaking reflection on the consequences of Lacan's theory for the study of language". Into the 21st century Milner is known, particularly in France, for his essays concerning anti-Semitism in European history and culture. For the past several years, he has held a seminar devoted to this theme at the Institut d’études levinassiennes in Paris.
As of 2010, Milner is Professor Emeritus of Linguistics at the Université de Paris VII.
French
Roland Barthes
Roland Gérard Barthes was a French literary theorist, philosopher, critic, and semiotician. Barthes' ideas explored a diverse range of fields and he influenced the development of schools of theory including structuralism, semiotics, existentialism, social theory, Marxism, anthropology and...
) and psychoanalysis (through the teaching and friendship of Jacques Lacan
Jacques Lacan
Jacques Marie Émile Lacan was a French psychoanalyst and psychiatrist who made prominent contributions to psychoanalysis and philosophy, and has been called "the most controversial psycho-analyst since Freud". Giving yearly seminars in Paris from 1953 to 1981, Lacan influenced France's...
). Milner performed part of his studies in the United States at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
and that led to his French translation of Noam Chomsky
Noam Chomsky
Avram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, and activist. He is an Institute Professor and Professor in the Department of Linguistics & Philosophy at MIT, where he has worked for over 50 years. Chomsky has been described as the "father of modern linguistics" and...
's "Aspects of Syntactic Theory" in 1971. This translation of Chomsky's work established the terminology in the French school of generative grammar
Generative grammar
In theoretical linguistics, generative grammar refers to a particular approach to the study of syntax. A generative grammar of a language attempts to give a set of rules that will correctly predict which combinations of words will form grammatical sentences...
and contributed strongly to the reception of this theory in France. He is now a Professor at the University Paris Diderot
Life and work
Born in Paris where he still lives, Milner is the son of an immigrant Jewish father from LithuaniaLithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
and an Alsatian
Alsace
Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
mother of Protestant tradition.
After studies in second year preparatory class for humanities during high school, Milner studied at both École Normale Supérieure
École Normale Supérieure
The École normale supérieure is one of the most prestigious French grandes écoles...
and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
. Not only was his education shaped by the thought and teaching of Louis Althusser
Louis Althusser
Louis Pierre Althusser was a French Marxist philosopher. He was born in Algeria and studied at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris, where he eventually became Professor of Philosophy....
, it was influenced by his friendship with Jacques-Alain Miller
Jacques-Alain Miller
Jacques-Alain Miller is a French academic. He is a Lacanian psychoanalyst.-Life and career:As a student at the École Normale Supérieure, he met his future father-in-law Jacques Lacan in 1964 while attending his seminars at the rue d'Ulm...
, the future son-in-law of Jacques Lacan
Jacques Lacan
Jacques Marie Émile Lacan was a French psychoanalyst and psychiatrist who made prominent contributions to psychoanalysis and philosophy, and has been called "the most controversial psycho-analyst since Freud". Giving yearly seminars in Paris from 1953 to 1981, Lacan influenced France's...
. Both Miller and Milner attended Lacan's seminars held at the ENS
Ens
Ens may refer to:*Ens , a village in the Dutch province of Flevoland*Ens, Hautes-Pyrénées, a town in France*Ens, Saskatchewan, a hamlet in CanadaENS may also refer to:*ENS Ltd, a London based PR agency that specializes in sport...
and their friendship would be instrumental in the founding and direction of the Cahiers pour l’Analyse several years later.
Affiliated with the Maoist movement of proletarian Left
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
from 1968 to 1971, Milner would find his own political evolution through his association with Benny Lévy
Benny Lévy
Benny Lévy was a philosopher, political activist and author. A political figure of May 1968 in France, he was the disciple and last personal secretary of Jean-Paul Sartre from 1974 to 1980....
(not to be confused with Bernard-Henri Lévy
Bernard-Henri Lévy
Bernard-Henri Lévy is a French public intellectual, philosopher and journalist. Often referred to today, in France, simply as BHL, he was one of the leaders of the "Nouveaux Philosophes" movement in 1976.-Early life:...
). Finally of note, is the importance for Milner of his training and education under the tutelage of Roland Barthes
Roland Barthes
Roland Gérard Barthes was a French literary theorist, philosopher, critic, and semiotician. Barthes' ideas explored a diverse range of fields and he influenced the development of schools of theory including structuralism, semiotics, existentialism, social theory, Marxism, anthropology and...
combined with a close reading of Roman Jakobson
Roman Jakobson
Roman Osipovich Jakobson was a Russian linguist and literary theorist.As a pioneer of the structural analysis of language, which became the dominant trend of twentieth-century linguistics, Jakobson was among the most influential linguists of the century...
.
After his initial association with Chomsky's linguistic theories, Milner's work took a different turn. His "Introduction to a Science of Language" (1989) melds a general linguistics theory that rests on a radical separation between sense and syntax (theory of syntactic positions) together with an epistemology combining contributions of Karl Popper
Karl Popper
Sir Karl Raimund Popper, CH FRS FBA was an Austro-British philosopher and a professor at the London School of Economics...
and Imre Lakatos
Imre Lakatos
Imre Lakatos was a Hungarian philosopher of mathematics and science, known for his thesis of the fallibility of mathematics and its 'methodology of proofs and refutations' in its pre-axiomatic stages of development, and also for introducing the concept of the 'research programme' in his...
and was thus able to tackle a key epistemological problem of the scientific status of Lacan's theories. In this way, Milner followed upon the subsequent developments of Chomskyian theory though he did not adhere to the hypothesis of a biological justification for it defended by Chomsky.
Milner's later work, such as the English publication of For the Love of Language, has been called a "path-breaking reflection on the consequences of Lacan's theory for the study of language". Into the 21st century Milner is known, particularly in France, for his essays concerning anti-Semitism in European history and culture. For the past several years, he has held a seminar devoted to this theme at the Institut d’études levinassiennes in Paris.
As of 2010, Milner is Professor Emeritus of Linguistics at the Université de Paris VII.
Selected publications
English- For The Love of Language, translated and introduced by Ann BanfieldAnn BanfieldAnn Banfield, a professor of English at the University of California, Berkeley.She has taught at Berkeley since 1975 and is a specialist in linguistics, critical theory and the use of philosophy as a cornerstone of modernism...
. Basingstoke: Palgrave-Macmillan, 1990. ISBN 0-312-03554-3 - "The Doctrine of Science", translated by Oliver FelthamOliver FelthamOliver Feltham is an Australian philosopher and translator working in Paris, France. He is known primarily for his English translations of Alain Badiou, most notably Badiou’s magnum opus Being and Event . Feltham's own writings are drawn from many of his research interests including Marxism,...
. Umbr(a): A Journal of the Unconscious, Science, and Truth. (2000), pp. 33–63. This is the second chapter of Milner's L’Œuvre claire : Lacan, la science, et la philosophie. - Slavoj ŽižekSlavoj ŽižekSlavoj Žižek is a Slovenian philosopher, critical theorist working in the traditions of Hegelianism, Marxism and Lacanian psychoanalysis. He has made contributions to political theory, film theory, and theoretical psychoanalysis....
(Ed.). Jacques Lacan: Critical Evaluations in Cultural Theory (4 Volumes). Volume One contains "The Doctrine of Science" (see above). Volume Two contains "Extracts from For The Love of Language", which is Chapters 5, 6, & 7 of For The Love of Language, pp. 98–127.
French
- Aspects de la theorie syntaxique: trad de l'anglais par jean-claude milner, Paris: Éditions du Seuil, 1971.
- Arguments linguistiques, Mame, 1973
- De la syntaxe à l’interprétation. Quantités, insultes, exclamations, Le Seuil, collection « Travaux linguistiques », 1978
- L’Amour de la langue, Le Seuil, collection « Connexions du Champ freudien », 1978
- Ordres et raisons de langue, Le Seuil, 1982
- Les Noms indistincts, Le Seuil, collection « Connexions du Champ freudien », 1983
- De l’école, le Seuil, 1984
- De l'inutilité des arbres en linguistique, Département de Recherches Linguistiques, Un. de Paris VII, coll. ERA 642, 1985
- Détections fictives, Le Seuil, collection « Fictions & Cie », 1985
- Introduction à un traitement du passif, Département de Recherches Linguistiques, Un. de Paris VII, coll. ERA 642, 1986 (rééd.)
- Dire le vers, (en collaboration avec François RegnaultFrançois RegnaultFrançois Regnault is a French philosopher, playwright and dramaturg. Also a university instructor and teacher, Regnault was maître de conférences at Paris VIII before his retirement...
), Le Seuil, 1987 - Introduction à une science du langage, Le Seuil, collection « Travaux linguistiques », 1989
- Constat, 1992
- Archéologie d’un échec : 1950-1993, Le Seuil, 1993
- L’Œuvre claire : Lacan, la science et la philosophie, Le Seuil, collection « L’Ordre philosophique », 1995
- « Les Dénis », dans Paroles à la bouche du présent. Le négationnisme, histoire ou politique ?, sous la direction de Natacha MichelNatacha MichelNatacha Michel is a French political activist, militant and writer, born in 1941. She has published a dozen novels and a growing body of literary criticism.Michel was program director at the College International de Philosophie...
, Éd. Al Dante, 1997 - Le Salaire de l’idéal, Le Seuil, 1997
- Le Triple du plaisir, Verdier, 1997
- Mallarmé au tombeau, Verdier, 1999
- Les penchants criminels de l'Europe démocratique, Verdier, 2003
- Existe-t-il une vie intellectuelle en France ?, Verdier, 2002
- Le Périple structural, Figures et paradigmes, Le Seuil, collection « La couleur des idées », 2002
- Constats, Gallimard, coll. Folio/Essais. (rassemble Constat, Le triple du plaisir, Mallarmé au tombeau)
- Le Pas philosophique de Roland Barthes, Verdier, 2003
- La politique des choses, Navarin éditeur, 2005.
- Le Juif de savoir, Grasset, 2007
- L'arrogance du présent. Regards sur une décennie, 1965-1975, Grasset, 2009
External links
- Jean-Claude Milner's Homepage at The Cahiers pour l'Analyse and Contemporary French Thought (website is in English)
- Jean-Claude Milner on the site of editions Greenfinch
- Interviews of Jean-Claude Milner
- "A very tense language", article of Philippe Lançon appeared in "LibérationLibérationLibération is a French daily newspaper founded in Paris by Jean-Paul Sartre and Serge July in 1973 in the wake of the protest movements of May 1968. Originally a leftist newspaper, it has undergone a number of shifts during the 1980s and 1990s...
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