I 「主体」のパラドックスと「遅れ」の意識

近代の時間意識をめぐる一考察

抄録

　On the ideal of the modern society the individual must be the subject. But this ideal conceives a paradox in itself. For the one who is trying to be a subject isn't a subject yet. The subject as the ideal makes itself impossible. Modern subjects are aware of this fact. They always suspect that they aren't subject yet and that they are behind the subject. So they try to make up for this delay. This is the motive force of a modern subject's forward movement.
　We think this consciousness of delay is the modern society's time consciousness.The modern society aims at the future and is progressing incessantly. So, if we are going to overcome the modern, we must overcome this consciousness. To put it in another way, we must overcome the subject as the modern ideal.
　This problem is not only for individuals but for nation-states. The nation-state is also the subject which is trying to be a subject. So we'll think of this problem as the nation-state's one.
　Generally speaking, eastern nation-states are compelled to be conscious of delay, because they are far in the rear of western nations and, in addition to this, because they can become the subject (nation-states) only by means of resistance to the western's invasion. But according to Yoshimi Takeuchi's thesis ('What is modernity?'), western nation-states also have the consciousness of delay. Why can we think so? Because western nation-states couldn't be conceived of their subjectivity and progress without conquering the eastern and confirming the eastern's delay. Historically, the western's invasion of the eastern tells us that the western nation-states suspect they aren't subject yet.
　How can we escape these paradoxes of the subject? Takeuchi proposes dual strategies from the eastern's point of view. First, they must be resistant to the western's invasion. Second, they must be resistant to the eastern's subjectification.Anyway, we must deconstruct the subject.