A meta-archaeogenealogy of the foucauldian notion of monument

constitution and implications for discursive studies

Abstract

Starting from a gap identified in exegetical texts and manuals that propose to present Foucault's theories, that is, the non-existent or the very brief mention of the notion of monument as drafted by the philosopher, we intend to contribute to a better intelligibility of this concept by a bibliographical research. Therefore, we report an investigation into the conditions of emergence and functioning of this notion within the scope of archaeogenealogy proposed by the French philosopher, extracting fruitful contributions to language studies. To this aim, from a discursive perspective, we use conceptual tools developed by Foucault himself to catalogue, select and analyze a series of statements considered relevant to our problem, both written by Foucault and by others thinkers. This proposal is a meta-archaeogenealogy of the notion of monument. Our research led us to the thesis that this idea underlies Foucault's methodological shift from an archaeological view to a genealogical analysis of statements. Based on a recent example in discourse analysis, we suggest that paying attention to the monumental condition of discourse can be a matter of particular importance to the linguist, especially in terms of the historicity and the ideological positions that our linguistic practices materialize.