International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Research 31 International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Research ISSN: 2455-2070; Impact Factor: RJIF 5.22 Received: 07-08-2019; Accepted: 09-09-2019 www.socialsciencejournal.in Volume 5; Issue 6; November 2019; Page No. 31-35 A derridean critique of the forty rules of love Qaiser Shahzad 1 , Mubashar Altaf 2 1 MPhil in English Linguistics, Pakistan 2 Lecturer at University of Mianwali, Pakistan Abstract The researcher takes The Forty Rules of Love by ElifShafak to find out the binaries in order to deconstruct them to find the ideological project of the author. This research explores the binaries in Shafak’s novel The Forty Rules of Love.In order to study the binaries in Shafak’s novel, the researcher draws on Jacque Derrida’s theory of Deconstruction. Derrida presents his theory in his seminal book Of GrammatologyThe novelThe Forty Rules of Lovestands on the different binaries like; the binary of time, place, person and concept. In the binary of time, there is a binary of present/past. In the binary of place,Shafak gives the binary between east/west. In the binary of person, we see binary between Ella and Rumi/Shams and Aziz. Binary of Materialism/ Spiritualism falls in binary of concept.The one part of binary is always considered as a center and other as margin. One part of the pair is privileged over the other.The researcherdeconstructs the binaries and explores the structure of the novel. The study finds that the author privileges spiritualism over materialism, past over the present, east over west, and love over mundane realities. In this way,ElifShafak propagated and promoted the rhetoric of Sufism. It is explored that the binaries are based on uncertain ground. There is no stability in the binaries of time, place, person and concepts in the text. Keywords: materialism, spiritualism, binary, instability, deconstruction 1. Introduction Structuralism is developed in Europe in the early 1900s, in the structural linguistics of Ferdinand de Saussure. According to Simon Blackburn, structuralism is "the belief that phenomena of human life are not intelligible except through their interrelations. These relations constitute a structure, and behind local variations in the surface phenomena there are constant laws of abstract culture". The origin of structuralism is connected with the work of Ferdinand de Saussure on linguistics. Saussure's structural linguistics isadvocated three related concepts.One is Saussure argues that there is a distinction between langue and parole. He argues that the "sign" is composed of both signified and signifier. Secondly, the relation between signifier and signified is arbitrary. Third is that signs gain their meaning from their relationships and contrasts with other signs. As he wrote, "in language, there are only differences 'without positive terms.” Post-structuralism rejects the idea of the dominant relationship in the hierarchy, choosing rather expose these relations and the dependency of the dominant term on its apparently subservient counterpart. The only way to properly understand these meanings is to deconstruct the assumptions and knowledge systems that produce multiplicity, hence the illusion of singular meaning. Jacque Derrida is a French philosopher best known for developing a form of semiotic analysis known as deconstruction. He is one of the major figures associated with post-structuralism and postmodern philosophy. He was born on 15 July 1930. Derrida has published more than 40 books, hundreds of essays and public presentations. He has a significant influence on the humanities and social sciences, including in addition to philosophy and literature, law, anthropology, historiography, applied linguistics, sociolinguistics, psychoanalysis, political theory, religious studies, feminism, and gay and lesbian studies. He also influences architecture, music, art, and art criticism. In his later writings, Derrida addresses ethical and political themes in his work. Speech and Phenomena, Of Grammatology, Writing, and Difference, and Margins of Philosophy are his major works. He died on October 9, 2004. The researcher takes TheForty Rules of Love, a novel written by ElifShafak to apply the concepts of Derrida. ElifShafak was born in Strasbourg, France, in 1971. She is an award-winning novelist and the most widely read woman writer in Turkey. Her books have been translated into more than 40 languages.Shafak has published thirteen books, nine of which are novels. She writes fiction in both Turkish and English. Shafak's first novel is Pinhan (The Mystic). Her second novel is ŞehrinAynaları, 3rd Mahrem, 4th Bit Palas. Shafak' wrote her next novel in EnglishThe Saint of Incipient Insanities. Her second novel written in English is The Bastard of Istanbul.Shafak's next novel focused on Love and love –East & West, past & present, spiritual & mundane, The Forty Rules of Love.Her most recent novel isUstamve, Ben. Besides writing fiction, Shafak is an active political commentator, columnist, and public speaker. She is a regular contributor to major newspapers in Turkey and has been featured in major newspapers and periodicals, including The Guardian, The New York Times, The Independent, and The World Post/Huffington Post. She has taught at various universities in Turkey, UK, and the USA. Having graduated from the program in International Relations at Middle East Technical University, she holds a Master’s degree in Gender and Women's Studies and a Ph.D. in Politic. She is living in England. The novel The Forty Rules of Loveby ElifShafak opens with the character of Ella Rubenstein. She isforty years old and