Archive Fever (by Jacques Derrida)

"Archive Fever" by Jacques Derrida explores how the desire to preserve and access historical records shapes our understanding of memory and history. He examines the archive not just as a collection of documents, but as a force that influences what we remember or forget. Derrida discusses how the urge to archive stems from a desire to confront the past and ensure its continuity, yet this process also introduces uncertainty and incompleteness. Ultimately, he reveals that the act of archiving is driven by an unconscious compulsion—"archive fever"—that constantly pushes us to seek and remake history, even as it remains elusive and unstable.