What question did this study set out to answer?

This article examines Fredric Jameson's assertion that theory is an endless effort to challenge fixed definitions and ideologies. It aims to clarify the implications of this notion for understanding theory.

May 9, 2026

The Perpetual Impossibility of Theory: A Comment on Jameson's Legacy

Key Points

This article examines Fredric Jameson's assertion that theory is an endless effort to challenge fixed definitions and ideologies. It aims to clarify the implications of this notion for understanding theory.
Analyzes Fredric Jameson's definitions and claims about theory.
Discusses the implications of theory being both perpetual and impossible.
Examines the dialectical nature of theoretical definitions.
Highlights the distinction of Jameson's theory as inherently paradoxical.
Argues that any static definition of theory becomes reified, countering Jameson's intent.
Suggests that acknowledging this paradox can deepen our understanding of theoretical discourse.

Abstract

Abstract: This article discusses Fredric Jameson's claim that "theory is to be grasped as the perpetual and impossible attempt to de-reify the language of thought, and to preempt all the systems and ideologies which inevitably result from the establishment of this or that fixed terminology." This notion of theory as "perpetual" and "impossible" has become for some the key point of distinction of theory, particularly those who have adopted Jameson's brand of theory. But it is also a notion of theory that as soon as it is stated must be de-reified lest it risk becoming a mere instantiation of the reified thought that Jameson so abhors. In other words, this statement concerning theory should not be regarded as a reified definition of "theory" from one of the foremost theorists of his generation. But rather it is a dialectical statement concerning the perpetual impossibility of such a definition.

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