Skip to content
Skip to content

Book

Plato's Pharmacy

What is Plato's Pharmacy in the Agency editorial?

Plato's Pharmacy is an essay by Jacques Derrida. It appears only in the Portuguese edition of Issue.26, where Derrida is said to have written extensively about the ambiguous concept of pharmakon and its connection to the pharmakos.

In short

In the Portuguese edition of Issue.26, Plato's Pharmacy is cited in a passage about the concept of pharmakon. The edition says the Algerian-born philosopher Jacques Derrida wrote extensively about the ambiguity of pharmakon in his essay A Farmácia de Platão, where he connects the concept to the related word pharmakos, a human scapegoat in ancient Greek religion. The mention does not appear in the English edition of Issue.26.

Key facts

How is the essay cited?
As the work where Derrida connects the ambiguous concept of pharmakon to the related word pharmakos.
Does it appear in the English edition?
No, it appears only in the Portuguese edition of Issue.26.
In what context is it mentioned?
In a passage about the ancient Greek concept of pharmakon in Issue.26.

What is Plato's Pharmacy?

Plato's Pharmacy is an essay by Jacques Derrida, collected in his book Dissemination (1972). The edition calls it an essay. These identification facts come from outside the editions and are marked for verification.

How does it appear in Issue.26?

In the Portuguese edition of Issue.26, the essay is cited in a passage about pharmakon. The edition describes the Algerian-born philosopher Jacques Derrida as having written extensively about the ambiguity of pharmakon in his essay, connecting the concept to the related word pharmakos, a human scapegoat in ancient Greek religion chosen and expelled to purify the community. The mention does not appear in the English edition.

Source editions

Where this entry comes from in the Agency editorial.

Sources

  1. Wikipedia: Dissemination (book) (opens in a new tab)
Published
Updated
Cite this entry

“Plato's Pharmacy”. Agency Wiki, Agency Brasil. Published on November 11, 2026. https://www.agencybrasil.com/en/wiki/platos-pharmacy