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Deconstruction doesn't actually mean "demolition;" instead it means "breaking down" or analyzing something (especially the words in a work of fiction or nonfiction) to discover its true significance, which is supposedly almost never exactly what the author intended. A feminist may deconstruct an old novel to show how even an innocent-seeming story somehow depends on the oppression of women. A new western may deconstruct the myths of the old West and show lawmen as vicious and criminals as flawed but decent. Table manners, The Sound of Music, and cosmetics ads have all been the subjects of deconstructionist analysis. Of course, not everyone agrees with deconstructionist interpretations, and some people reject the whole idea of deconstruction, but most of us have run into it by now even if we didn't realize it.

Examples of deconstruction in a Sentence

a lengthy deconstruction of the president's speech by a panel of pundits

Recent Examples on the Web The city’s construction waste specialist, Shawn Wood, is one of the country’s leading deconstruction policy experts. — Aarian Marshall, Wired, 22 Feb. 2022 An audience goes into a sketch ready for all manner of rapid-fire experimentation, a wildly porous fourth wall and extreme narrative deconstruction. — New York Times, 9 Feb. 2022 Its proponents acknowledge that deconstruction can be profoundly unmooring. — Audrey Clare Farley, The New Republic, 3 Jan. 2022 Not so with Where the Light Fell, at once a deconstruction of fundamentalist faith but also an incredible yarn with twists and turns. — John Brandon, Forbes, 28 Dec. 2021 Elsewhere, an element of deconstruction was on display. — Kristen Bateman, Harper's BAZAAR, 13 Feb. 2022 With its street-style edge, the deconstruction sneaker made its debut on the Spring/Summer 2022 Miu Miu runway with a nod from fashion influencers and sneakerheads in attendance. — Emerald Elitou, Essence, 1 Feb. 2022 Without the voices of the dispossessed, how can there be deconstruction? — Audrey Clare Farley, The New Republic, 3 Jan. 2022 The network stayed very much in the serial television business because its executives understood that anticipation is half the fun of just about anything, and the other half was deconstruction. — Los Angeles Times, 13 Dec. 2021 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'deconstruction.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.