What were the deconstructionists up to? This problem has puzzled many who rely on traditional ways of thinking -- that is, anyone who takes logical analysis for granted, or who simply hopes that words mean what they appear to say. In these pages, Dr Norman Styers offers his evaluation of what these enigmatic theorists were trying to do. Styers uses Eric Voegelin's analysis of ideology to examine Jacques Derrida's "Of Grammatology." Neither an encomium nor a hatchet job, "Deconstruction for Linear Thinkers" tries to appreciate the deconstructionist project on its own terms, both displaying its inherent limitations and discussing what may be learned from it.