The Yale Critics: Deconstruction in America (Volume 6) (Theory and History of Literature)

The Yale Critics was first published in 1983. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions. A heated debate has been raging in North America in recent years over the form and function of literature. At the center of the fray is a group of critics teaching at Yale UniversityHarold Bloom, Geoffrey Hartman, Paul de Man, and J. Hillis Millerwhose work can be described in relation to the deconstructive philosophy practiced by French philosopher Jacques Derrida. For over a decade the Yale Critics have aroused controversy; most often they are considered as a group, to be applauded or attacked, rather than as individuals whose ideas merit critical scrutiny. Here a new generation of scholars attempts for the first time a serious, broad assessment of the Yale group. These essays appraise the Yale Critics by exploring their roots, their individual careers, and the issues they introduce. Wallace Martin's introduction offers a brilliant, compact account of the Yale Critics and of their relation to deconstruction and the deconstruction to two characteristically Anglo-American enterprises; Paul Bove explores the new criticism and Wlad Godzich the reception of Derrida in America. Next come essays giving individual attention to each of the critics: Michael Sprinker on Hartman, Donald Pease on Miller, Stanley Corngold on de Man, and Daniel O'Hara on Bloom. Two essays then illuminate "deconstruction in America" through a return to modern continental philosophy: Donald Marshall on Maurice Blanchot, and Rodolphe Gasche on Martin Heidegger. Finally, Jonathan Arac's afterword brings the volume together and projects a future beyond the Yale Critics. Throughout, the contributors aim to provide a balanced view of a subject that has most often been treated polemically. While useful as an introduction, The Yale Critics also engages in a serious critical reflection on the uses of the humanities in American today. Contents......Page 6 Key to Brief Titles......Page 8 Preface......Page 10 Introduction......Page 16 PART I......Page 40 Variations on Authority: Some Deconstructive Transformations of the New Criticism......Page 42 The Domestication of Derrida......Page 59 PART II......Page 80 Aesthetic Criticism: Geoffrey Hartman......Page 82 J. Hillis Miller: The Other Victorian at Yale......Page 105 Error in Paul de Man......Page 129 The Genius of Irony: Nietzsche in Bloom......Page 148 PART III......Page 172 History, Theory, and Influence: Yale Critics as Readers of Maurice Blanchot......Page 174 Joining the Text: From Heidegger to Derrida......Page 195 Afterword......Page 215 Bibliography......Page 242 Contributors......Page 252 B......Page 256 F......Page 257 J......Page 258 M......Page 259 S......Page 260 Z......Page 261 Pt. 1. Variations On Authority: Some Deconstructive Transformations Of The New Criticism / Paul A. Bové -- The Domestication Of Derrida / Wlad Godzich -- Pt. 2. Aesthetic Criticism: Geoffrey Hartman / Michael Sprinker -- J. Hillis Miller: The Other Victorian At Yale / Donald Pease -- Error In Paul De Man / Stanley Corngold -- The Genius Of Irony: Nietzsche In Bloom / Daniel O'hara -- Pt. 3. History, Theory, And Influence: Yale Critics As Readers Of Maurice Blanchot / Donald G. Marshall -- Joining The Text: From Heidegger To Derrida / Rodolphe Gasché. Jonathan Arac, Wlad Godzich, Wallace Martin, Editors. Includes Index. Bibliography: P. [201]-212.