Theory of Literature (The Open Yale Courses Series)

Bringing his perennially popular course to the page, Yale University Professor Paul H. Fry offers in this welcome book a guided tour of the main trends in twentieth-century literary theory. At the core of the book's discussion is a series of underlying questions: What is literature, how is it produced, how can it be understood, and what is its purpose? Fry engages with the major themes and strands in twentieth-century literary theory, among them the hermeneutic circle, New Criticism, structuralism, linguistics and literature, Freud and fiction, Jacques Lacan's theories, the postmodern psyche, the political unconscious, New Historicism, the classical feminist tradition, African American criticism, queer theory, and gender performativity. By incorporating philosophical and social perspectives to connect these many trends, the author offers readers a coherent overall context for a deeper and richer reading of literature. Contents 7 Preface 9 1. Introduction: Th E Prehistory And Rise Of “Theory” 13 2. Introduction Continued: Theory And Functionalization 24 First Reflections On Interpretation And Reading 39 3. Ways In And Out Of The Hermeneutic Circle 39 4. Configurative Reading 51 Text And Structure 67 5. The Idea Of The Autonomous Artwork 67 6. The New Criticism And Other Western Formalisms 80 7. Russian Formalism 94 8. Semiotics And Structuralism 107 9. Linguistics And Literature 120 10. Deconstruction I: Jacques Derrida 135 11. Deconstruction II: Paul de Man 149 Author (Reader) And Psyche 165 12. Freud And Fiction 165 13. Jacques Lacan In Theory 178 14. Influence 191 15. The Postmodern Psyche 204 The Social Context 219 16. The Social Permeability Of Reader And Text 219 17. The Frankfurt School Of Critical Theory 232 18. The Political Unconscious 245 19. The New Historicism 258 20. The Classical Feminist Tradition 271 21. African American Criticism 284 22. Postcolonial Criticism 297 23. Queer Theory And Gender Performativity 311 24. The Institutional Construction Of Literary Study 324 Theory Con And Pro 341 25. The End Of Theory? Neo-Pragmatism 341 26. Conclusion: Who Doesn’t Hate Theory Now? 354 Appendix: Passages Referenced In Lectures 367 Notes 375 The Varieties Of Interpretation: A Guide To Further Reading In Literary Theory 377 Index 391 "Bringing his perennially popular course to the page, Yale University Professor Paul H. Fry offers in this welcome book a guided tour of the main trends in twentieth-century literary theory. At the core of the book's discussion is a series of underlying questions: What is literature, how is it produced, how can it be understood, and what is its purpose? Fry engages with the major themes and strands in twentieth-century literary theory, among them hermeneutics, modes of formalism, semiotics and Structuralism, deconstruction, psychoanalytic approaches, Marxist and historicist approaches, theories of social identity, Neo-pragmatism and theory. By incorporating philosophical and social perspectives to connect these many trends, the author offers readers a coherent overall context for a deeper and richer reading of literature"-- Provided by publisher

Bringing his perennially popular course to the page, Yale University Professor Paul H. Fry offers in this welcome book a guided tour of the main trends in twentieth-century literary theory. At the core of the book's discussion is a series of underlying questions: What is literature, how is it produced, how can it be understood, and what is its purpose?

Fry engages with the major themes and strands in twentieth-century literary theory, among them hermeneutics, modes of formalism, semiotics and Structuralism, deconstruction, psychoanalytic approaches, Marxist and historicist approaches, theories of social identity, Neo-pragmatism and theory. By incorporating philosophical and social perspectives to connect these many trends, the author offers readers a coherent overall context for a deeper and richer reading of literature.