Literary Criticism Semiotics & Theory
The Hermeneutics of Poetic Sense
- Publisher
- University of Toronto Press
- Initial publish date
- Jul 1998
- Category
- Semiotics & Theory, Hispanic American, Caribbean & Latin American
-
Hardback
- ISBN
- 9780802042439
- Publish Date
- Jul 1998
- List Price
- $76.00
-
eBook
- ISBN
- 9781442675704
- Publish Date
- Jun 1998
- List Price
- $77.00
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Description
In his earlier books, Shadows in the Cave (1982) and Phenomenological Hermeneutics and the Study of Literature (1987), Mario Valdés laid the foundation for his phenomenological-hermeneutic approach to literary criticism. With this book he continues the development of his ideas, using his views of literature, cinema, and art to unravel what he calls 'the imaginative configuration of the world, the cultural phenomenon of making sense, poetic sense, of life.'
The book takes the form of a collection of studies dealing with a variety of key issues in literary theory. A central theme is the role of the reader in assigning meaning to written works. Literature is understood in its capacity to make sense of certain basic aspects of human experience, including the quest for order in the universe, personal identity over time, a definition of the self with respect to the other, and a definition of the self as a member of a cultural community. Valdés begins each chapter with a synopsis of leading philosophical and literary-theoretical views on the subject at hand, then presenting and illustrating his own position through a detailed analysis of one or more literary works, primarily by Hispanic and Latin American authors.
This meticulously constructed phenomenological-experiential approach to literature effectively intervenes in a number of major critical controversies. Valdés's project, begun with his earlier works and continued here, has been to rewrite literary history from a cross-cultural perspective mediated by educated readers.
About the author
Mario J. Vald�s, FRSC is a professor emeritus in the Centre for Comparative Literature and the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at the University of Toronto.
Other titles by
Cultural Hermeneutics
Essays after Unamuno and Ricoeur
Rethinking Literary History
A Dialogue on Theory
Theatre Semiotics
Text and Staging in Modern Theatre
World-Making
The Literary Truth-Claim and the Interpretation of Texts
A Ricoeur Reader
Reflection and Imagination
A Ricoeur Reader
Reflection and Imagination
A Ricoeur Reader
Reflection and Imagination
World-Making
The Literary Truth-Claim and the Interpretation of Texts
Phenomenological Hermeneutics and the Study of Literature