Description
Book SynopsisConducts a radical criticism of the concept of 'reading,' especially of the concept of 'the' reader, as these concepts are commonly used in literary criticism. This book sketches the historical provenance of 'the' reader, in an argument that includes discussions of Dante, Boccaccio, Cervantes, Marlowe, and German idealist philosophy.
Trade ReviewA seamless narrative, in which theory, intellectual history, and explication de texte join hands to advance a relentless flow of thought.
---—Stanley Corngold, Princeton UniversityLiterary theory has contributed many well-informed readings to literature. The theorist-readers themselves have also been brilliant. But herein lies the rub for Bennett (German, Univ. of Virginia). Their examples do not necessarily mean that others will be either as well informed or as brilliant. Engaging such theorists as Stanley Fish, Georges Poulet, and Wolfgang Iser, et al., the author contests their rigorous models as incompatible with how all readers of literature actually read. Bennett's own readings of the modern novel are well integrated into his questioning of "whether there really is such a thing as 'general literary competence' or a right way to read." He identifies the beginning of modern reading in Dante's Commedia, as explained by Susan Noakes (Timely Reading, CH, Mar'89, 26- 3713). Bennett goes further by identifying Dante's models for "the reader for thrills" and "the reader for art," a duality Bennett invented and traces historically. Bennett admirably exemplifies this duality through his readings of Thomas Mann's Dr. Faustus and Death in Venice. Despite his insistence on less-demanding models, Bennett's own readings are rigorous, but his elaboration of "the reader" is too abstract and cloying. The lack of a bibliography and the imprecise editing are noteworthy. Summing Up: Recommended. With reservations. Graduate students through faculty. * —Choice *
A study of how literary authors have challenged notions of reading as an extension of experience. * —The Chronicle of Higher Education *
Smart, insightful, and distinctive in range, theme, and approach.
---—Marshall Brown, University of Washington
