The Quality of Literature
Linguistic studies in literary evaluation
Published on 19. March 2008
Book
Hardback
243 pages
978-90-272-3336-3 (ISBN)
Description
Evaluation is central to literary studies and has led to an impressive list of publications on the status and history of the canon. Yet it is remarkable how little attention has been given to the role of textual properties in evaluative processes. Most of the chapters in The Quality of Literature redress this issue by dealing with texts or genres ranging from classical antiquity, via Renaissance to twentieth century. They provide a rich textual and historical panorama of how critical debate over literary quality has influenced our modes of thinking and feeling about literature, and how they continue to shape the current literary landscape. Four theoretical chapters reflect on the general state of literary evaluation while the introduction weaves the different threads together aiming at further conceptual clarification. This book thus contributes to a deeper understanding of the problems that are at the heart of past and present debates over literary quality.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Amsterdam
Netherlands
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 245 mm
Width: 164 mm
Weight
600 gr
ISBN-13
978-90-272-3336-3 (9789027233363)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
03/2008
1st Edition
John Benjamins Publishing Company
€123.99
Available for download
Person
Content
1. Acknowledgments; 2. Foreword; 3. Introduction (by Peer, Willie van); 4. Part I. Textual and generic comparisons; 5. 1. Canon formation: Ideology or aesthetic quality? (by Peer, Willie van); 6. 2. Why Hugh Maccoll is not, and will never be, part of any literary canon (by Olson, Stein Haugom); 7. 3. Popular / canonical: The case of The Secret Agent (by Gorak, Jan); 8. 4. Literary evaluation and poetic form: Poetic form and creative tension (by Barney, Tom); 9. 5. Poetic value: Political value (by Lerner, Laurence); 10. 6. "Too soon transplanted": Coleridge and the forms of dislocation (by Miall, David S.); 11. 7. Evaluation and stylistic analysis (by Short, Mick); 12. 8. The value of Juvenal (by Nash, Walter); 13. Part II. Theoretical reflections; 14. 9. Some correlates of literary eminence (by Martindale, Colin); 15. 10. Macbeth through the computer: Literary evaluation and pedagogical implications (by Zyngier, Sonia); 16. 11. How scientific can literary evaluation be? Arguments and experiments (by Fricke, Harald); 17. 12. Philosophical perspectives on literary value (by Livingston, Paisley); 18. 13. The qualities of literatures: A concept of literary evaluation in pluralistic societies (by Heydebrand, Renate von); 19. Author index; 20. Subject index