RARA-AVIS: Reader or author

From: juri.nummelin@pp.inet.fi
Date: 06 Sep 2006


Allan:

> You're missing my point, Juri. When a character tells a story is not the
same as the author telling a
> story. Any apparent 'social assumptions' are those of the character. That
much you can say. To
> make the claim that they are also those of the author may or may not be true
but I don't see how a > reader can tell simply from the text.

This might collapse into a discussion of semantics, but I should say that reader can tell the social assumptions simply because he reads the text. The results may vary, but the text itself guides the way. But you're right - there are various factors in a story and narration.

I've understood that literary studies is veering back towards the new critique and understanding how a text works in itself and that the postmodern attitude which you seem to represent (sorry if I'm wrong here) is considered dated (i.e. that the reader is the main source of meaning, not the text itself).

Juri

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