Juri wote:
"I want to point out once more that to be Marxist a piece of
art (novel, film, etc.) doesn't have to point out solutions
to social problems the piece of art is addressing. . . . So,
a book like RED HARVEST can be discussed in Marxist terms. It
doesn't have to have a political agenda to it."
Mickey Spillane could be discussed in Marxist terms. There's
a huge difference between "discussing in Marxist terms" and
claiming something is a Marxist work. While Red Harvest
certainly contains a critique that could be conceived of as
Marxist, that does not mean Hammett wrote a Marxist, or even
a proto-Marxist, work.
Any book can be discussed in terms of any literary or social
theory, but to say it is a work within a particular theory
implies an agency and intent on the part of the creator, not
just the critic. I've been largely on your side in saying
that Al can't possibly be as removed from his own social
situation as he claims. We are rejecting the romantic notion
that a work of art is a unique creation by a unique
individual and asserting that both the author and the work
(and editors, publishers, readers, etc) are each members of
numerous fields of production of meaning, both in creation
and reception. However, I would never presume to tell Al his
intent.
Mark
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