Criticism And Truth
Written in 1966 in response to an attack on Barthes's Sur Racine , this polemic answers many of the charges brought against French New Criticism by conservative, academic, 19th-century-oriented critics: lack of "objectivity," fondness for "jargon," indifference to the author's intention, etc. More positively, Barthes outlines some key concerns: plurality of meanings; analysis, based on linguistics, of the structures of possible meanings; the idea of a science of literature; and the dynamics of reading. Though some of the issues are specific to the French literary-academic situation, the bulk of this brief essay is a lively and accessible statement of an important modern critical position that is worth reading. Richard Kuczkowski, Dir., Continuing Education, Dominican Coll., Blauvelt, N.Y.Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.