Notes from the periphery
Subtitle: marginality in North American literature and culture
By: Susan P. Castillo.
Series: American university studies.; vol. 63
Publisher: P. Lang; Lang AG International Academic Publishers, Peter
Published: 1995
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 195
Subjects: American literature -- History and criticism -- Theory, etc.; Canadian literature -- History and criticism -- Theory, etc.; Literature and society -- United States.; Women and literature -- United States.; Marginality, Social, in literature.; Minorities in literature.; Canon (Literature); North America -- Intellectual life.
Description: Notes from the Periphery attempts to examine the dynamics of marginalization and define the factors that have caused certain texts to be labeled as marginal while others are considered central and thus crucial in maintaining and perpetuating mainstream cultural values.

Within the Western European tradition, Aristotelian thought has played a crucial role in staking out the center (i.e., the locus of power and authority) for certain groups and relegating others to the periphery; and it is not without significance that today's neo-conservative thinkers have adopted Aristotelian tactics. Thus, Castillo outlines the basic tenets of Aristotelian thought and traces the continuing influence of Aristotelian attitudes in the canon debate.

She then goes on to analyze writers or historical figures who were labeled as fanatics, diagnosed as mad or sexually depraved, or dismissed as quaint regional or ethnic curiosities.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references.