Text in the Natural World: Topics of Evolutionary Theory of Literature

The study of literature has expanded to include an evolutionary perspective. Its premise is that the literary text and literature as an overarching institution came into existence as a product of the same evolutionary process that gave rise to the human species. In this view, literature is an evolutionary adaptation that functions as any other adaptation does, as a means of enhancing survivability and also promoting benefits for the individual and society. Text in the Natural World is an introduction to the theory and a survey of topics pertinent to the evolutionary view of literature. After a polemical, prefatory chapter and an overview of the pertinent aspects of evolutionary theory itself, the book examines integral building blocks of literature and literary expression as effects of evolutionary development. This includes chapters on moral sense, symbolic thought, literary aesthetics in general, literary ontology, the broad topic of form, function and device in literature, a last theoretical chapter on narrative, and a chapter on literary themes. The concluding chapter builds on the preceding one as an illustration of evolutionary thematic study in practice, in a study of the fauna in the fiction of Maupassant. This text is designed to be of interest to those who read and think about things literary, as well as to those who have interest in the extension of Darwin’s great idea across the horizon of human culture. It tries to bridge the gulf that has separated the humanities from the sciences, and would be a helpful text for courses taught in both literary theory and interdisciplinary approaches to literature and philosophy.https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/books/1125/thumbnail.jp

Theory of Literature and Aesthetics

En este artículo me ocupo de la relación entre Teoría de la Literatura y Estética como disciplinas que estudian la literatura y el arte respectivamente. La atención prestada por los tratados de Poética a la literatura como arte así como a otras artes es considerada uno de los fundamentos de esta relación y uno de los caminos hacia la Estética como una teoría global del arte. La conexión de la Teoría de la Literatura con la Estética se observa dentro del campo de la conexión de las teorías de las artes con la Estética, de tal modo que a todas las teorías les proporcione enriquecimiento una relación dialéctica entre todas ellas. Por su alcance amplio y comprehensivo, la Semiótica como teoría general de los signos puede ofrecer una armazón teórica para mejorar la conexión entre Teoría de la Literatura y EstéticaIn this article I am dealing with the relationship between Theory of Literature and Aesthetics as disciplines that study literature and art respectively. The attention paid by the treatises of Poetics to literature as an art as well as to other arts is considered to be one of the foundations of this relationship and one of the paths towards Aesthetics as a global theory of art. The connection of Theory of Literature to Aesthetics is viewed within the field of the connection of single theories of arts to Aesthetics, in such a way that a dialectical relationship between all of them provides enrichment for all theories. Because of its broad and comprehensive range, Semiotics as the general theory of signs can offer a theoretical framework to improve the connection between Theory of Literature and Aesthetic

Jean-Paul Sartre’s Theory of Literature

The thesis of this paper is twofold. First, there is the general concern to investigate and demonstrate clearly that there are relationships between certain superficially unrelated disciplines, namely philosophy, aesthetics and literary criticism. Second, by way of accomplishing the first aim, there is an attempt made to synthesize and explicate the contributions of a significant twentieth century intellectual. The particular procedure employed to attain these ends is the consideration of an academic field which is continually being reshaped by other separate but related disciplines. For my purposes the figure of Jean Paul Sartre and the field of literary criticism are both, as shall be demonstrated, appropriate for this investigation. The format for analyzing Sartre’s literary criticism shall be as follows. (1) There is an investigation of Sartre’s philosophical claims. (2) There follows a discussion of Sartre’s view of literature, its value, significance, and role in society. (3) The next section relates Sartre’s views of literature to traditional problems in literary criticism. (4) In the final portion there is a brief evaluation of Sartre’s contributions to a contemporary literary criticism

BOOK REVIEW OF ONE NIGHT WITH PRINCE CHARMING WRITTEN BY ANNA DEPALO

According to Wellek and Warren (1976: 94) in Theory of Literature, literature represents life and life is, in large measure, a social reality, even though the natural word and the inner or subjective world of the individual have also been objects of literary ‘imitation'. Novel is very popular among literature enthusiasts. The story within a novel usually reflects human life, so the readers will understand the moral message behind the story

Evaluation templates and fulfillment of the university formative objectives: diversification and transverselity of criteria in subjects of Spanish Language and Theory of Literature

In the different projects boarded in these last years by our group from educational innovation, attention to two lines of work has been lent that, applied to subjects integrated in the scopes of the study of the Spanish language and of the theory of Literature, were in our opinion essential to approach the new educative space in which we were immersed. In one first stage, it was fundamental the elaboration of educational materials and the use of heterogenous tools that allowed the student to make a pursuit of the subject in which the knowledge was acquired progressively. The space of the Virtual Campus thus becomes a valid platform for the development and design of different types from activities and exercises by means of which complementary tasks to actual teaching are approached. However, this development raises in one second phase –in which we were now– and almost simultaneously, the necessity to analyze the evaluation methods. Once established the continuous evaluation like fundamental criterion in the development of the subject, it is precise to establish general frames that allow at the same time student’s precise pursuit and transverselity between criteria of evaluation shared by several subjects. From these budgets, our work is centered in the creation of templates or model-cards model that identifie so much the evaluation criteria as the aptitudes that the students must surpass, to the object of which can serve as guide in their application to different disciplines. Therefore, on starting from the exercises designed in the first stage of the project, evaluative models are developed that allow to value the degree of assimilation and execution of the different objectives and contents.Example: Work in group and later exposition and discussions by the students: - Consisting of the putting in common of the results derived from the work in group or other individual derivatives of the theoretical and literary text commentary. - Cooperative learning: works in equipment, inside and outside the classroom. Objectives: to favor the doubt and exchange of information on the subjects debate object, besides to foment initiatives and the critical attitude of the students. - Justification: this type of exercises favors the formation of the student in two-way traffic. First, in as much it must construct his own speech, organize it, structure it and argue it for his putting in common before his companions. It facilitates the personal learning and the development of skills related to the construction, elaboration and written expression of different types from speech. The second, the exposition helps to develop skills and comunicative strategies, contributing to improve the oral expression. Finally, the coordination of the work of group causes a greater implication of the students in the process of elaboration and the final results, as much of the work written as of the oral presentation, without forgetting that the use of other resources (presentations, videos... etc.) by the students facilitates his familiarisation with educational and expositive techniques nearer the present contextInted2009 Proceedings C

Lyrical plot in context of development of the theory of literature

У статті розглянуто позиції дослідників з приводу "безсюжетності", "часткової сюжетності" лірики. Наведено докази, що усій ліриці об'єктивно й одночасно властива і сюжетність, і фабульність. У цьому переконує ширше сприйняття форм вияву "сюжету" і "фабули", а також те, що "сюжетність" є неодмінним чинником великого поетичного ланцюга "образність - конфліктність - сюжет - жанр" у будь-якому творі. В статье рассматриваются позиции исследователей по поводу "бессюжетности", "частичной сюжетности" лирики. Приведены доказательства, что вся лирика объективно и одновременно и сюжетна, и фабульна. В этом убеждает более широкое восприятие форм проявления "сюжета" и "фабулы", а также то, что "сюжет" является неотъемлемым звеном большой поэтической цепи "образность - конфликтность - сюжет - жанр", которая имет место в любом художественном произведении.Clause represents positions of the researchers concerning "without a plot", "a partial plot" lyrics are considered. It is proved theoretically and practically, that in all lyrics peculiar inherent plots and stories are used objectively and simultaneously. In this concept it convinces wider recognition of the form of display of "plot", and also the fact, that "plot" is an element of a poetic link "an image - the conflict - a plot - a genre" in any literary work

Political Aesthetics and Theory of Literature: an Open Dialogue

la teoría de la literatura se encuentra hoy ante el reto de definir un nuevo espacio para el estudio de la literatura en toda su plurivocidad. Por este motivo, se propone defender la apertura de la teoría de la literatura a las propuestas realizadas desde algunas posturas del giro político en la estética y la teoría. Nuestra hipótesis es que el diálogo entre estas disciplinas ayudaría a comprender y a responder-endiálogo a una cuestión que ha recorrido, desde la entrada en juego de las vanguardias históricas, la estética y la teoría literaria contemporáneas, a saber: la dialéctica entre autonomía literaria y la literatura en la comunidad.theory of literature is nowadays confronted with the challenge of defining a new space for studying literature in all its plurivocity. therefore, I propose to defend the opening of/from theory of literature toward the realized proposals from some propositions of the political turn in aesthetics and theory. My hypothesis is that the dialogue between these disciplines will help to understand and respond a recurring question within the dialogue, from the introduction of the historical avant-garde, aesthetics, and contemporary literary theory, to knowledge: dialectics between literary autonomy and literature in the community

Some foundational and methodical problems of the empirical theory of literature

Kindt W. Some foundational and methodical problems of the empirical theory of literature. Poetics. 1981;10(4-5):483-513