This discussion re. transgression is dead interesting but someone (Colin maybe?)
mentioned 'What is An Author? in passing. Perhaps I missed the posting but could
someone repeat or elaborate on what this had to do with the discussion. I've
done a fair bit of work on this (in collusion with the Death of the Author
Barthes essay..sorry!) .I find the ideas of literary labelling and the unease we
have about 'anonymous' works in general interesting. I used the example of
'Primary Colours' once to make a point about the author-presence overtaking the
'value' of the text itself. Does anyone (maybe our American friends would know
more?) have comments about this or a similar controversy using the Foucaldian (
Foucaultian?!) ideas of authorship.
>From my point of view the argument that society categorises our *reception* of
texts rather than the text itself is very apt. Would a text by De Sade be
acceptable if there "were no sex in it"? How does the moral majority allow us to
create an image of an author? And is it indeed them? Or the whole myth of the
author as a figure in the first place? Also does anyone understand how Foucault
can feel comfortable with the 'founders of discursivity' idea when the
author-function is (seems) to be a 'bad' thing? And as a (non-literary) friend
pointed out wasn't Hitler a founder of discursivity too?
So many questions but it is Sunday after all ( a day of thinking rather than a
day of rest). Sorry to be a bit slow with catching up with what's going
on...(I'm not quite an undergrad. but not much further on...;)
Rebekah Bale
University of Hong Kong
mentioned 'What is An Author? in passing. Perhaps I missed the posting but could
someone repeat or elaborate on what this had to do with the discussion. I've
done a fair bit of work on this (in collusion with the Death of the Author
Barthes essay..sorry!) .I find the ideas of literary labelling and the unease we
have about 'anonymous' works in general interesting. I used the example of
'Primary Colours' once to make a point about the author-presence overtaking the
'value' of the text itself. Does anyone (maybe our American friends would know
more?) have comments about this or a similar controversy using the Foucaldian (
Foucaultian?!) ideas of authorship.
>From my point of view the argument that society categorises our *reception* of
texts rather than the text itself is very apt. Would a text by De Sade be
acceptable if there "were no sex in it"? How does the moral majority allow us to
create an image of an author? And is it indeed them? Or the whole myth of the
author as a figure in the first place? Also does anyone understand how Foucault
can feel comfortable with the 'founders of discursivity' idea when the
author-function is (seems) to be a 'bad' thing? And as a (non-literary) friend
pointed out wasn't Hitler a founder of discursivity too?
So many questions but it is Sunday after all ( a day of thinking rather than a
day of rest). Sorry to be a bit slow with catching up with what's going
on...(I'm not quite an undergrad. but not much further on...;)
Rebekah Bale
University of Hong Kong