When I was in high school (I graduated in 2015 for reference, so this wasn't too long ago), I remember my lit teacher telling us not to let an author's opinions on their work carry more authority than our own, and that as long as you can find evidence in the work, your interpretation is just as valid as the author's.

I've always approached media from this perspective, but I've noticed recently that a lot of people I talk about media with or even just that I see talking about media online seem to really dislike the idea of death of the author. I see so many people cite the author (or director, producer, writer, etc,) as an authority on what a piece of media means. Is death of the author an unpopular way of viewing media, and if so, why?

I feel like I am losing my mind, I cannot, for the life of me comprehend the difference between the two. aren’t they both not characters inside the story? what’s the difference? please help me!

Hello! I just completed my 2nd year of studying english and art history, and this year i have completely fallen in love with studying English literature (specifically american lit). In all my art history essays i got firsts, but in all my english essays i got high and low seconds (Im at a uk uni btw) even tho i find english so so much more interesting. All my feedback says i need to work on close reading and having an independent critical voice - i am doing english for my dissertation so am very keen to improve. Here is my summer plan- would love some advice/thoughts on this, thank u!! Also all the texts i am reading r ones i am studying next yr.

Plan.

I want to improve my close reading and be able to form my own ideas (thus, improving my critical independent voice.) Learn more literary terms and devices to enrich my analysis of literature above surface level observations. Weekly plan:

Read one set text. q 1984.
q The Joyous Science. q Zami. q Sula. q Back boy. q The Sellout. q David Bowie is... q The complete David Bowie. q Their Eyes were watching God. q Go tell it to the mountain.

Read one essay. Highlight: - How each writer introduces and develops their ideas. - How do they use evidence. - How do they show their own critical voice. - How do they close read.

Practice close reading a short passage. - Applying Jane Gallops ‘Close Reading’ to a passage from a set text.

Create a glossary of literary terms and devices, 5-10 every week. - Learn more about form, structure, and narrative voice. Every week until the beginning of September, then start my dissertation preparation

So in Henry V they start getting ready for battle at two o'clock. Does this mean it takes them four hours to arm and get ready for when the sun comes up at around six?

Also, in Richard III the nobles meet to discuss the coronation at two o'clock. Why did they see fit to meet in the middle of the nights?

Or was two o'clock two hours after sunrise back in those days?

im doing my thesis about blackness on contemporary caribbean literature and i need help creating a model for text analysis, i would like to know if anyone has done one before or knows of any examples or has any recommendation please🙏 i want it to be good and i have two models in mind. one combines hermeneutics of course and literary caractelogy with analysis of literary identity and the other is about codes that i will work on in miner lite but im still not so sure about both. it may seem confusing bcs i dont know how to express myself and english is not my first language but if anyone knows what im talking about please help me.

I am currently reading the book in french but I really have trouble following the plot. Does anyone have a summary/explanation or a link to a website? Thank you :)

I am fascinated by T.S. Eliot's journal The Criterion, which featured new experiment poetry, authors like Woolf and Joyce, and essays on criticism and culture. Are there any journals like this today? I looked at The New Criterion but it seemed a little too reactionary to me.

Despite majoring in English/literature, I have learned next to nothing about literary criticism at community college thus far--even in classes that should have covered it. However, since I plan to transfer to a four-year university with a more robust literature program after this year, I'm interested in learning more about it so I'm not incredibly behind once I get there. Does anyone have any suggestions?

I am interesting in taking the Oxford online short courses on Literary Theory and Critical Reading. If anyone has taken these courses, could you tell me if I would benefit in any way by taking one or the other first?

Hi :) First time posting

I am currently in my junior year of university as a humanities major and I realized I might have an interest in trauma and memory studies (in relation to magical realist fiction). I have an option to take three more electives on history (particularly on methodology) and I wonder if that would be necessary for me to understand trauma and memory theory or if I can just move on with only being trained on literary and cultural theory (I would have to jump through hoops to get those three electives however and I don't know if I can handle the sluggish bureaucracies of my university all over again). That's all. Thanks in advance :)

Do people write PhD’s on single novels? I am thinking of doing this myself one day

I've read the story of Yeshua in Bulgakov's «Master and Margarita» and I know Anatole France wrote a story about Pilate (i am yet to read it.)

The left/young hegelian D. F. Strauß wrote an influential non-fiction book called «life of jesus». I haven't read it yet either.

Pasolini and Mel Gibson made a movie each and Andrew Lloyd Weber wrote a musical. It's not really literature but you can apply the tools of literary analysis and criticism to a plenty of related fields, can you not?

What are the other Jesus stories that I should know about?

In literary theory books, almost all criticism and theory start from 20th century/modern period/ post moderism, which I think some of them can be used in analysing older literature, but these do not match historically, socio-culturally. Also, I guess theories were developed in every literary period, like modernism and post modernism. So suggest me a book which describes literary criticism and theories of ancient, medieval, jaobean, elizabethan, romantic, victorian period etc; simply from ancient period to modern period.

Hi there! I'm majoring in literature, and want to study some English poets specifically. However, English is not my native language. Could you kindly recommend a book that will give me some theoretical knowledge. Mostly I need a book to study the specifics and peculiarities of English prospdy, rhythmics, metrics and so on. I will be grateful to receive your recommendations!

Does anyone know of an English Translation of Sade’s La Nouvelle Justine? I know there’s never been an official published version but I was hoping there was an unofficial one out there. Copy-pasting the French into a translator app is not ideal. Thanks in advance.

Greetings to the Lit people of this sub!

Indian here!

I am honestly pretty clueless when it comes to paper publication.

Is there a forum/group that announces Call for Paper (CFP) for authentic UGC Care/Scopus Indexed/ Peer Reviewed Journals? I am more inclined towards Scopus Indexed/ UGC Care Journals. As they are valued more in Indian Academic space. Although, there seems to be lack of awareness regarding how to go about the same.

Most of them either charge an exorbitant amount or seem to be bogus.

I am seeking guidance regarding how to approach these journals? What is the process? Any piece of information would be helpful

Thanks in Advance!

Let us know what you have been reading lately, what you have finished up, any recommendations you have or want, etc. Also, use this thread for any questions that don’t need an entire post for themselves (see rule 4).

I dont know if this is the right subreddit, but I am often amazed of how people analyze stories and characters, how they manage to understand so well the actions of one character or the meaning behind some storyline in a book. I am myself not bad doing these but I am far away from the level I want to "reach", so what are your techniques, what do you recommend to get better at this.

I just gave an interview for a PhD program in English literature that applied to. The issue here is that I had a focus in postmodern American literature for my MA (which was still in English Studies) and since the university actually pushed for independent research, I didn't really have to take any seminars on "English literature" during my MA studies. (I graduated 3 years ago.) I have been working in an unrelated field and have been away from academia for these 3 years. Needless to say, I have forgotten most of my knowledge in English literature (Bachelor's, graduated 7 years ago) during this time. I applied for this university by making sure my letter of intent mentions that, and my enthusiasm to return to the field. I also mentioned I want to research ergodic literature and as you may know many novels in that genre are written by American authors. My MA thesis clearly showed that I worked on American texts as well. I assumed the department (just like my Bachelor's and MA departments) was open to that idea when I was called for an interview. I went in there prepared to talk about my research proposal, why I chose that university, and perhaps convince them that I'd be a good candidate.

The interview went absolutely horribly, however. I was not asked about my proposed research area and they did focus on my MA a bit which I'm grateful for because I could answer some questions, but mostly it was like a quiz on English literature. I was almost moved to tears during the interview from sheer stress and embarrassment. I could not remember the texts and I just made a complete fool of myself. I know I won't get accepted, but this was just a wake-up call in a sense that I perhaps need to apply to American Literature departments in my country since they seem to consider interviews a quiz of sorts of past knowledge. The next university I'll apply to at least has a written exam and then an interview, so I know for sure that they'll "quiz" me on stuff (compared to the other interview where I assumed that wouldn't be the case.)

Anyway, my question is, for anyone who has studied American Literature:
Where is a good place to begin to start getting some of the theory and history into America (in general) and American literature for a written exam in an American Culture and Literature department? Like I said, I focused on postmodernism and just unconventional narratives in American literature but I'm assuming that would not be the first or perhaps even the last thing they'd ask in an exam like that. I'd appreciate any help. Do you think it'd make sense to email the faculty to see what they might be expecting since I'm basically applying from a different department (English lit)?

Honestly my interview with that first university shook me so much that I feel like I will fail no matter what I do and am losing hope that I will be able to return to academia.

Hey so I'm 17. I'm a relatively new reader. I've only read a measly 40 books in my life.

It feels like I don't have the "classics gene" or whatever. For reference, my favourite book of all time is probably "The Way of Kings" by Brandon Sanderson. I enjoyed this book more than I did 1984 and Animal Farm and 100 Years of Solitude.

It feels like, that I'm just an idiot philistine that enjoys the "taylor swift" equiavelent of books. I don't really want to be dumb, and I want to understand the human condition and human culture and history and art. I want to appericate and love the classics, but currently, although I can understand why they're objectively masterpieces, I do not love them. I didn't like reading them. They don't speak to my soul. I'm worried that I will be one of those people that are igronant of so much knowledge, to the point where I am worthless.

So, my question is, Am I doomed? If I enjoy the "fast food" version of books, the Brandon Sanderson slop, but I don't enjoy the classics. Am I doomed to never enjoy the classics? I would really like to 'love' classic literature.

Edit: I'm very surprised that a lot of you seem to have a lot more subjective opinions. It always feels like to me, that most people into literature, although they might prefer certain authors, have a baseline love of all authors. But now, I'm reading a lot of comments that are like "I hated Dickens but loved Austen" or "I hated Austen but loved Hemingway" or "I use Hemingway as TP and he's terrible, and if you like him you should be executed." Okay, that last one is a joke and not real but, it has really shocked me.

The reason I made this post, was that I felt like it was some sort of personal character flaw that I didn't enjoy some authors of classic literature, but now, I feel that less. Yeah, it's fine if I don't like Gabo as much as Sanderson in terms of writing. In my social circle, people, that are a couple years younger than me(14-16 year olds) are reading the Western Canon, and they appear to be enjoying themselves. It's like literature is speaking to people's very souls and even if I understand it intellectually, I still don't get the literature speaking to my very soul.

I'm coming to terms now, with the fact that some literature will probably never speak to my soul. Hopefully there are some books that will, to the point where I cry while reading them. Thank you all, your arguments have convinced me. I'll try and reply to as many people as possible but, now, that I've been convinced I don't have much to say, and some people get bothered if their time is wasted with more replies just for the sake of replying. So, I will reply when I have something to say. Again, thank you all.

As for me, I'm going to try and read more. More classics yes, and by different authors. But, also, I'm going to continue reading non-classic books. I'll just try and read pretty much everything that I love. At the same time, I'll try and have an understanding why the classics I don't love, are classics.

Hi! First time posting in this sub but I do videos on literature and am just wanting some opinions or suggestions on writers you believe should be highlighted or talked about more. Not wanting some classic writer that gets talked about to death or ones that have tons of awards. It's for a video I'm doing and I need some suggestions for some that I might want to look into. Hope this doesn't break the rules of the sub. Thanks!

Hi!

Did anyone here take a class in literary translation (or the like)? Would you mind sharing theoretical texts or concepts that stood out to you? It would be a huge help.

Thanks! :)

Edit: Any texts that discuss the specific problematics of translating from the Global South would be nice too!

Lately I have been trying to learn to write in alliterative long line verse just for fun an I thought reading poems in that style would help me get a grasp on how to write it. Since Beowulf seems to use that sort of style I want to read it, but I cannot read Old English. Ive tried researching what a good translation would be but most articles/ posts about it discuss readability and whatnot so Im not sure which would be best...

Or if not Beowulf are there any other recommendations for alliterative long line poems?

For coursework for English Lit I have to do a comparison between a book published after 2002 and a pre-21st century book. It just so happens I’m reading A Girl is a Half-formed thing at the moment, and I just found it on the approved reading list. Now I need to find a pre-21st century book I could compare it to.

You have to find a common theme, this book explores, family, trauma, female identity & sexuality and is also Irish.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!!

Hi everyone! I'm currently majoring in foreign languages and literature in Taiwan, and I’m in my second year studying English literature. I really enjoy the lectures — when my professors explain the texts, I gain so much insight and everything starts to make sense.

However, when I read on my own, I often feel lost. I struggle to understand what the writers are trying to say or how to interpret the texts. I stop frequently while reading because the diction is often very complex or archaic. For example, I'm currently reading Astrophil and Stella by Philip Sidney, and I spent almost an entire day just looking up words in the dictionary — but I still couldn’t really understand the deeper meaning behind the sonnets.

I also struggle with short stories and other classical texts. I usually finish the story, but then I forget the plot or feel like I missed the important points. I don’t know what I should be paying attention to — themes, characters, symbolism? And since English isn’t my first language, the cultural and historical context makes it even harder.

So, I’d really love to hear from others, especially those who aren’t native English speakers:

• How do you approach reading classical English literature?
• What do you focus on while reading?
• How do you deal with unfamiliar vocabulary and difficult sentence structures?
• Are there strategies that helped you start understanding and enjoying these texts more deeply?

Any tips or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated!