An Examination of Etho-Poetic Reading Scenes in the Works of Jorge Luis Borges and Pascal Quignard

Abstract

This paper examines reading scenes in the works of Jorge Luis Borges and Pascal Quignard with the objective of studying the thematization and presentation of the etho-poetic aspects of reading in contemporary literature. An introductory chapter presents an overview of recent reading theories and the concept of the ‘reading scene’, which originated in writing studies (Campe, Barthes, Stingelin et al.) as well as the notion of ‘etho-poetics’ (Barthes, Foucault). Thereafter, the analysis turn to two works by Jorge Luis Borges, <i>La biblioteca de Babel</i> and <i>El libro de arena,</i> and then to Pascal Quignard’s <i>Lectio</i> and his novella <i>Le lecteur</i>. The objective of this paper is to define the different ways in which reading and life are intertwined, examining this relationship at three distinct levels: Firstly, at the level of creating literature out of reading, which represents a crucial element of the poetics of both Borges and Quignard. As will be demonstrated, both authors make extensive reference to Proust’s <i>Sur la lecture</i>. Secondly, the relationship between reading experiences and life will be examined in the context of the diegetic world. Thirdly, at the level of the reception, metalepsis functions as a means of inciting the concrete reader to consider reading from an etho-poetic perspective. In addition to these parallels, it can be assumed that in the texts of Borges, the transformative potential of the reading act is depicted as commensurate with the social life of the readers. In contrast, Quignard’s work illustrates the etho-poetic dimension of reading as an asocial practice, dissociating the reader from the social context.