Role Of Literature In Society Research Articles

MODERN KAZAKH LITERATURE STUDIES: ACHIEVEMENTS, PROBLEMS, DEVELOPMENT PROSPECTS

"The end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries were marked for the Kazakh society by entering a new stage of development. The universal values that determine the concepts of modern social changes have undoubtedly influenced national literary criticism, posing new tasks for the correct determination of development prospects through an objective revision of the past, marked by ideological pressure. The formation of new aesthetic knowledge in assessing the role of literature in society, the appeal to new forms, methods and means of reflecting reality, the development of scientific and theoretical approaches and the definition of new principles for studying the nature of the literary process are characteristic features of modern Kazakh literary criticism. At the current stage, the urgent task is to identify the patterns of development of literary science, comprehensive differentiation of scientific research, the definition of methodological concepts, theoretical foundations and areas of research, the assessment of achievements and the definition of prospects for new research. Being an important branch of the social and human sciences, modern Kazakh literary criticism seeks to rethink its way of becoming as a field of scientific knowledge in order to evaluate its achievements and identify shortcomings that occur at each stage of development. The article deals with the scientific and theoretical problems of modern Kazakh literary criticism, reflecting innovative searches. At the same tiem6 the evaluation and analysis of studies based on new research methods and scientific principles is of great importance. Special place is occupied by theoretical works written on the basis of hermeneutics, structuralism, semiotics and other innovative research methods. Analysis of the main achievements, literary and theoretical problems, directions of development of modern Kazakh literary criticism is presented as well. Keywords: Kazakh literary studies, theory and history of national literature, methodology. "

Cartografías políticas del recuerdo: identidad y espacio en Mapa dibujado por un espía de Guillermo Cabrera Infante

This work addresses the way geographical space is represented in Mapa dibujado por un espía (2013) by Guillermo Cabrera Infante. Taking into account the notions of Wayne C. Booth and Walter Benjamin regarding the narrator and the role of literature in society, we analyze this formal aspect of the text, the focalization of which proposes a “true” plot. The cartography of La Havana is based on the experience of the Cuban revolutionary reality that contrasts radically with the memories of the capital in the 50s. The historical data and the perception of the protagonist are combined in order to trace his identity, which is a form of the author’s insertion in the text: politics and daily life converge in order to re-map a space in which traditional culture and revolutionary cultural control are contrasted.

ПАНТЕЛЕЙМОН КУЛІШ ЯК ЛІТЕРАТУРНИЙ КРИТИК: ОСОБЛИВОСТІ СТИЛЮ

The article deals with the work of Panteleimon Kulish (1819–1897) as a literary critic. Here is analyzed his article about Hryhoriy Kvitka-Osnovianenko, which was published in 1858 in St. Petersburg in a separate brochure. It has been found out that consideration of the writer’s creativity in the historical and world context, conclusion of generalizations, clarification of the most characteristic aesthetic features of the analyzed works, view on creativity through the author’s biography, journalism, emotionality, argumentation are characteristic for style of Kulish as a literary critic. At the beginning of the article, Kulish talks about the place and role of literature in society. He draws attention to the development and level of literature in the context of the historical development of the state. He gives examples from different literatures and concludes that the development of culture does not always go hand in hand with the development of the state. The author says that the opposite is the case: the decline of a state or kingdom is observed, and at the same time, literature, culture is developing. P. Kulish gives examples from Czech, Polish literature. These facts are important to him because he sees the same in Ukrainian literature. Kulish speaks about literature as a national spirit living in the artistic word. He emphasizes that literature is the key to being a nation. Analyzing the work of H. Kvitka-Osnovyanenko, P. Kulish draws attention to the language of works as the main factor of the text, because of which language appears as a representation of the national spirit, as a guarantee of prosperity of the people. He emphasizes that through literature the people manifest their mission of philanthropy. The works of H. Kvitka-Osnovyanenko, writes P. Kulish, have appeared during difficult years, and show national spirit, they are organic with time requirements. The author briefly describes the biography of H. Kvitka-Osnovyanenko. The journalistic style is characteristic of him. P. Kulish explains where H. Kvitka got his knowledge of the Ukrainian language, why he was so respectful to religion, which later became one of the central themes in his work. In analyzing H. Kvitka-Osnovyanenko’s stories, P. Kulish emphasizes moral and ethical aspects. According to one article by Panteleimon Kulish, we see that he is an interesting critic. His text contains a lot of information, generalizations, reveals typical in the history of peoples and cultures.

Відображення проблем державотворення у літературі (за матеріалами автобіографічного твору Романа Іваничука «Благослови, душе моя, господа…»)

The article tackles a vital problem of nowadays. The topicality of the title selected is determined by insufficient literary research of the motive of Ukrainian state formation highlighted in the writers’ works. A special role among the writers who raised the issues of state formation is played by R. Ivanychuk. This is a prominent writer of nowadays, the author of many collections of stories and short stories as well as the author of more than twenty historical novels. All the novels by Ivanychuk are united into one cycle and are based on the same material, the common historical events and characters as well as symbols and cross-cutting themes and ideas. The most significant of those ideas is the one of love for the homeland and for the nation as the sense of human existence. His book «Bless the Lord…» was published in 1993. In the foreword MP of Ukraine R. Ivanychuk as a writer and politician traces the history of his generation and the formation of its national consciousness after proclaiming the independence of Ukraine. The author shows how through parliamentary battles and party wars the brand new literary process emerged with a focus on literary and political leaders he knew well enough. This peculiar chronicle is based on a great number of memories of the difficult events associated with the creation of independent Ukraine after the collapse of the empire – the USSR. The author presents his memories as an integral part of the Ukrainian literature. From a writer’s point of view, a master of words cannot get rid of these age-old questions if he is truly hurt by the fate of the nation. The work is composed of two parts: «Literature and state» and «State and literature». This is a peculiar view of the problem – an artist and the power, the problem of the past and the future of our nation. In the writer’s view, the master of the word cannot evade from these everlasting questions if he or she really cares for the nation’s fate. Focusing on the high purpose of the writer, R. Ivanychuk in the second part of his memoirs mentions the difficult relationship between the writers and the authorities. This work evidences the main assignment of writing – building a new democratic Ukraine. Both in the analyzed work and in his numerous speeches, the writer emphasized that literature is a temple. And in this temple there should be no place for artisans from literature, who carry dirt into the spiritual life, disdain for man, for his future. The second part of the book abounds in the writer’s speculations about the role of literature in society and in requirements as per its high artistry level. The writer thinks that literature is a temple that cannot give any room for bunglers from literature who bring garbage to their works as well as disrespect for the human being and for his / her future.

“Remaining for the moment without an audience”: The Literary and Civil Commitment of Carles Riba

Abstract Carles Riba (1893–1959) wrote several articles in which he showed his commitment to literature and reflected on the role of literature in society, as “Socrates in front of the judges” (1926), “Politicians and Intellectuals” (1927), “Literature and Rescuing Groups” (1938) and the presentations of the Revista de Catalunya (1939 and 1955). Many of these texts were written in turbulent political contexts: the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera (1923–1929), the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939) and the post-war period under Franco (1939–1959). The aim of this paper is to study these articles and analyse Riba’s view of writers and intellectuals.

Realism in the twentieth-century Indian novel: colonial difference and literary form

Early twentieth-century Indian novels often depict the harsh material conditions of life under British colonial rule. Even so, these 'realist' novels are profoundly imaginative. In this study, Ulka Anjaria challenges the distinction between early twentieth-century social realism and modern-day magical realism, arguing that realism in the colony functioned as a mode of experimentation and aesthetic innovation – not merely as mimesis of the 'real world'. By examining novels from the 1930s across several Indian languages, Anjaria reveals how Indian authors used realist techniques to imagine alternate worlds, to invent new subjectivities and relationships with the Indian nation and to question some of the most entrenched values of modernity. Addressing issues of colonialism, Indian nationalism, the rise of Gandhi, religion and politics, and the role of literature in society, Anjaria's careful analysis will complement graduate study and research in English literature, South Asian studies and postcolonial studies.

Aesthetics and the ‘Other’ in Recent Novels of the Spanish Civil War

This essay considers the nature of the contribution made by contemporary Spanish novelists to the process of the recovery of historical memory and the construction of a democratic state in Spain specifically from within the literary field. It begins by reviewing some current thinking in critical theory on the role of literature in society and the relationship between the arts and democracy before moving on to an analysis of two novels published in 2006: Tres cipreses by Manuel Ramos Ramos and La higuera by Ramiro Pinilla. The purpose of this analysis is to show how even today some novels continue to offer one-sided accounts of the Spanish Civil War while others offer a more complex account of the events and to argue that while the first does little to further understanding of the conflict, the latter can be read in a literary mode which, by offering an encounter with ‘the other’, deepens understanding and so makes an essential contribution to a maturing democracy.

Po co czytać literaturę?

The essay in question is the translation of the fourth chapter of J. Hillis Miller’s book, On literature (2002), in which he circles around questions elemental yet convoluted for literary criticism. Miller reminds us about (as ancient as archetypal) dilemmas concerning the role of literature in society (e.g. Plato’s putdown of poetry and Aristotle’s defense of it) and discloses contemporary judgments covertly rooted in them. The fundamental issue is why Western culture has granted literature such great authority. His argument reposes on an assumption that literary works give us access to virtual realities that are not otherwise knowable.

Artful words

Because, as the philosopher Swedenborg reminds us, the written word is humankind's exclusive property, there is common recognition that the responsibility of writers for this treasure is great. Yet there are as many disagreements on, as definitions of, the role of literature in society

Author, text and reader in the novels of Carlos Fuentes

Author, Text and Reader in the Novels of Carlos Fuentes focuses on the problem of communication as one of the central preoccupations that remains consistent throughout the literary production of Mexican novelist Carlos Fuentes. This preoccupation manifests itself at the discursive level of the author's fiction as he continually seeks different means of expression from novel to novel. Concentrating on four novels that illustrate this aesthetic, Cambio de piel (1967), Terra Nostra (1975), Una familia lejana (1980) and Cristobal Nonato (1987), this study examines the means of textualization by which Fuentes activates his reader and how this coincides with his notions of the role of literature in society.

What's Missing in New Historicism or the "Poetics" of Feminist Literary Criticism

What's Missing in New Historicism or the "Poetics" of Feminist Literary Criticism Sara Friedrichsmeyer and Jeanette Clausen Judging by recent conference programs, special journal issues, and calls for papers, a great deal of critical attention is being focused on new historicism. Just what is this phenomenon, and should feminist Germanists concern themselves with it? We have chosen to address this topic because we think some démystification is needed. We would like to situate our observations in the context of the current discussion on the relationship between feminist Germanistik and the rest of the profession. Touted as a way of doing literary criticism that spurns the formalism of new criticism as well as the positivism of nineteenth-century German or "old" historicism, new historicism seems poised to become one of the dominant critical positions of the 1990s. In little more than a decade it has spread from its somewhat casual coinage by Stephen Greenblatt to a variety of academic disciplines with the speed of what Adam Begley, writing in the New York Times Magazine last spring, likened to a "California brash fire" (32). And that despite the lack of a theory or methodology or unifying epistemology of the kind traditionally required for a "school of criticism." Greenblatt himself exhibits a postmodern disdain for systematization, stressing instead the tentativeness of the enterprise and the importance of remaining ever open to the new. Louis Montrose, another proponent of new historicism, emphasizes his refusal to call it a "school, movement, or program," opting instead for "merely... an emergent historical orientation" (406), by titling a recent article "New Historicisms."1 New historicism then defies any clear definition, as little of its methodologies as of its theoretical underpinnings. Nevertheless, what Greenblatt would call a "practice" (15) threatens to become dogma. While its effect on German departments is less pervasive than on certain other disciplines, the summer 1992 issue of Monatshefte devoted to its discussion and even the 1993 WIG-sponsored MLA session at which another version of this essay was read reflect its encroachment. Not that new historicism is without its detractors: throughout the country it has been the focus of a sometimes heated debate from the right and the left, both from within and outside of academia (cf. Will). The contributors to the Monatshefte issue do not offer unanimous praise, and Women in German Yearbook 9 (1993) 254What's Missing in New Historicism feminists too are of differing persuasions. While there are certainly feminists who publish in Representations, the journal Greenblatt helped found at Berkeley, others have expressed their skepticism and for a variety of reasons (Lennox). We would like to add our voices to theirs, challenging new historicism's claim to uniqueness on the one hand and questioning its compatibility with the goals of feminist literary criticism on the other. Most explicators of new historicism in fact acknowledge that it is not new and stress instead its eclectic nature. It is our contention that as part of its eclecticism, it has incorporated—not necessarily consciously—many of the underlying theoretical postulates and assumptions of feminist criticism, without, however, adopting feminism's unifying focus on gender. Thus we are skeptical of those who celebrate the new historicism —or "poetics of culture" as Greenblatt calls it—as a panacea for rejuvenating the profession (Kaes), but not because we disagree with its fundamental practices, for many of those practices are already inherent in most forms of feminist literary criticism. Rather, we believe it does not sufficiently challenge the critical practices it claims to refute. The repudiation of new criticism did not spring newly born from the new historians, but has in fact been one of the main propellants of feminist Germanistik and other oppositional criticism. If we do a little history ourselves, many of us remember our own training in the methods of new criticism with its exclusive focus on the text in question and its sublime refusal to consider social, political, and historical contexts. It was partly as a reaction to that type of formalism that feminists began to develop their own interdisciplinary approaches to understanding the role of literature in society. Greenblatt may have formulated his term as a punning response to new...

Changing our own words: essays on criticism, theory, and writing by Black women

Writing by and about black women has become essential to any consideration of the role of literature in society. Black women's writing raises issues of race, class and gender, and questions the formation of the literary canon, the creation and maintenance of tradition and the role of the media in controlling perceptions of what matters. In the wake of the pioneering work of literary historians in re-discovering lost works and a Renaissance of black women's writing heralded by books such as Toni Morrison's Sula and Alice Walker's The Color Purple, the contributors to Changing Our Own Words explore the relationship of criticism, theory and writing in works by black women. Central to this exploration is the idea of changing words - a recurrent figure in the prose of Zora Neale Hurston. To change words with someone is to exercise a right to speech: a right that black women, at great risk to themselves, claim as a requisite part of claiming a self.

Hugo von Hofmannsthal: the theaters of consciousness

This book focuses on Hugo von Hofmannsthal's intense, lifelong concentration upon a single cohesive set of poetic, philosophical and ethical concerns, a quality of his work which has been neglected in the bulk of existing scholarship. Professor Bennett examines Hofmannsthal's work in the context of literary theory and the history of philosophy, referring especially to Nietzsche, German Idealism and the poetics of German Classicism. He identifies three principal areas of concern to Hofmannsthal: the theory of genre, the question of the role of literature in society and the search for a fruitful response to the problem of the historical development of culture. The argument proceeds by way of detailed interpretation of texts, including Der Tor und der Tod, the Chandos letter, Ariadne auf Naxos, Der Schwierige, Das Salzburger Grosse Welttheater and Der Turm.