A Theory of Literary Production (Routledge Classics)
by Pierre Macherey
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Book Summary Information
Author: Pierre MachereyEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2006-03-30
ISBN: 0415378494
Number of pages: 374
Publisher: Routledge
Book Reviews of A Theory of Literary Production (Routledge Classics)
Book Review: a must-have for any literary theorist
Summary: 5 Stars
This book is quite simply a "must have" for anyone working in literary theory, literary analysis, or even historiography. Predating Derrida's Of Grammatology by a year, it nevertheless anticipates many aspects of that more famous work. This book has suffered greatly from Eagleton's misappropriation and subsequent disowning of its theses, which he transformed into a structuralist criticism. Interestingly it is only through what this book (and the essays in his In A Materialist Way collection) says about the materialities of reading that we can really grasp the operation that Eagleton's *interpretation* performed and its effects in subsequent readings of Macherey's work. I would also highly recommend Warren Montag's Louis Althusser and Bodies, Masses, Power books be read alongside this book by Macherey.
It also provides a critique of the "author" that anticipates in some ways, and complements in others, that put forward by Michel Foucault in "What is an Author?"
If you have Of Grammatology, The Archaeology of Knowledge, and/or Reading Capital you need this book because it not only will enable the theses of those books to be extended and developed but also will correct the idealist and/or structuralist elements of those books. The critique of Barthes in this book is very valuable, as are the analyses of Defoe and Verne.
Summary of A Theory of Literary Production (Routledge Classics)
"What is at stake in this book is nothing less than a dramatically new way of approaching literature, one which in its unostentatious, low key way scandalously smashes a whole range of liberal humanist icons."--Terry Eagleton
Who is more important: the reader, or the writer? Originally published in French in 1966, Pierre Macherey's first and most famous work, A Theory of Literary Production dared to challenge perceived wisdom, and quickly established him as a pivotal figure in literary theory.
In this provocative work, Macherey puts the focus as much on the reader as the writer, stating that the very act of reading is a form of production in its own right, generating interpretation and meanings which are beyond the control of the author.
Part of the birth of a whole new branch of post-structuralist theory, Macherey's work also influenced a new generation of critics among them Jacques Derrida, his contemporary, and Terry Eagleton. His ideas have also led some observers to claim that he announced the death of the author fully two years before Roland Barthes' famous essay.
The reissue of this work as a Routledge Classic brings some radical ideas to a new audience, and argues persuasively for a totally new way of reading. As such, it is an essential work for anyone interested in the development of literary theory.
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