Literary Theory and Psychoanalysis

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the relationship and compatibility between literary criticism and psychoanalysis. To do so, it examines the underlying dynamics within the two disciplines. The paper concludes that there are numerous instances in which literary criticism and psychoanalytic theory converge, most notably in regard to the understanding of language.

From the Paper:

"When considering the compatibility of psychoanalytic theory with literary criticism, one must recall that both disciplines are inherently unstable in their content. What can be considered stable, however, is the way in which the disciplines discover and expand knowledge. Neither discipline lays claim to a definite knowledge that is transferred from one to the other, while their theories are constantly being challenged and reinterpreted; what may appear compatible now is subject to change. In that sense, psychoanalytic theory and literary criticism can neither be considered compatible nor incompatible in their entirety. Rather, psychoanalysis is best regarded as a fluid tool that contains a number of similarities and intersections of thought with literary criticism. To reframe the question of compatibility, we could ask: At what points can psychoanalysis supplement literary criticism, and vice versa?"

Sample of Sources Used:

• Con Davis, Robert; Schleifer, Ronald, Editors. Contemporary Literary Criticism. United States: Addison Wesley Longman, Inc., 1998.
• Selden, Raman; Widdowson, Peter; Brooker, Peter. A Reader's Guide to Contemporary Literary Theory, Fifith Edition. Great Britain: Pearson, 2005.
• Zizek, Slavoj. "Two Ways to Avoid the Real of Desire" in Con Davis, Robert; Schleifer, Ronald, Editors. Contemporary Literary Criticism. United States: Addison Wesley Longman, Inc., 1998.
• Mulvey, Laura. "Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema" in Con Davis, Robert; Schleifer, Ronald, Editors. Contemporary Literary Criticism. United States: Addison Wesley Longman, Inc., 1998.
• Felman, Shoshana. "Psychoanalysis and Education: Teaching Terminable and Interminable" in Con Davis, Robert; Schleifer, Ronald, Editors. Contemporary Literary Criticism. United States: Addison Wesley Longman, Inc., 1998.

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