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Overview
Does interpretation have anything to do with truth? This new theory of interpretation denies this, yet it argues that some interpretations are false and some are just. These theses are justified through a pragmatic model of interpretation as a language-game involving five participants: an author, a text, a reader, a language, and an encyclopedia. The model claims to provide an account of both literary interpretation and face-to-face dialogue. The central intuition is that authorial intention is radically separated from textual meaning and that consequently, the reader's role is one of necessary imposture.
Synopsis
Draws on pragmatics, literary theory and the philosophy of language to propose a new theory of literary dialogue.
Booknews
Lecercle (English, U. of Nanterre) argues that though some interpretations are false and some are just, none are true. He presents a pragmatic model of interpretation as a language game involving an author, a text, a reader, a language, and an encyclopedia, then uses it to provide an account of interpreting both face-to-face dialogue and literature. He concludes that the authorial intention is radically separated from textual meaning, so that the reader's role is necessarily imposture. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)