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The Seduction of Fiction

A Plea for Putting Emotions Back into Literary Interpretation

  • Book
  • © 2016

Overview

Authors:
  1. Jean-François Vernay

    1. Noumea, New Caledonia

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  • Combines traditional European philosophies with avante-garde perspectives to discuss key questions around the act of reading
  • Reinforces the burgeoning field of affect and the utility of this approach within literary studies
  • Primed for a wide readership across academia, including scholars and students in literature, philosophy, psychology, and neuroscience.

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Table of contents (9 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xxv
    Download chapter PDF

  2. The Multiple Possibilities of Reading

    • Jean-François Vernay
    Pages 1-9

  3. Interpretation as an Art

    • Jean-François Vernay
    Pages 11-16

  4. Context Matters

    • Jean-François Vernay
    Pages 17-22

  5. The Writer’s Seductive Power

    • Jean-François Vernay
    Pages 23-28

  6. The Symbiosis of Psychoanalysis and Fiction

    • Jean-François Vernay
    Pages 29-37

  7. The Art of Storytelling

    • Jean-François Vernay
    Pages 39-43

  8. The Novel as a Work of Bad Faith

    • Jean-François Vernay
    Pages 45-51

  9. The Impossible Quest for Truth

    • Jean-François Vernay
    Pages 53-59

  10. Breaking New Ground: The Psycholiterary Approach to Fiction

    • Jean-François Vernay
    Pages 61-76

  11. Back Matter

    Pages 77-96
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Keywords

About this book

By meshing psychology with literary analysis, this book inspires us to view the reading of fictional works as an emotional and seductive affair between reader and writer. Arguing that current teaching practices have contributed to the current decline in the study of literature, Jean-François Vernay’s plea brings a refreshing perspective by seeking new directions and conceptual tools to highlight the value of literature. Interdisciplinary in focus and relevant to timely discussions of the vitality between emotion and literary studies, particularly within the contexts of psychology, affect studies, and cognitive studies, this book will open up a space in which the formation of our emotions can be openly examined and discussed.






Reviews

“As a review of key discussions about three main points of literary triangle consisting of the writer, text and reader, the book is highly recommended to both students and teachers of literature.” (Nataša Kampmark, TEXT, Vol. 23 (2), October, 2019)

Authors and Affiliations

  • Noumea, New Caledonia

    Jean-François Vernay

About the author

Jean-François Vernay has published extensively in the field of Literary Studies both in French and in English. His books, Water from the Moon: Illusion and Reality in the Works of Australian Novelist Christopher Koch and A Brief Take on the Australian Novel, focus on Australian fiction.



Carolyne Lee is a Senior Fellow in the School of Culture & Communication at the University of Melbourne, Australia. She has published four books, the latest being Our Very Own Adventure.











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