2nd Edition

Peculiar Language

By Derek Attridge Copyright 2004
278 Pages
by Routledge

280 Pages
by Routledge

280 Pages
by Routledge

First published in 1988, Peculiar Language is now established as one of the most important discussions of the language of literature. This thought-provoking book challenges traditional notions of literary criticism, arguing that all attempts by writers, critics and literary theorists to define the language of literature have involved self-contradiction. Through examination of key moments in... Read more
Acknowledgments, References, Preface to the 2004 Edition, 1. Introduction: The Peculiar Language of Literature, 2. Nature, Art, and the Supplernent in Renaissance Literary Theory: Puttenham's Poetics of Decorum, 3. Romanticism and the Language of Nature: The Project of Wordsworth's Preface, 4. Language as HistoryIHistory as Language: Saussure and the Romance of Etymology, 5. Literature as Imitation: Jakobson, Joyce, and the Art of Onomatopoeia, 6. Literature as Deviation: Syntax, Style, and the Body in Ulysses, 7. Unpacking the Portmanteau; or, Who's Afraid of Finnegans Wake?, 8. Deconstructing Digression: The Backbone of Finnegans Wake and the Margins of Culture, Works Cited, Index

Biography

Derek Attridge is Professor of English at the University of York, England. He is the author and editor of leading texts on fiction, poetry and literary theory.