From “Author-Scriptor” to “Author-Constructor”: The Authorial Theory of the 1960s and a Repercussion in Contemporary Literature
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Abstract
Studies on authorial theory and authorship have proliferated during the past two decades. The majority of academic works on the topic have made reference to the authorial theory of the 1960s, which was the time when progressive ideas and methods of literary analysis and criticism revealed notable influences from structuralism, poststructuralism, psychoanalytic theory, and Marxism. The authorial theory that appeared in the writings of three influential theorists in the 1960s was the first object of interest of this research paper's analysis and discussion. The concepts that will be examined include the death of the Author-God and the author-scriptor in Roland Barthes' "The Death of the Author" (1968) and “From Work to Text” (1971), the author as producer in Pierre Macherey's A Theory of Literary Production (1968), and the author-function and discursive practice in “What Is an Author?” (1969) by Michel Foucault. The second objective of this research article is to critically respond to the authorial theory of the 1960s through a study of a contemporary literary text, The Loss Library and Other Unfinished Stories by Ivan Vladislavić. This analytical and critical study will focus on the concept of the author as architect/constructor, the paratextual practice, and the ontology of literary texts.
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