Less Legible Meanings: Between Poetry and Philosophy in the Work of Emerson by P

Description: Less Legible Meanings: Between Poetry and Philosophy in the Work of Emerson by Pamela J. Schirmeister, Schirmeister Pamela Examining both why and how Emerson evades the ancient quarrel between literature and philosophy, this book entirely rethinks the nature of Emerson's radical individualism and its relation to the possibility of an ethics and a politics. FORMAT Hardcover LANGUAGE English CONDITION Brand New Publisher Description Examining both why and how Emerson evades the ancient quarrel between literature and philosophy, this book entirely rethinks the nature of Emerson's radical individualism and its relation to the possibility of an ethics and a politics.The author argues that the quarrel between literature and philosophy never took place in America, and that instead traditional philosophical work staged itself here as a form of literary praxis and cultural therapeutics. Epitomized in the work of Emerson, this praxis takes shape explicitly in Emerson's understanding of democracy and occurs as an exchange within the act of reading. This is the exchange that Emerson so eloquently calls for in "The American Scholar" under the name of "letters." Emerson's project for American letters is the creation of a new national identity; as "Less Legible Meanings" makes clear, we have not yet understood the full range of implications that this project entails.After situating American letters in relation to German and British Romanticism and the features of American culture that augmented and altered their reception in the United States, the book goes on to explore the type of reading that Emersonian rhetoric engenders. Both persuasive and tropological, this rhetoric elicits from the reader something similar to psychoanalytic transference. Its goal is to lead the reader to a point at which representational logic breaks down so that a new subject can take shape. The purpose of such rhetoric, however, extends well beyond personal self-creation, because the construction of the subject emerges as the very possibility of the passage from the private sphere to the public one. In this passage, our entire notion of liberal individualism must be rethought, and with it, the pragmatic question of Emersonian ethics and politics.A revisionary study of some of Emerson's central essays, "Less Legible Meanings" also invites the reader to reconsider the nature of Emerson's influence on contemporary American culture and to discover new ways in which we might continue to understand his work. Interdisciplinary in scope, the book makes equal use of the history of philosophy, psychoanalytic theory, and cultural history. Back Cover "An ambitious, original, and important book that will change the way we read Emersons work."-Edgar A. Dryden, University of Arizona Flap Examining both why and how Emerson evades the ancient quarrel between literature and philosophy, this book entirely rethinks the nature of Emersons radical individualism and its relation to the possibility of an ethics and a politics. The author argues that the quarrel between literature and philosophy never took place in America, and that instead traditional philosophical work staged itself here as a form of literary praxis and cultural therapeutics. Epitomized in the work of Emerson, this praxis takes shape explicitly in Emersons understanding of democracy and occurs as an exchange within the act of reading. This is the exchange that Emerson so eloquently calls for in "The American Scholar" under the name of "letters." Emersons project for American letters is the creation of a new national identity; as Less Legible Meanings makes clear, we have not yet understood the full range of implications that this project entails. After situating American letters in relation to German and British Romanticism and the features of American culture that augmented and altered their reception in the United States, the book goes on to explore the type of reading that Emersonian rhetoric engenders. Both persuasive and tropological, this rhetoric elicits from the reader something similar to psychoanalytic transference. Its goal is to lead the reader to a point at which representational logic breaks down so that a new subject can take shape. The purpose of such rhetoric, however, extends well beyond personal self-creation, because the construction of the subject emerges as the very possibility of the passage from the private sphere to the public one. In this passage, our entire notion of liberal individualism must be rethought, and with it, the pragmatic question of Emersonian ethics and politics. A revisionary study of some of Emersons central essays, Less Legible Meanings also invites the reader to reconsider the nature of Emersons influence on contemporary American culture and to discover new ways in which we might continue to understand his work. Interdisciplinary in scope, the book makes equal use of the history of philosophy, psychoanalytic theory, and cultural history. Author Biography Pamela J. Schirmeister has taught at Middlebury College, New York University, and the University of Konstanz. She is the author of" The Consolations of Space: The Place of Romance in Hawthorne, Melville, and James "(Stanford, 1990) and has edited an edition of Emerson’ s" Representative Men." Table of Contents Introduction Part I. American Letter and Cultural Therapeutics: 1. We scholars Part II. The Emersonian Subject: Reading and Transference: 2. From philosophy to rhetoric 3. reading transference Part III. Transfers of Reading: Toward an Emersonian Politics: 4. Settling accounts: experience 5. From exemplarity to representativeness 6. Measures of silence Notes Index. Review "An ambitious, original, and important book that will change the way we read Emersons work." - Edgar A. Dryden, University of Arizona Long Description Examining both why and how Emerson evades the ancient quarrel between literature and philosophy, this book entirely rethinks the nature of Emersons radical individualism and its relation to the possibility of an ethics and a politics. The author argues that the quarrel between literature and philosophy never took place in America, and that instead traditional philosophical work staged itself here as a form of literary praxis and cultural therapeutics. Epitomized in the work of Emerson, this praxis takes shape explicitly in Emersons understanding of democracy and occurs as an exchange within the act of reading. This is the exchange that Emerson so eloquently calls for in "The American Scholar" under the name of "letters." Emersons project for American letters is the creation of a new national identity; as Less Legible Meanings makes clear, we have not yet understood the full range of implications that this project entails. After situating American letters in relation to German and British Romanticism and the features of American culture that augmented and altered their reception in the United States, the book goes on to explore the type of reading that Emersonian rhetoric engenders. Both persuasive and tropological, this rhetoric elicits from the reader something similar to psychoanalytic transference. Its goal is to lead the reader to a point at which representational logic breaks down so that a new subject can take shape. The purpose of such rhetoric, however, extends well beyond personal self-creation, because the construction of the subject emerges as the very possibility of the passage from the private sphere to the public one. In this passage, our entire notion of liberal individualism must be rethought, and with it, the pragmatic question of Emersonian ethics and politics. A revisionary study of some of Emersons central essays, Less Legible Meanings also invites the reader to reconsider the nature of Emersons influence on contemporary American culture and to discover new ways in which we might continue to understand his work. Interdisciplinary in scope, the book makes equal use of the history of philosophy, psychoanalytic theory, and cultural history. Review Quote An ambitious, original, and important book that will change the way we read Emersons work." Details ISBN0804730156 Author Schirmeister Pamela Short Title LESS LEGIBLE MEANINGS Publisher Stanford University Press Language English ISBN-10 0804730156 ISBN-13 9780804730150 Media Book Format Hardcover DEWEY 814.3 Illustrations Yes Year 2000 Publication Date 2000-01-31 Imprint Stanford University Press Place of Publication Palo Alto Country of Publication United States Edition 1st Pages 240 Subtitle Between Poetry and Philosophy in the Work of Emerson DOI 10.1604/9780804730150 Audience Professional and Scholarly UK Release Date 2000-01-01 AU Release Date 2000-01-01 NZ Release Date 2000-01-01 US Release Date 2000-01-01 We've got this At The Nile, if you're looking for it, we've got it. With fast shipping, low prices, friendly service and well over a million items - you're bound to find what you want, at a price you'll love! TheNile_Item_ID:159569762;

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