Archived threads in /lit/ - Literature - 4374. page

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Why do literature professors obsess about guessing what the "author meant"?

Like with lord of the rings, tolkien had to go around telling people that "no, it wasn't meant to be a war allegory, please stop saying that".

What purpose does it serve? Without the author confirming it, there is no way to 100% tell whether one view is correct or not and even if you are right, you win no prizes. It has about as much effect as guessing which sports team is going to win the upcoming match.

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Help me out /lit/, please.

I am a STEM student from a country that has no connection to English literature, but I want to understand and enjoy the greatest works of the English canon to the fullest. The one I'm more hyped to read is Ulysses, because everyone says it is incredibly great and I loved the Iliad and the Odyssey. Even though I'm in STEM for a carreer path it is from literature that I take the most pleasure in my life and to literature that I owe the molding of my character. I would go through great effort to understand a book like Ulysses.

I have read Dubliners and travelled to Ireland for two weeks (if that helps), and enjoyed it, even though I don't get what the rave about it is (maybe because I'm not Euro). I also have read the plays from Wilde and Dorian Gray.

The question I'm getting to is this one: Since I will not be able to attend to classes about Ulysses (because of where I am), how would I go about certifying that I am completely ready to understand it and enjoy it to it's fullest? And where would I go to learn and understand more about Ulysses after I read it? Thank you.

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What is the most American book?

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I'm looking to order The Master and Margarita by Bugakov next, but I don't know which translation to get, sounds like there are 4 main ones, and each people are very opinionated about.
Which has /lit/ read and recommends?

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So, I was thinking about Freud tonight.

Do you think he's onto something?

I've been thinking a lot lately about different approaches to psychology, and it occurs to me that I think the value of psychoanalysis probably lies IN the fact that it's not truly scientific.

I know, that sounds weird.

But it seems like there is a persistent ethical problem with biological-reductionist conceptions of psychology in that they implicitly undermine the 'humanness' of the human being. Human life is by definition conditioned by things that can't be measured: language, ideas, symbols. It seems that efforts to reduce psychology to neuroscience end up dismissing too much content that you need to study the subject properly. It seems to lead to viewing chemical imbalances as a 'a thing' in themselves, that need to be treated with chemical therapies. It seems to lead to favoring chemical therapies as first-order treatment instead of investigating whether (e.g.) the person could have a behavior pattern that is causing the imbalance, or whether there is some sort of problem in the broader society that's causing these imbalances to crop up frequently.

Basically, the 'reductionist' schools of psychology end up reducing the human being to mere matter, devoid of social significance.

This is where I think psychoanalysis may have some value. True, it's not science. But I'm not sure the field of human mental life CAN be scientific. Whether Freud's ideas are right or not, his project at least favors the idea of open communication as a potential solution. This seems preferable to the current 'prescribe amphetamines to the 6 year old after talking to him for 5 minutes' culture of mainstream psychiatry. Like, it at least is on board with the concept of human dignity, and it's not opposed to the idea that the problem might be with the broader society rather than the patient.

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Is he right?

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Hey. I'm looking for some interesting books on psychology.
It's an almost endlessly broad field, and a very interesting one.

I used to read quite a lot related to this subject. Body language, some stuff featuring case studies, about the dynamics of organizations (from Scientology to businesses to communes and autocratic regimes). I've also read very little Jung and some evolutionary psychology, which I found fascinating, and perhaps I would like to explore it further.

Anyway, please recommend me all good books related to psychology (even if only tangentially related!).
Even fiction is welcome as well. I love Dostoevsky (a master of psychology).

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No memes, just your favorite top 10, any genres. Here's mine:

Kafka, Franz: The Trial (1915)
Bulgakov, Mikhail: The Master and Margherita (1940)
Witkiewicz, Stanislaw: Insatiability
Mann, Thomas: Buddenbrooks (1901)
James, Henry: The Golden Bowl
Bronte, Emily: Wuthering Heights
Nabokov, Vladimir: Ada
Pynchon, Thomas: V
Gogol, Nikolaj: Dead Souls (1852)
Faulkner, William: Light in August

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Has anyone read this book? I'm trying to change my attitude on life and have read a few reviews in praise of it. Group therapy isn't helping much because girls are just talking about how slutty they are and their daddy issues.

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Where does /lit/ get their books? I'm looking for several old-school sci-fi titles.

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what are some good and easy to read books to introduce myself to the buddhist philosophy?

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alguien tiene esto en formato digital?

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Am I too dumb to read Philosophy?

I had never read any before, but I found myself interested in 'The Myth of Sisyphus' by Camus, not really knowing what it would be like to read. I am struggling a lot.

Did I pick the wrong book for my level? Am I too dumb? For a complete beginner philosophy seems really overwhelming to get into. Do I really need to start right at the beginning with greeks?

I guess I would ask for a good book on absurdism for someone like me, but looking it up it seems like 'Sisyphus' is THE book.

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What are the best military strategy books?

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Lit's recommendations for someone whose native language isn't English? My girlfriend has shown an interest in reading novels written in English, but the book which she chose based on the cover, Lolita, was too difficult. I gave her McCarthy's The Road and she loves that so far. She's already asking me what she should read next. ASOIF? She likes the shows...