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Question posted on July 31, 2014; 1 response
I have just finished Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy, and like so many find the purely wicked Judge Holden the most fascinating character. And there are other wicked characters that fascinate. But pure goodness doesn't seem to make for that...
Ethics, Literature Show

Question posted on February 29, 2012; 1 response
I am starting research for a term paper in a metaphysics class and have chosen the topic "Do Fictional Characters Exist?" I read Peter Van Inwagen's "Creatures of Fiction" as well as a couple journal articles that seem to...
Literature Show

Question posted on January 3, 2012; 1 response
As it's the holiday season I've had a definite overdose of holiday mythology. The bit that got me thinking the most was re-encountering the character E. Scrooge, of Dickens' "A Christmas Carol", particularly in light of recent political/economic events in...
Justice, Literature Show

Question posted on January 3, 2012; 1 response
If every person can interpret a work of literature differently, by linking the depictions with experiences in their life or knowledge they have acquired, how is it possible for literary critics to "analyze" the meanings of works of literature?...
Literature Show

Question posted on November 12, 2011; 1 response
Literary theory often urges us to ignore what the author believes or says about his or her own work, and to look at the text itself. Yet many literary theorists (perhaps not necessarily good ones, but many nonetheless) couch...
Literature Show

Question posted on July 29, 2011; 1 response
If you could recommend one novel for high school students about the subject of philosophy what would it be? I'm looking for a work that is readable, entertaining and raises important philosophical issues as they relate to the Theory...
Education, Literature, Philosophy Show

Question posted on June 9, 2011; 1 response
When I read Shakespeare or Sophocles I feel like I am getting a glimpse into a powerful mythical dimension of fate and synchronicity that those writers seem to have a masterful vision of. However, the mythical dimension of life is...
Literature, Philosophy Show

Question posted on June 5, 2011; 1 response
How do novels, plays, or works of music exist? Consider the Iliad. The original copy of the Iliad was lost long, long ago, yet the Iliad continues to exist through its copies. If all original-language versions of the Iliad...
Existence, Literature Show

Question posted on April 6, 2011; 1 response
When reading a text, is it possible to determine the true meaning of the text, or is meaning that which is in some way picked up on by the audience, regardless of what literary critics say? I ask because...
Literature Show

Question posted on April 6, 2011; 1 response
In response to a previous question Sean Greenberg characterized philosophy as consisting of arguments? Is that true? Doesn't much of philosophy consist of description as well and isn't that different from argument? Is a defense of a description (which I...
Literature Show

Question posted on March 30, 2011; 2 responses
Was Shakespeare REALLY a philosophical genius? I've read many impressive interpretations of his work from the various literary schools of theory but none of them seem to sort out Shakespeare's philosophical views in a straightforward and clear way. Have analytic...
Literature, Philosophy Show

Question posted on December 4, 2010; 2 responses
I was wondering if you have any recommendations for works of fiction that have a clear, prevalent philosophical underpinning. For example, I enjoyed the theme of absurdism in Albert Camus' _The Plague_, but I don't have enough free time right...
Literature, Philosophy Show

Question posted on October 19, 2010; 2 responses
When investigating the relationship between works of fiction (literature, film, TV shows, etc) and social issues like racism and particularly sexism, it seems to me that much debate involves judging the work in question based on *possible* interpretations, rather than...
Literature Show

Question posted on June 29, 2010; 2 responses
Is listening to a classic book on tape, unabridged, sufficient to be able to claim to have read it?...
Literature Show

Question posted on June 28, 2010; 1 response
What is a poem? I'm thinking about this in reference to developments from Modernism on. The writer presents something novel in form with some familiar signs such as appearance on the page, embedded quotations or references, etc. The reader likes...
Literature Show

Question posted on May 13, 2010; 1 response
Many people will say that such and such a poem or book or movie taught deep truths but then they never say what exactly they learn and I rarely challenge them since I suspect that they don't know. But I...
Literature Show

Question posted on April 29, 2010; 1 response
What is the sense of literature at all? Sometimes I wonder if the sense of literature is merely a capitalistic one. I am a writer myself, I like to write, a creativity in me that walks its own roads. But...
Literature Show

Question posted on January 23, 2009; 1 response
Can we learn anything from fiction?...
Knowledge, Literature Show

Question posted on December 28, 2008; 1 response
How useful is it studying literature? The reason I ask is because (at least my high school) English courses seem to miss the target. Let me explain. We read the text. We find the "what's" of the work, what the...
Literature Show

Question posted on September 14, 2008; 1 response
I have question about the ethics of life writing. What can I (or any other author for that matter) write in an autobiographical work? My life and my autobiography belong to me, so I should be able to decide what...
Ethics, Literature Show




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