Introduction to Literary Interpretation – English-language Version

The course explores key thinkers and tendencies, starting with Plato and proceeds chronologically to the turn of the twentieth century and up to the present day. While the course focuses on the relationship between literature and theory, its major focus is on theoretical questions about interpretation in their own right, which involves both historicizing ideas and considering the theoretical implications of the thinkers’ styles of argumentation.

Some of the issues addressed in the course are: the relation of literary interpretation to other forms of interpretation, the differing approaches to aesthetic judgment, taste, textuality, and authorial intentionality as well as the historicity of interpretation and interpretive validity. The course is designed to increase the students’ knowledge in these areas as well as raise awareness of the ongoing and persistent debates about the practices and limits of interpretation.