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Critical Synoptics : Menippean Satire and the Analysis of Intellectual Mythology

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This is a book of play, not a dry academic reference book. Part of the enjoyment of reading this, unlike reading many an academic book, is the playful, humorous voice of the author.

Because of its scope (covering everything from Hawthorne to Moorcock) and its style, the book should be read in order and not just consulted piecemeal. Reading it in order allows the reader to discover how certain words are being defined and used -- for example, my immediate reaction to the phrase "ideals of the Enlightenment" is different from how Kaplan ultimately defines it. Also, reading it in order exposes the entire range and scope of the satiric play, allowing the reader to see the various contradictions -- the statements against categorization/taxonomic nomenclature followed by his own categorization for example or the seemingly contradictory reactions to complexity theory and science that only make sense in the context of his enactment of Menippean Satire itself. Without reading the book in order, Chapter 9 "The Edge of Capital" seems out of place because of subject matter and voice. By reading that chapter and then Chapter 10, "Scaling up the Homeric Question," the reader understands the purpose of chapter 9.

Do not turn to this book to find a quick definition of Menippean Satire -- although the book does define it -- or the one and only reading of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" -- although Kaplan does provide one. Rather, the importance of the book lies in its enactment of satire itself and the power and depth of the illustrations of critical synoptics. You leave the book not with an answer to how certain works should be read but with more questions about how to read, about what particular texts mean, about connections between texts -- in fact, about whether the book you've just read is a satire or not itself. These questions are not the result of a flaw in the book but in fact emphasize the notion inherent in the book that the universe is "variable and particular," that there is no Platonic absolute (121). The epigram that begins Chapter 10 and speaks of riddles with no answers also emphasizes that this is a book that is a riddle without an answer. In describing Melville's practice as "synoptic analysis" and his method as consisting "of testing propositions by examining them in contexts where they will be revealed as either valid or nonsensical"(124), Kaplan describes his own method. For me, the appeal of the book is not in the specific readings of texts he provides -- to be honest, some seemed to be very commonsensical readings easily arrived at after closely reading the text (or perhaps I have just been trained academically in the same manner) or, as in the case of some of the readings of Blake for example, are ones I find oversimplified -- but instead in his approach, his activity of exploration and questioning.

Anyone interested in examining literature and understanding satire, anyone knowledgeable about academic infighting in literary criticism and theory, or anyone who just wants a book to engage their intellect and make them chuckle at the same time should check this book out.

This book provided me with a deeper understanding of both contemporary philosophy and the satirical genre.The Author's brilliant marriage of Wittgensteinian philosophy and modern literary criticism was simply brillant.I thoroughly enjoyed the book and highly recommend it for student and scholars alike.

This is a book of play, not a dry academic reference book. Part of the enjoyment of reading this, unlike reading many an academic book, is the playful, humorous voice of the author.

Because of its scope (covering everything from Hawthorne to Moorcock) and its style, the book should be read in order and not just consulted piecemeal. Reading it in order allows the reader to discover how certain words are being defined and used -- for example, my immediate reaction to the phrase "ideals of the Enlightenment" is different from how Kaplan ultimately defines it. Also, reading it in order exposes the entire range and scope of the satiric play, allowing the reader to see the various contradictions -- the statements against categorization/taxonomic nomenclature followed by his own categorization for example or the seemingly contradictory reactions to complexity theory and science that only make sense in the context of his enactment of Menippean Satire itself. Without reading the book in order, Chapter 9 "The Edge of Capital" seems out of place because of subject matter and voice. By reading that chapter and then Chapter 10, "Scaling up the Homeric Question," the reader understands the purpose of chapter 9.

Do not turn to this book to find a quick definition of Menippean Satire -- although the book does define it -- or the one and only reading of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" -- although Kaplan does provide one. Rather, the importance of the book lies in its enactment of satire itself and the power and depth of the illustrations of critical synoptics. You leave the book not with an answer to how certain works should be read but with more questions about how to read, about what particular texts mean, about connections between texts -- in fact, about whether the book you've just read is a satire or not itself. These questions are not the result of a flaw in the book but in fact emphasize the notion inherent in the book that the universe is "variable and particular," that there is no Platonic absolute (121). The epigram that begins Chapter 10 and speaks of riddles with no answers also emphasizes that this is a book that is a riddle without an answer. In describing Melville's practice as "synoptic analysis" and his method as consisting "of testing propositions by examining them in contexts where they will be revealed as either valid or nonsensical"(124), Kaplan describes his own method. For me, the appeal of the book is not in the specific readings of texts he provides -- to be honest, some seemed to be very commonsensical readings easily arrived at after closely reading the text (or perhaps I have just been trained academically in the same manner) or, as in the case of some of the readings of Blake for example, are ones I find oversimplified -- but instead in his approach, his activity of exploration and questioning.

Anyone interested in examining literature and understanding satire, anyone knowledgeable about academic infighting in literary criticism and theory, or anyone who just wants a book to engage their intellect and make them chuckle at the same time should check this book out.

Critical Synoptics is a study of satire and British philosophy. Carter Kaplan argues that the tradition of satire from the early Greeks to the present day represents an important philosophical critique of the misguided claims that arise again and again in the fields of science, education, and religion. The book compares the important ideas of the great modern philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein to the work of such authors as Herman Melville, Nathaniel Hawthorne, William Blake, and John Milton. After tracing the history of "intellectual mythology" as it is treated in satirical literature, the book examines intellectual mythology in dystopian works such as Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 and Anthony Burgess's A Clockwork Orange. The book concludes with an analysis of contemporary myths which support runaway consumer society and various corporate challenges to democracy and academic freedom.

For the past twenty years, literary study has been dominated by scientific or pseudo-scientific approaches to literature, and the discussion in university classrooms has emphasized academic fashion and theory. Kaplan's book instead emphasizes the ideas that drive great and popular literature. He goes beyond the established academic cultures of knowledge, and makes a forceful (and humorous) statement of humanistic understanding.

The book will be helpful to people seeking a readable introduction to the study of contemporary philosophy and satirical literature. Kaplan provides clear descriptions of the humbug that is targeted again and again in the satirical tradition: from the claims of dubious philosophers in ancient Greece to the unintelligible incantations of today's mystical masters of postmodernism.