Psychoanalysis and the Scene of Reading (The Clarendon Lectures in English Literature, 1997) [Hardcover]

Mary Jacobus (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0198184344 | ISBN-13: 978-0198184348 | Publication Date: November 18, 1999

This book explores some of the ways in which we think about reading and the effects reading has on us. It gives a literary critic's approach to the scene of reading understood from a psychoanalytic perspective. Whether considered as a process, a representation, or a cultural activity, reading involves the idea of inner and outer, absence and boundaries, and the transmission of thoughts and feelings between one person or historical period to another.

Editorial Reviews

Review

`Like the theory of reading it develops, this wonderful book is itself challenging and demanding to read; and like reading at its most difficult, the effort is handsomely repaid.' Colin Davis, The Brown Book, 2001

`Not the least of the achievements of Mary Jacobus's fine book ... is that even when it is dealing with considerable historical and psychological complexity in the authors she discusses, it never loses sight of the essentially fragile nature of the reading process.' Dan Gunn, TLS

`Each essay is densely focused and argued; a wealth of close reading, psychoanalytic inquiry and recourse to other critics is marshalled.' Sue Vice, Psychoanalytic Studies, Vol.2, No.2, 2000.

`the urge that seizes the reader of Psychoanalysis and the Scene of Reading to enter into dialogue with it is a sign of its success. It is extremely readable and compelling, even when the texts under discussion are unfamiliar and the argument take the form of engaging with textual minutiae. Psychoanalytic theories are used in a lively and often inspired manner, and the book as a whole makes an excellent case for the cultural and literary value of object-relations.' Sue Vice, Psychoanalytic Studies, Vol.2, No.2, 2000.

`Scholars will find this book essential, and most readers will find it absorbing.' M. Uebel, Choice, Jul/Aug. 00.

`stimulating ... This is a theoretically rich book, which, while deeply imbedded within the discourse of psychoanalysis, never becomes weighted down with its own theoretical apparatus.' M. Uebel, Choice, Jul/Aug. 00.

About the Author

1989: Anderson Professor of English and Women's Studies, Cornell University 1982-89: Professor of English, Cornell University 1980-82: Associate Professor of English, Cornell University 1972-80: Lecturer, English Faculty, Oxford University 1971-80: Fellow and Tutor in English, Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford University 1970-71: Lecturer, University of Manchester 1968-70: Randall McIver Junior Research Fellowship, Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford University

Product Details

• Hardcover: 258 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (November 18, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0198184344
• ISBN-13: 978-0198184348
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,477,960 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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