Structuralism: Its implications for the performance of prose fiction

Abstract

Structuralist criticism has important implications for the study and performance of prose fiction. A good, example of contemporary structuralist writing is Roland Barthes’ “Introduction to the Structural Analysis of Narrative.” The present article explicates this essay by first considering structuralism generally and some of the linguistic theory that informs structuralist thought, then explaining Barthes' terms and concepts, using especially Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway for examples.