Our Lives in Literature

ABSTRACT

The article traces the evolution of literary theory, beginning in the 1970s when it moved away from the New Criticism that saw the text as removed from the life of its readers toward Reader-Response Theory, where readers are encouraged to see themselves in what they read. I argue that this theory of reading leads to an awareness of how literature helps us fashion a coherent self. I use three examples – the Bible, Shakespeare, and certain nineteenth-century novels – to argue that great literature is great because it gives us the material we need to do this well.

KEYWORDS:

• Creative literature
• literary characters
• Shakespeare
• the Bible

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Paula Marantz Cohen

Paula Marantz Cohen, Ph.D., is Distinguished Professor of English, and Dean of the Pennoni Honors College at Drexel University. Her many publications include six works of fiction and six of nonfiction.