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- Volume 5, Issue, 2015
Scientific Study of Literature - Volume 5, Issue 1, 2015
Volume 5, Issue 1, 2015
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The question of literary quality: A rhetorical and game-theoretical approach
Author(s): Jeroen Lauwers, Tom Deneire and David Eelbodepp.: 3–22 (20)More LessThis article explores the hermeneutic potential of mathematical game theory for the study of literary quality, thus advocating a rhetorical reconciliation between plain formalism and plain constructivism. If literary quality is constituted by mathematical parameters of literary quality, we should at least, conceptually, come to an agreement about how these parameters are interrelated, as this is necessary for a quantifiable methodology. The proposed method starts from Hotelling’s location game (but expands this to hyperspace) to advocate a feasible model for describing audience distribution in a calculable manner. Through the notion of the “middle position,” it is argued that the search for literary quality should try to find the right measure of a literary parameter in order to be successful. The article concludes with a survey of caveats and potential pitfalls, which should inspire a cautious, yet confident, application of the proposed methodology.
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Judging a book by its cover
Author(s): Peter Dixon, Marisa Bortolussi and Blaine Mullinspp.: 23–48 (26)More LessIn this experiment, we investigated whether book covers can signal sub-genre information to knowledgeable readers. Self-identified science-fiction fans and mystery fans sorted 80 randomly selected book covers from each of those genres into groups of their own devising. The sorts were used to identify similarity among books, and that similarity structure was used to measure similarity among subjects. Cluster analysis was then used to find groups of subjects who sorted similarly. Linear models were demonstrated that group membership was related to the knowledge subjects reported about the genres. This pattern of results supports the view that book covers constitute an implicit signaling system between publishers and experienced readers of a fictional genre.
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“Softened” voice quality in poetry reading and listener response
Author(s): Chen Gafni and Reuven Tsurpp.: 49–83 (35)More LessIn the performance of poetry, some performers occasionally use a certain ‘softened’ voice quality, deviating from that of the context, for emotive expression. We explored how listeners perceive such instances through a combined methodology of eliciting open-ended descriptions and ratings of pre-defined terms on ordinal scales. The collected responses confirm our intuitions that listeners are sensitive to this voice quality, which gives rise to impressions, such as affection, yearning, and contemplation. The chosen methodology allowed us, through variations between verbal and numerical responses, to observe the interaction of this voice quality with other factors, such as semantic content and other salient voice qualities. Finally, the responses highlight the distinction between two delivery styles used by performers — an impassive, grave style, typical of poetry recitals, on the one hand, and a more emotional “theatrical” style, on the other hand.
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Lifespan development in the academy of American poets
Author(s): David E. Thomsonpp.: 83–98 (16)More LessThe present study investigated lifespan writing tendencies among members of the Academy of American Poets (N = 411). All original English language poems (N = 2,558) available on the Academy website during 2013 were included provided that each poet was represented by at least two poems. Correlations of the age in which each poet published each poem with established indicators of lifespan development were small to moderate (r’s from -.11 to .16). Contrary to lifespan development for expository and emotionally expressive writing, poets tended to employ past tense and use less emotionally valenced language as they aged. Multilevel analysis revealed no significant relationships between publishing age and maturation outcomes, although that process did indicate various curvilinear relations. I conclude by discussing the implications of automated text analysis on literary analysis of career development.
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Reading beyond the lines: A critical review of cognitive approaches to literary interpretation and comprehension
Author(s): Kathryn S. McCarthypp.: 99–128 (30)More LessReading literature requires not only understanding the literal meaning of the text, but also constructing a nonliteral interpretation of the text’s deeper meaning yet little is known about the psychological processes involved when interpretations are constructed. The current paper presents a review of the extant work from literary theory, empirical studies of literature, and research from more general cognitive text comprehension to explore the conditions under which literary interpretations are made and what this discipline-specific reading behavior can tell us about more general text comprehension.
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