Any attempt to define literary theory in terms of a distinctive method is doomed to failure. — Terry Eagleton Copy Share Image
If the masses are not thrown a few novels , they may react by throwing up a few barricades. — Terry Eagleton Copy Share Image
“Inez and I had been in the same book club for a while. She once told me that literary theory was reading… — John Dufresne Copy Share Image
“A clever schoolboy's reaction to his reading is most naturally expressed by parody or imitation.” — C.S. Lewis Copy Share Image
Writers who teach tend to prefer literary theory to literature and tenure to all else. Writers who do not teach prefer the… — Gore Vidal Copy Share Image
“Literature is like phosphorus: it shines with its maximum brilliance and the moment when it attempts to die.” — Roland Barthes Copy Share Image
“The ambition of much of today's literary theory seems to be to find ways to read literature without imagination.” — Charles Simic Copy Share Image
“The truth is not that we need the critics in order to enjoy the authors, but that we need the authors in… — C.S. Lewis Copy Share Image
Literary theory has become a parody of science, generating its own arcane jargon. In the process, tragically, it discourages love of literature… — Nancy Pearcey Copy Share Image
I read a lot of literary theory when I was in graduate school, especially about novels, and the best book I ever… — Lev Grossman Copy Share Image
“The genuine artist, Harris is saying, finds reality in a point of identity between subject and object, a point at which the… — Northrop Frye Copy Share Image
As for me, my literary theory, like my politics, is based chiefly upon one main idea, to wit, the idea of freedom.… — H. L. Mencken Copy Share Image
He [Aristotle] pointed out that people who had become initiates in the various mystery religions were not required to learn any facts… — Karen Armstrong Copy Share Image
“The literary text seems like "a fortified medieval town –foreigners and outsiders are repelled, or allowed in only after rigorous checks, but… — Jeremy Hawthorn Copy Share Image
I think literary theory has not been terribly good for English studies in a while. It's not that theory isn't interesting, but… — A. S. Byatt Copy Share Image
“Favoring 'resolution' the way we do, it is hard for us men to write great love stories. Why?, because we want to… — Roman Payne Copy Share Image
“Literary theory, especially, cast its lot with a spirit of ceaseless skepticism and incessant interrogation; modeling itself on Mephistopheles in Goethe’s Faust,… — Rita Felski Copy Share Image
I am someone who values truth - actual truth as opposed to "truthiness." I am also someone who has been trained in… — John Hodgman Copy Share Image
“To the jaded eye, all vampires seem alike, but they are wonderful in their versatility. Some come to life in moonlight, others… — Nina Auerbach Copy Share Image
“It doesn't matter whether a sequence of words is called a history or a story: that is, whether it is intended to… — Northrop Frye Copy Share Image
“Among both the learned and the not so learned it is accepted that poetry can be the language of the emotions; what… — R.D. Fitzgerald Copy Share Image
What was needed was a literary theory which, while preserving the formalist bent of New Criticism, its dogged attention to literature as… — Terry Eagleton Copy Share Image
“Characters should be interchangeable as between one book and another. The entire corpus of existing literature should be regarded as a limbo… — Flann O'Brien Copy Share Image
In my profession more generally, it's not an exaggeration to say that masculinity is viewed as the root of all evil. If… — Jonathan Gottschall Copy Share Image
“There is, in fact, no need to drag politics into literary theory: as with South African sport, it has been there from… — Terry Eagleton Copy Share Image
“The reader is the space on which all the quotations that make up a writing are inscribed without any of them being… — Roland Barthes Copy Share Image
“Even in the act of fleeing modern ideologies, however, literary theory reveals its often unconscious complicity with them, betraying its elitism, sexism… — Terry Eagleton Copy Share Image
I do not know whether to be delighted or outraged by the fact that Literary Theory: An Introduction was the subject of… — Terry Eagleton Copy Share Image
“For me, fantasy must be about something, otherwise it's foolishness... ultimately it must be about human beings, it must be about the… — George Clayton Johnson Copy Share Image
“When the critic has said everything in his power about a literary text, he has still said nothing; for the very existence… — Todorov Tzvetan Copy Share Image
Some have speculated that the way [Albert] Camus died made his theories on absurdity a self-fulfilling prophecy. Others would say it was… — Aberjhani Copy Share Image
I think literary theory satisfied a deep love I have for big, encompassing narratives about the world and how it works -… — Jennifer Egan Copy Share Image
“I ran across an excerpt today (in English translation) of some dialogue/narration from the modern popular writer, Paulo Coelho in his book:… — Roman Payne Copy Share Image
![“The genuine artist, Harris is saying, finds reality in a point of identity between subject and object, a point at which the created world and the world that is really there become the same thing. [p.211]” quote by Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/82e/northrop-frye-3483_art_the-genuine-artist-harris-is-saying-find_1440969.jpg)
![“He [Aristotle] pointed out that people who had become initiates in the various mystery religions were not required to learn any facts 'but to experience certain emotions and to be put in a certain disposition.' Hence his famous literary theory that tragedy effected a purification (katharsis) of…” quote by Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/760/karen-armstrong-1053_certain_he-aristotle-pointed-out-that-people-who_2634594.jpg)
![“Some have speculated that the way [Albert] Camus died made his theories on absurdity a self-fulfilling prophecy. Others would say it was the triumphant meaningful way he lived that allowed him to rise heroically above absurdity.” quote by Aberjhani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/292/aberjhani-1814_aberjhani-on-albert_some-have-speculated-that-the-way-albert_3160804.jpg)
![“I ran across an excerpt today (in English translation) of some dialogue/narration from the modern popular writer, Paulo Coelho in his book: Aleph.(Note: bracketed text is mine.)... 'I spoke to three scholars,' [the character says 'at last.'] ...two of them said that, after death, the [sic…” quote by Roman Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/9ee/roman-payne-1959_advice-for-writers_i-ran-across-an-excerpt-today-in-english_2690369.jpg)