Kafka Toward a Minor Literature (Theory & History of Literature) |
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Gilles Deleuze, Felix Guattari
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Pages: 104 (Paperback)
ISBN: 0816615152
Pub: University of Minnesota Press
Pub date: 1986-10
Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 216324
Reader Reviews:
Thought provoking and unusual response to Kafka's work (4/5 people found this helpful)
While most interpretations of Kafka's work centre around a psychoanalytic point of view, especially concerning the Oedipal rebellion as it corresponded to his real-life relationship with his father, this book proposes that these sort of approaches only denigrate Kafka's work by applying terms of reference which are not suitable. By asserting that Kafka's work must be read POLITICALLY (and no, not in a Marxist way, rather in the sense that it overtly sets out to change the prevailing standards) rather than as an intimate portrayal of his life (something Kafka himself hated) they, quite convincingly, argue that his work is a subverison of language, not of personal, cultural, or religious signification. The work is semi-accesible (though at points head scratchingly vague in that super-intellectual sense) and undoubtably interesting for those enamored of Kafka's work, but it is important to understand that Deleuze and Guattari come to this subject with an alterior motive in mind (Deleuze being a philospher/theorist, Guattari being a psychoanalyst). Deleuze (I cannot speak of Guattari) coming from a semi-deconstructionist angle and therefore interested in destabilising essentialism (meaning that it is within their own self interests to confirm this theory rather than explore it). With this in mind however, this work is extremely rich and a refreshing counterpoint to all the "the bug was Kafka" interpretations.
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Amazon.co.uk places this book into the following categories:
Books -> Subjects -> Poetry, Drama & Criticism -> History & Criticism -> General AAS
Books -> Subjects -> Poetry, Drama & Criticism -> History & Criticism -> Literary Studies -> General AAS
Books -> Refinements -> Language (feature_browse-bin) -> English
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Books -> Refinements -> Format (binding_browse-bin) -> Paperback
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