>Date: Fri, 13 Apr 2007 10:09:25 +0200 >From: Isaac Benabu <[log in to unmask]> >Subject: Re: Fwd: José Antonio Madrigal to Frank > Domínguez : Re: Literatura y los > programas académicos >To: "A. Robert Lauer" <[log in to unmask]>, [log in to unmask] > >Tony: I agree with the flow of your thoughts >about the changes that have taken place in our >chosen field of study , yet when you express >relief at the idea of retirement from the >aridness (my word) which has come to >characterize the teaching of literature, I wish >to disagree with you, and say that the >responsibility for what has happened during our >term of academic service is ours and, >consequently, it is up to us to pass on our >understanding of what happened to the next >generation. Whatever it was that turned the >study of literature into something "other" is >still within our memorial reach: for those >entering the profession today it is a past to be recovered. > >Two values (however unfashionable!) which the >creation of great literature and the teaching >of the humanities  have in common are clarity >of thought and precision in written expression: >they both strive to communicate. Together with >the "author", these values have gone out of the >window. Instead, they have been replaced by >jargon (which undoubtedly conceals thought), and >by approximation rather than precision when it >comes to meaning. It is our generation that saw >a non-sense article (so described by its >imaginative author) submitted to a pretigious >literary review, passed by two readers and >published. And we may have even enjoyed that >author's subsequent confession in Time magazine >that what he had submitted was "macaronic" non-sense. > >If we, who stimulated the growth of that >jargon, proved incapable of explaining in >major conferences such as the MLA why we had to >resort to jargon rather than clear, scientific >prose, what can we expect from the students we >educated? Those very Ph.d.'s applying for jobs >today to whom you refer and whom, you say, >display an ignorance of the very texts which >make up the subject they purportedly have >applied to teach, grew up in classrooms where >thinking was abandoned in favour of ideological >posturing, and where repetition was more >important than the formulation of original >thinking. The fashionable industry of the study >of literaure took over from the more modest >explication of literature. A lack of >self-confidence in what we were doing, don't you think? > >Late it may be, but never too late! That is why >in our retirement, we may address these issues >for the next generation rather than having them discover them for themselves. > >Finally, I apologize if I have repeated ideas >already expressed by others before me, without >attribution, but I have just keyed into this discussion this morning. > >An inflamatory afterthought on re-reading your >piece: Your "Golden Age" breaks down into the >study of literature (i.e. prose, and includes >written poetry), oral literature and theatre. >Theatre is distinguishable from literature , as >Aristotle cared to point out early on, yet for >the most part, we continue to approach it as >literature, with tools devised for the analysis >of literature. And even when we show >willingness to refer to "performance", it may be >because the word has been given a new coinage >in contemporary scholarly jargon: >traditionally (primarily, perhaps) the word >was applied to theatre and theatrical >representations, when it was not used in the >more general sense of "to do, carry out". > >But that is a matter for another discussion... > >Isaac   > >Professor I. Benabu, >Dept. of Theatre Studies, >The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, >Mt. Scopus, >Jerusalem >Tel.:(+972-2)5883940 >------ >WebMail: [log in to unmask] > >On Thu, 12 Apr 2007 20:17:00 -0500, A. Robert Lauer wrote > > > > >>Date: Wed, 11 Apr 2007 23:36:18 -0500 >> > From: "J. A. Madrigal" <[log in to unmask]> >> > Subject: Fwd: Frank DomÃnguez: Re: Literatura >> >  y los programas académicos >> > To: "A. Robert Lauer" <[log in to unmask]> >> > >> > My two cents...Frank is right (hi Frank) except when he blames the >> > administration. It is our fault, and only our fault, because we forgot >> > that we went into this profession to study literature, not philosophy, >> > political theory and other disciplines that should complement what we do >> > and not become our core. >> > When we interview the future scholars of our profession, and specially >> > from the better PHD programs, it is >> embarrassing how little literature they >> > know. In most occasion, I find myself talking to them about works they >> > don't know in their own field. Incredible that someone in Golden Age >> > sometimes is better read than they are in their own fields. But Frank, >> > you are right, only three fields exist today: Spanish American Prose, >> > Contemporary Peninsular literature and Linguistics. The rest is old and >> > boring. >> > Also, the only individual in my Department who teaches Theory beginning >> > with Plato is me...Anything before the Contemporary period is as >> > dead... >> > Retirement from this profession is a welcome change!!! >> > Tony >> > >> > *********************************************** >> > J. A. Madrigal >> > Castanoli Professor >> > Dpt. of Foreign Languages >> > and Literatures >> > Auburn University, AL 36849-5204 >> > Fax: 334-844-6378 >> > Phone: 334-844-5183 >> > *********************************************** > >Prof. A. Robert Lauer >The University of Oklahoma >Dept. of Modern Langs., Lits., & Ling. >780 Van Vleet Oval, Kaufman Hall, Room 206 >Norman, Oklahoma 73019-2032, USA >Tel.: 405-325-5845 (office); 405/325-6181 (OU >dept.); Fax: 1-866-602-2679 (private) >Vision: Harmonious collaboration in an international world. >Mission: "Visualize clearly and communicate promptly" ><http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/L/A-Robert.R.Lauer-1/vita.html>VITA >/ <http://www.peterlang.com/all/>IBÉRICA >/<http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/L/A-Robert.R.Lauer-1/AITENSO.html>AITENSO >/ <http://www.ou.edu/bcom/>BCom / ><http://www.comedias.org/>AHCT / ><http://www.mla.org/>MLA / ><http://www.ou.edu/cervantes/coloquiocervantes.html>Coloquio ><http://www.ou.edu/cervantes/coloquiocervantes.html>Cervantes >/ ><http://www.ou.edu/teatro/coloquioteatro.html>Coloquio >Teatro de los Siglos de Oro > >