Toward a Cognitive Theory of Narrative Acts (Cognitive Approaches to Literature and Culture)

Cognitive Approaches to Literature and Culture

by Frederick Luis Aldama

Toward a Cognitive Theory of Narrative Acts brings together in one volume cutting-edge research that turns to recent findings in cognitive and neurobiological sciences, psychology, linguistics, philosophy, and evolutionary biology, among other disciplines, to explore and understand more deeply various cultural phenomena, including art, music, literature, and film. The essays fulfilling this task for the general reader as well as the specialist are written by renowned authors H. Porter Abbott, Patrick Colm Hogan, Suzanne Keen, Herbert Lindenberger, Lisa Zunshine, Katja Mellman, Lalita Pandit Hogan, Klarina Priborkin, Javier Gutierrez-Rexach, Ellen Spolsky, and Richard Walsh. Among the works analyzed are plays by Samuel Beckett, novels by Maxine Hong Kingston, music compositions by Igor Stravinsky, art by Jean-Baptiste-Simeon Chardin, and films by Michael Haneke. Each of the essays shows in a systematic, clear, and precise way how music, art, literature, and film work in and of themselves and also how they are interconnected. Finally, while each of the essays is unique in style and methodological approach, together they show the way toward a unified knowledge of artistic creativity.

Genres: Nonfiction, Art

Paperback

First published May 10, 2010

Reviews

[Kent Winward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extremely academic book from the University of Texas Press. Half of the essays are almost unreadable with the academic jargon. Three of the essays were so good though, I gave it three stars.

The two essays on Shakespeare are both worth reading -- King Lear as a discourse on torture and Macbeth as representative of cognitive dissonance and how emotions are derived through the cognitive process.

The best essay was on how dreams mess with most cognitive theories on narrative. Suspension of disbelief is not an issue in dreaming. Lucid dreaming allows the dreamer to control the narrative discourse. Ultimately, it says narrative remains mysterious enough to defy scientific neurological description, so my great idea of understanding narrative was dashed, but encouragingly so.

[Simone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book on cognitive theories applied to the study of art. It's a shame it's not more conceptual, because I would like to know more about the cognitive theories behind it and cognitive criticism as a whole. It's also a little dense in some essays, which make it harder to follow. But the two essays on Shakespeare are superb, and the introduction sets a wonderful tone to the book. I also liked the one on Garden Path sentences a lot, which taught me a lot of new things.

[Matthew Salesses · Rating 3 out of 5]

The regular highs and lows of an anthology