Accessible analysis of William Empson's Seven Types of Ambiguity

by Candice Kent

William Empson’s landmark work, Seven Types of Ambiguity, introduced the word ambiguity into critical terminology, describing it as the deliberate use of a word or expression to denote multiple meanings or to express multiple feelings or attitudes, and explained at length how it functions as a poetical device. The most influential aspect of Empson’s work is his method of close critical attention to linguistic detail which continues to inform modern literary critical technique. He was the first author to provide a replicable procedure for carrying out such a rigorous analysis, a process which was sorely needed at the time. This highly original text does not only present new ideas and a new method, it also deviates in many ways from the theoretical stances held by Empson’s contemporaries. The work is now read as both anticipating and challenging aspects of more recent literary theory, and it continues to stimulate debate.

74 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 17, 2020