Uses of Literature

Uses of Literature bridges the gap between literary theory and common-sense beliefs about why we read literature. - Explores the diverse motives and mysteries of why we read - Offers four different ways of thinking about why we read literature - for recognition, enchantment, knowledge, and shock - Argues for a new "phenomenology" in literary studies that incorporates the historical and social dimensions of reading - Includes examples of literature from a wide range of national literary traditions

Rita Felski is the William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of English and Chair of Comparative Literature at the University of Virginia, and an Associate Editor of New Literary History. She is the author of Beyond Feminist Aesthetics, The Gender of Modernity, Doing Time: Feminist Theory and Postmodern Culture, and Literature After Feminism. She is also editor of Rethinking Tragedy.

Acknowledgments vi Introduction 1 1 Recognition 23 2 Enchantment 51 3 Knowledge 77 4 Shock 105 Conclusion 132 Notes 136 Index 146