“Moral Enigma” in Shakespeare’s Othello? An Exercise in Philosophical Hermeneutics

Janus Head ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 128-155
Author(s):  
Norman Swazo ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Literary Criticism ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
Early 20Th Century ◽  
Philosophical Hermeneutics ◽  
Moral Significance ◽  
Poetic Justice

Literary criticism of Shakespeare’s Othello since the early 20th century leaves us with various complaints that Shakespeare fails to achieve poetic justice therein, or that this work leaves us, in the end, with a moral enigma—despite what seems to be Shakespeare’s intent to represent a plot and characters having moral probity and, thereby, to foster our moral edification through the tragedy that unfolds. Here a number of interpretive views concerning the morality proper to Othello are reviewed. Thereafter, it is proposed that Heidegger’s thought about the relation of appearance, semblance, and reality enables a novel interpretation of the moral significance of this tragedy, thereby to resolve the question of moral enigma.

scholarly journals "Once again" about "unwanted people": the transformation from literary type to a concept (historical and functional aspect). Part II.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natal'ya V. Volodina
Keyword(s):  
Literary Criticism ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
19Th Century ◽  
Modern Society ◽  
Early 20Th Century ◽  
Functional Aspect ◽  
Historical Experience ◽  
Spiritual Culture

The article continues the analysis of "unwanted people" in the literary criticism and journalism from the mid 19th century till the century's end. The focus of the authors' attention is on the polemic of Nikolay Dobrolyubov and Alexander Herzen concerning a his torical role of "unwanted people" who are associated for them with generation of the intellectuals of the 1830s—40s. It is shown in the article that characteristic of "unwanted people" is built by critics on material of literature and actuals of life of modern society. In Nikolay Dobrolyubov's works, the leading place is taken by opposition "superfl uous" Vs. "new" people. This opposition excepts the idea of continuity of generations. Alexander Herzen emphasises historical value of "superfl uous men" for development of consciousness of the person and spiritual culture of society. As the author notes, traditions of criticism of the 1830s—60s had remained in criticism and journalism within the early 20th century. The idea of denial of "unwanted people" in Russia and recognition of value of their historical experience was updated in this period. The concept of "unwanted people" becomes the sign of tragic fate of Russian intellectuals.

scholarly journals Tolstoy’s Text in Works of R. Akutagawa

2021 ◽  
pp. 218-230
Author(s):  
V. V. Kuryanova ◽  
N. A. Segal
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Literary Criticism ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
National Literature ◽  
Leo Tolstoy ◽  
Early 20Th Century ◽  
Public Figures ◽  
Personal Myth ◽  
The World ◽  
Japanese Writer

The supertext in the works of one of the most popular and mysterious Japanese writers of the early 20th century — Ryunosuke Akutagawa examined in the article. The relevance of this study is due to the fact that the problem of considering supertexts is one of the promising interdisciplinary areas of modern humanitarian knowledge. It is pointed out that in literary criticism there are quite a few works on topos texts, but very few works devoted to the nominal supertext, which is Tolstoy’s text. It is emphasized that Tolstoy’s text began to be created especially actively at the beginning of the twentieth century, and Tolstoy’s personality itself aroused interest not only in his homeland, but throughout the world. It is noted that the author’s extensive correspondence with public figures in Japan is known. It is argued that the fiction and journalistic texts of the Russian classic influenced the development of the national literature of Japan. Particular attention is paid to the issue of including in the text the personal myth of Leo Tolstoy as the basis of the Tolstoy’s text in the works of Akutagawa. It is shown that the Japanese writer refers to the story of the Yasnaya Polyana wise old man, using the episode of reconciliation between Turgenev and Tolstoy as the plot of the story “Woodcock”. In conclusion, the authors note that in their later works (“Cogwheels”, “The Life of an Idiot”) Akutagawa questions the sincerity of L. Tolstoy’s faith in God, interpreting the mythologeme “Leo Tolstoy and Religion” in an original way.

scholarly journals Oedipus the King: A Greek Tragedy, Philosophy, Politics and Philology

2007 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 219-267
Author(s):  
Ekaterini Nikolarea
Keyword(s):  
Literary Criticism ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
18Th Century ◽  
Greek Tragedy ◽  
Final Part ◽  
Early 20Th Century ◽  
The Third ◽  
Social Discourses ◽  
Early 18Th Century

Abstract Oedipus the King: A Greek Tragedy, Philosophy, Politics and Philology — This study tries to show that the abundance of translations, imitations and radical re-interpretations of a genre like tragedy is due to various social discourses of target societies. Taking as an example Sophocles' Oedipus the King, the acclaimed tragedy par excellence, this essay discusses how the discourses of philosophy, politics and philology influenced the reception of this classical Greek tragedy by the French and British target systems (TSs) during the late 17th and early 18th century and the late 19th and early 20th century. The first section shows how, by offering Sophocles' Oedipus the King as a Greek model of tragedy, Aristotle's Poetics has formed the Western literary criticism and playwriting. The second section attempts to demonstrate why three imitations of Oedipus by Corneille (Oedipe), Dryden {Oedipus) and Voltaire {Oedipe) became more popular than any other contemporary "real" translation of the Sophoclean Oedipus. The third and final part holds that the observed revival of Oedipus the King in late 19th- and early 20th-century France and England was due to the different degrees of influence of three conflicting but overlapping discourses: philosophy, philology and politics. It illustrates how these discourses resulted in different reception of the Greek play by the French and British TSs.

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