personal literature philosophy

[Il Penseroso]

What theoretical guidelines help you to better appreciate the benefits of literature, and what do you see those benefits to be? Who are the critics or authors that influenced your approach?

[PeterL]

What theoretical guidelines help you to better appreciate the benefits of literature, and what do you see those benefits to be?

I read with the assumption that the writer was human and involved with human actions and interactions. There have been a few things that I have read that may not have been written by a human. In most cases, this assumption allows me to find common ground with the writer and the material.



Who are the critics or authors that influenced your approach?

None, or perhaps I should credit Derrida, who is one of the few who may not have been human. Or perhaps I should also credit Jonathan Swift, H. P. Lovecraft, L. Sprague de Camp, Poul Anderson, Ernest Hemingway, and a large number of other authors who have shown me what I have in common with the damned human race.