A Study Of Andrew Bennett’s Theory Of "Literature And Ignorance"

Ignorance has always been a neglected topic in the humanities and even philosophy.In recent years,however,there have been attempts to understand,tolerate and even take advantage of ignorance in the theoretical discussion,As a result,the issue of ignorance has been discussed in greater depth than before.Andrew Bennett,a British literary theorist,introduced the philosophical ignorance into the discussion of literary problems,thus constructed the theory of literature and ignorance,and provided a new example for reviewing the legitimacy of literature in the post-theoretical era.At the same time,this paper holds that On the basis of fully paying attention to the readers’ reading and the authors’ creation,Bennett introduces the metaphysical level of the ignorance between the author and the readers,that is,the relationship between "the other" and ignorance.Accordingly,this paper focuses on the way Bennett introduces the regularity of ignorance into literary activity and considers how to promote the universalization of the relationship between "ignorance" and literature.The text consists of the following four chapters:The first chapter explains what "ignorance" is and the real background and theoretical origin of the theory of "ignorance".First,this chapter reveals the connotation of Bennett’s concept of "ignorance" by exploring the etymology of "ignorance".Second,we ask about the theoretical situation in which the theory of ignorance arose,and consider the path and course of the evolution of ignorance from a philosophical reflection to a literary issue by tracing the inheritance of the theory of ignorance from the Romantic tradition and deconstruction theory.Again,the direct source of Bennett’s theory of "literature and ignorance" is explored in the light of "culture of posterity".Chapter two deals with reading in the theory of literature and ignorance."Ignorance" is placed in the construction field of "resistant" and "silent" readers,so as to further analyze the root of "ignorance" and impossibility in reading.The third chapter mainly investigates the author’s ignorance,which is the core of the theory of literature and ignorance.Firstly,Bennett’s reasons for considering authorial intention as "uncertainty" are summarized in three dimensions: generation,mechanism of action,and impact.Secondly,it discusses the influence of Bennett’s authorship denial and "impersonality" on the "ghost" of authorship.In the end,Bennett gradually expands "ignorance" from a cognitive feature to a part of open literary space by studying the nature of ignorance of authors and readers.The fourth chapter aims to explore the relationship between "the other" and "ignorance" from three aspects: generating context,realization mode and philosophical reflection.This chapter summarizes Bennett’s reflection on the other and ignorance from his literary critical practice,and further points out that the essence of the ignorance of the Other is the way of philosophizing the relationship between literature and ignorance.On the one hand,Bennett’s "ignorance" provides a new scheme for Chinese literary theory to explore the nature of literature,and on the other hand,it also has a positive reference significance for the development direction of literature research.However,Bennett’s praise of "ignorance" also has some shortcomings,such as uncomplicated adherence,mechanical malpractice and ghostly tendency.