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TomaszKalaga
aprincipleratherthanacriterion;whetherthemethodologyitselfisbased
onthemeetingofsocio-historicalcontextsofcreationandreception
(Gadamer),fillingthephenomenologicalgapsofindeterminacy(Iser),
definingthesocialcontextofreading/writing(Fish),examiningthe
semioticstructuresofthework(Eco)ortheoutcomeofanintercultural
dialogue(Habermas),therearenoactualprescriptionsastotherelative
importanceorprecedenceofwhatwemaycallofnarrativeartefacts
–symbols,characters,narrativestrategies,etc.Onemayarguethat
despitenumerous,oftenfundamentaldiferences,thesetheoriesdoshare
acommonelement–theimplicationoftheprincipleofthehermeneutic
circle–theinsistencethatthefinalinterpretationoughttoconstitute
aholisticallyconsistentreading.Thecriteriaofjudgmentsorvalidityof
suchareadingareadiferentmatteraltogetherandarebaseduponthe
philosophicalfoundationsofeachtheoryrespectively.
Suchadescriptionoftherelationoftheorytoliteratureimplies
astancethatconsiderstheoryasaparadigmofperception,an
interpretive“opticalfilter”ratherthanasetofpragmaticallyapplicable
methodologicalprescriptionsforinterpretation.Therefore,theactual
narrative/symbolic/ideologicalcontentofliteratureisimmaterialin
relationtoaparticularhermeneuticapproach.Fromthisperspective,
theonlypossibleexceptiontothisrulewouldbeanarrativeartefact,
device,orelementwhichwoulditselfbehermeneuticbyessence,i.e.
wouldinvolveinallofitsessentialaspects(pragmatic,symbolic,
metaphorical,andevenphysical)notionsthatwouldinsomeway
paralleltheprocessesinvolvedintheactofinterpretation.Such
aliminalityofasymbolwouldofcoursenecessarilybelimited:any
commentariesreferringto,forinstance,similaritiesbetweentheroleof
theartefactinthestoryandtheoreticalissuesoftextuality,authorship,
intentionandmeaningwouldhavetoremainwithinthesphereof
anextendedillustrativemetaphor.Thesolepossiblecontextofsuch
atreatmentwouldbeliteraturethatopenlyinvitessuchparallels–
akindwhichLindaHutcheontermed“metafiction.”1Insuchtexts
“thewritingofthetext[becomes]themostfundamentallyproblematic
aspectofthattext[…]Anytextthatdrawsthereader’sattentionto
itsprocessofconstructionbyfrustratinghisorherconventional
expectationsofmeaningandclosureproblematizesmoreorless
explicitlythewaysinwhichnarrativecodes–whether<literary’or
<social’–artificiallyconstructapparently<real’andimaginaryworlds.”2
1LindaHutcheon,NarcissisticNarrative:TheMetafictionalParadox(NewYork:
Methuen,1980).
2PatriciaWaugh,Metafiction.TheTheoryandPracticeofSelf-ConsciousFiction
(NewYork:Methuen,1984),p.22.
