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The Aesthetics of Chaos: Nonlinear Thinking and Contemporary Literary Criticism PDF

152 Pages·2003·2.98 MB·English
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Chaos The Aesthetics of N o n l i n e a r T h i n k i n g a n d C o n t e m p o r a r y L i t e r a r y C r i t i c i s m Michael Patrick Gillespie Florida A&M University, Tallahassee Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton Florida Gulf Coast University, Ft. Myers Florida International University, Miami Florida State University, Tallahassee University of Central Florida, Orlando University of Florida, Gainesville University of North Florida, Jacksonville University of South Florida, Tampa University of West Florida, Pensacola Also by Michael Patrick Gillespie, from the University Press of Florida Oscar Wilde and the Poetics of Ambiguity (1996) Joyce through the Ages: A Nonlinear View (1999) University Press of Florida Gainesville Tallahassee Tampa Boca Raton Pensacola Orlando Miami Jacksonville Ft. Myers The Aesthetics of Chaos Nonlinear Thinking and Contemporary Literary Criticism Michael Patrick Gillespie Copyright 2003 by Michael Patrick Gillespie Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper All rights reserved 08 07 06 05 04 03 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Gillespie, Michael Patrick The aesthetics of chaos: nonlinear thinking and contemporary literary criticism / Michael Patrick Gillespie. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8130-2641-5 (cloth: alk. paper) 1. Criticism—History—20th century. PN94.A33 2003 801'.95'0904—dc21 2003040239 The University Press of Florida is the scholarly publishing agency for the State University System of Florida, comprising Florida A&M University, Florida Atlantic University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Florida International University, Florida State University, University of Central Florida, University of Florida, University of North Florida, University of South Florida, and University of West Florida. University Press of Florida 15 Northwest 15th Street Gainesville, FL 32611–2079 http://www.upf.com To Chuck and Linda Yung Contents Acknowledgments ix 1. How Do We Talk about What We Read? 1 2. Nonlinear Thinking: Redefining the Paradigm 14 3. Reading on the Edge of Chaos: Finnegans Wake and the Burden of Linearity 28 4. “And they lived happily ever after”: The Broken Contract of Fairy Tales 43 5. “I sing of arms and of a man”: The Post-Newtonian Hero 61 6. “A time for every purpose under heaven”: The Circularity of Biblical Hermeneutics in the Book of Job 77 7. Oscar Wilde and the Fabrication of an Irish Identity 94 8. What Is to Be Done? 109 Appendix: The Rise of Nonlinear Science 113 Notes 119 Bibliography 129 Index 135 Acknowledgments I have always found this to be the most difficult section of a book to write. I am afraid that any effort to thank the people who offered advice, insight, or support from which I benefited while working on this study will come far short of the acknowledgment that each deserves. I will not belabor the con- tributions of each, but I hope in the alphabetical listing that follows that I can attest to their generosity of spirit. With this in mind, I would like to express my gratitude to the following: Jonathan Allison, Zack Bowen, Mary Elizabeth Braun, the Rev. Thaddeus Burch, S.J., William Demastes, Deirdre Dempsey, A. Nicholas Fargnoli, Susan Fernandez, Anne Fogarty, Paula Gillespie, Judy Goffman, Amy Gorelick, Cheryl Herr, Philip Herring, Debra Jelacic, Morton Levitt, Tim Machan, Peter Mackey, Michael Mc- Kinney, Valerie Murrenus, Sandra Peterson, John Rickard, Thomas Rice, Gary Richardson, Albert Rivero, Thomas Shea, Robert Spoo, John Su, the Rev. Roland Teske, S.J., George Watson, and Stephen Watt. Whatever weak- nesses one may find in this work, there are far fewer because of the help I received from these friends. An earlier version of chapter 3 appeared as an article in the Journal of Modern Literature. I am grateful to Indiana University Press for permission to reprint it here.

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