Devils and Angels

Literary theory and textual criticism have much to teach each other, writes Philip Cohen, who has collected this anthology of essays that seeks to bridge what he sees as a wide rift between textual and literary critics. While most Anglo-American textual scholars now stress the importance of authorial intention and its key role in editorial and interpretative work, many literary theorists still tend to ostracize the author and his intentions from any serious literary discussion. Any observer of the contemporary literary scene quickly notes the following paradox - many theorists refute the usefulness of authorial intention in their discussion and evaluation of texts composed with help from that very intention. This conundrum yields a great impasse: literary interpretation depends, to a degree, on which text the critic chooses to read.