Literary Meaning: Reclaiming the Study of Literature - Critical

In this review of Literary Meaning: Reclaiming the Study of Literature, the bottom line is clear: this book is for students and instructors who want a rigorous defense of authorial intent and a challenge to prevailing indeterminate readings. Wendell V. Harris mounts a focused critique of hermetic approaches that separate language from external reality and argues for a renewed hermeneutic practice; readers looking for a provocative, theory-minded argument about method in literary studies will find the book stimulating and timely. The review highlights the book's central claim and its usefulness as a prompt for departmental debate.

Key Features

• Argument for Hermeneutics: Harris provides a clear case that understanding an author's intended meaning should be the first step in reading, which helps re-anchor interpretation in textual purpose.
• Critique of Indeterminacy: The book exposes what the author sees as fallacies behind fashionable hermeticism, helping readers evaluate the limits of approaches that claim meaning is indeterminate.
• Engagement with Professionalism: Harris challenges the emptiness of current modes of professionalism in literature departments, prompting readers to reconsider institutional practice.
• Provocative Tone: The text is written to provoke debate, making it useful as a seminar text or discussion starter in courses on criticism and theory.
• Targeted Scope: The focus on methodology rather than close readings keeps the book concentrated on the theory and practice of interpretation, useful for methodological reflection.

Who It's For

Literary Meaning is aimed at graduate students, advanced undergraduates, and faculty who are wrestling with competing critical approaches and who want a substantive argument for reclaiming hermeneutics as a viable interpretive method. It will be most valuable to readers interested in criticism and theory and in debates about meaning and authorial intent.

Those seeking a comprehensive history of literary theory or a textbook full of examples and close readings should look elsewhere; this is a polemical, method-focused book rather than a survey or anthology of interpretive practice.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Clear advocacy for a return to hermeneutics offers a constructive alternative to theories of indeterminacy.
• The critique of fashionable hermeticism sharpens readers' ability to evaluate theoretical claims about language and meaning.
• Works well as a discussion prompt in seminars because of its provocative and challenging tone.

Cons

• The book's polemical focus means it contains fewer illustrative close readings, which may disappoint readers wanting textual examples.

Specifications

Title	Literary Meaning: Reclaiming the Study of Literature
Author	Wendell V. Harris
Subject	Literary criticism and theory; hermeneutics
Scope	Argumentative critique of hermeticism and defense of authorial intent
Intended audience	Students, instructors, and scholars in literature
Use case	Seminar discussion, methodological reflection, curricular debate

Our Verdict

Harris's Literary Meaning is a focused, provocative defense of hermeneutics that will repay readers who want a principled alternative to theories of indeterminacy. It is good value for those seeking a stimulus for classroom debate and methodological reassessment, though readers desiring extensive close readings may prefer a different title.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this book suitable for classroom use?
Yes. Its argumentative structure and provocative claims make it an effective seminar text for advanced courses in criticism and theory.

Does the book include many close readings?
No. The focus is on methodological critique and theoretical argument rather than detailed textual analyses.

Who is the author?
Wendell V. Harris is the author and positions the book as a defense of hermeneutics and critique of contemporary professionalism in literature departments.