In Foucault's What Is An Author, he speaks about who/what the author is...a figurehead. This is something that has never been brought to my attention. I was interested in this, because after he continued to explain his reasoning, the picture opened in my mind. This connects to Burke's concept, that humans always need a reason, and an explanation. We can never be satisfied without those things.
I say this because as Foucault continues to describe his outlook on what exactly the "author" is, I begin to see how the author, the text, and the writer can all be different. My main focus is that the author is just like a celebrity figure. A persona. Someone/something that is intended to be on the frontline. Someone/something that is supposed to take the criticism and the praise. Someone/something that is supposed to represent what the text itself cannot represent. The author is the agent. That is something we have discussed in class. But this relates to Burke, because it shows the need for reasoning and explanation. The author represents the being that is supposed to accept all that is given due the reception of the text. Society needs to know who the author is in order to give a reaction to that feedback.
This reception can range from many things, but they are all nonexistent if there is no identified creator. Society doesn't actually acknowledge the text without the author. Ex. When turning in an assignment you must have a name in order to receive credit. This is due to the need to respond and give some kind of reception. (grades, suggestions, etc.) Without the author, the text is not recognized. Of course this does not mean that the text lacks in substance and in personality, but that it cannot be associated with only itself. It would be an uproar the day that people acknowledge a text without anyone to credit it to. If so, the writer risks the text falling into the hands of another writer who is willing to be the author.
Writer, text, author. These three are the agents of themselves. Without the author the text is not relevant in society. After reading Foucault I have realized this.
I agree with you in the fact that the author can be considered the "figure." Unless your name is attached to a piece of writing, the chances of a reader knowing it is your writing is slim. Authors have been put into this black hole or, in turn, are a black hole themselves. I like how you compared this to celebrity status because it is completely true. Clothing styles in a celebrities eyes can not be worn on the red carpet unless they have a top designers name attached to them. The same goes for novels. Publishing companies often publish what they know or who they know. The author is no longer a person, but this blank entity that is merely a name on a piece of writing.
ReplyDeleteExactly, identity is everything.
DeleteBrian,
ReplyDeleteYour topic is perfect! It speaks perfectly to the connection you made among the writer, the text and the author.I like the way that you connected Burke and his dramatism theory to three stooges. I read the Foucault, Barthes and Burke article and still didn't fully understand what they meant until you made reference to celebrities. The celebrities being the authors, their lifestyle as the text and the society as the readers. It can easily be converted to an actual text an the author.
thank you. I honestly read a certain part of Foucault multiple times. I am searching for full sense of Burke.
DeleteBrian,
ReplyDeleteLike Koral and Kellion your reference to celebrities triggered a lightbulb in my head. Not only that but your remark about the "substance" really shed a light on something I was struggling with; so, the writing can contain substance it is just the "title" or "name" that is attached that makes it the "author's" work and not a "writer's." To take your "society needs to know who the other is..." statement, I would take it a step further and say that society would not even know what to do if there was no "author" but just a text. The author is essentially a scapegoat.
exactly, society would be in chaos.
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