please ignore that "is" in the last sentence of 1). damn--matt On Sat, 21 Nov 1998 16:27:15 -0600 Matthew_Stevenson@baylor.edu wrote: > >> I can see how attractive this must be in a society - such as the US >> or Australia - where a remorseless egalitarianism lays its dead hand >> on the artist =ECn his special role as elite avatar - one only to be >>understood >> with the most ardent, humble devotion. It remains a position >> of grotesque & insightless impudence. >> >> Scottie B. > > >scottie-- > >1)if you're saying the author's intention is the most valid interpretation= of >a text, i'm with you. if you're saying the author's intention is the only >valid interpretation, i'm jumping ship. every reader brings a unique set = of >lenses to the text. i believe that looking through those lenses is a vali= d >way of seeing a work. but...the author IS the ultimate authority on what = the >work is actually SAYS. > >2)"remorseless egalitarianism"? sounds more like the french revolution or >the >brooks farm commune of hawthorne and melville fame to me. please elaborat= e >in >your inimitable style. > >--matt