Sounding the Classics
From Sophocles to Thomas Mann
Rudolph Binion
0-275-95965-1/978-0-275-95965-4
Description
This book is a comparative study of twelve works of fiction broadly representative of the Western canon. Its aim is to discover what gives these twelve works their lasting appeal and vitality over and beyond their formal qualities. It focuses on the interplay of text and subtext within each work after defining these terms at the outset. It then compares its twelve sample classics systematically in a conclusion that argues from the works themselves to classics in general.Binion's key finding is that for a piece of fiction to feel deep, whole, and great, as classics do, its text must be underpinned from start to finish by a subtext, or alternative reading, which calls that text itself into question. A book for scholar, student and educated public alike, no serious reader will be able to consider what makes a classic without reference to this work.
About the Author
RUDOLPH BINION is Leff Professor of History at Brandeis University. He is the author of numerous works including
Hitler Among the Germans
and
Love Beyond Death
.
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0-275-95965-1
978-0-275-95965-4
Sounding the Classics
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