Interpretation and Over-interpretation

Author: (It) Umberto Eco (Eng) Wang Yugen
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-01
Features: A collection of debates between the renowned Italian novelist and semiotician Umberto Eco and the three distinguished scholars Richard Rorty, Jonathan Culler, and Steven Rose. It primarily explores the question of the finitude of interpretation. The interpretation of text meaning is the main work of humanities and social sciences. However, does the interpretation of a text have boundaries? Does the author's intention play a role in defining these boundaries? With his dual identity as both the creator and interpreter of works, Eco's viewpoints carry greater significance and inspiration. In the book, he proposes the concept of "work intention" to limit the infinitely rich possibilities of textual interpretation. Meanwhile, Rorty, Culler, and Rose respectively refute Eco from the perspectives of philosophy, literary theory, and literary criticism, and elaborate on their unique viewpoints. In this discussion, we can see the differences and confrontations among various theories of hermeneutics.