On close reading / John Guillory ; with an annotated bibliography by Scott Newstok.
| Author/creator | Guillory, John author. |
| Other author | Newstok, Scott L., 1973- contributor. |
| Format | Book |
| Publication | Chicago : The University of Chicago Press, 2025. |
| Copyright Date | ©2025 |
| Description | x, 134 pages ; 21 cm |
| Subjects |
| Contents | The rise and rise of close reading -- Toward a general theory of reading -- Techné, technique, technology -- Close reading as technique -- Showing the work of reading -- Coda. On attention to literature -- Annotated bibliography / by Scott Newstok. |
| Abstract | "At a time of debate about the future of "English" as a discipline and the fundamental methods of literary study, few terms appear more frequently than "close reading." But what exactly is close reading, and where did it come from? Here John Guillory, author of the acclaimed Professing Criticism, takes up two puzzles. First, why did the New Critic--who supposedly made close reading central to literary study--so seldom use the term? And second, why have scholars not been better able to define close reading? Guillory treats these as intertwined puzzles. In fact, the purported fathers of close reading, he argues, weren't aiming to devise a method of reading at all. And this lack of specificity is one of close reading's greatest virtues. As our first reader says, "What is likely to attract the greatest attention and inspire the most heated debate is [Guillory's] argument that the so-called method wars have failed to appreciate how much close reading should be understood as a non-ideological technique, a practice that cannot be prescribed simply in words but that relies on the imitation and emulation that are central to education." Guillory's short book will be essential reading for all college teachers of literature. An annotated bibliography provides a guide to key documents in the history of close reading and a valuable resource for further research"-- Provided by publisher. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references (pages 87-124) and index. |
| Issued in other form | Online version: Guillory, John. On close reading. Chicago : The University of Chicago Press, 2025 9780226837444 |
| LCCN | 2024017544 |
| ISBN | 9780226837420 hardcover |
| ISBN | 0226837424 hardcover |
| ISBN | 9780226837437 paperback |
| ISBN | 0226837432 paperback |
| ISBN | electronic book |
Availability
| Library | Location | Call Number | Status | Item Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joyner | General Stacks | PN98 .C57 G85 2025 | ✔ Available | Place Hold |