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The Singularity of Literature
The Iliad and Beowulf provide rich sources of historical information. The novels of Henry Fielding and Henry James may be instructive in the art of moral living. Some go further and argue that Emile Zola and Harriet Beecher Stowe played a part in ameliorating the lives of those existing in harsh circumstances. However, as Derek Attridge argues in this outstanding and acclaimed book, none of these capacities is distinctive of literature. What is the singularity of literature? Do the terms "literature" and "the literary" refer to actual entities found in cultures at certain times, or are they merely expressions characteristic of such cultures? Attridge argues that this resistance to definition and reduction is not a dead end, but a crucial starting point from which to explore anew the power and practices of Western art.
Derek Attridge provides a rich new vocabulary for literature, rethinking such terms as "invention," "singularity," "otherness," "alterity," "performance" and "form." He returns literature to the realm of ethics, and argues for the ethical importance of literature, demonstrating how a new understanding of the literary might be put to work in a "responsible," creative mode of reading.
The Singularity of Literature is not only a major contribution to the theory of literature, but also a celebration of the extraordinary pleasure of the literary, for reader, writer, student or critic.
This Routledge Classics edition includes a new preface by the author.
245 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 8, 2004
8 people are currently reading
180 people want to read
About the author
Derek Attridge
45books14followersDerek Attridge is a South African-born British literary scholar celebrated for his influential contributions to English literature, particularly in literary theory, poetic form, modernist fiction, and South African writing. He is especially noted for his work on James Joyce and J.M. Coetzee, and for his landmark study The Singularity of Literature, which won the European Society for the Study of English Book Award and has been translated into multiple languages. Across his career, Attridge has explored the ethical, rhythmic, and linguistic dimensions of literature, always emphasizing the transformative potential of reading.
He has authored or edited over thirty books and published scores of essays in journals and collections. His major works include The Rhythms of English Poetry, which challenged traditional approaches to poetic meter; Joyce Effects and How to Read Joyce, key texts for modernist studies; and J.M. Coetzee and the Ethics of Reading, which has become a foundational text in Coetzee scholarship. His book The Experience of Poetry traces the reception of poetry from Homer to Shakespeare, while Forms of Modernist Fiction offers an ambitious study of the modernist novel, earning recognition as a Choice Outstanding Academic Title.
Attridge has held numerous prestigious fellowships, including those from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Leverhulme Trust, and research centers in the US, Europe, and South Africa. He has also held visiting professorships in universities across four continents. He is Emeritus Professor of English and Related Literature at the University of York and a Fellow of the British Academy.
His editorial work includes influential volumes such as The Cambridge Companion to James Joyce, Acts of Literature (featuring essays by Jacques Derrida), and The Cambridge History of South African Literature. His writing is known for its clarity, depth, and ability to bridge close reading with philosophical inquiry, establishing him as a key figure in the fields of poetics, modernism, and literary ethics.
He has authored or edited over thirty books and published scores of essays in journals and collections. His major works include The Rhythms of English Poetry, which challenged traditional approaches to poetic meter; Joyce Effects and How to Read Joyce, key texts for modernist studies; and J.M. Coetzee and the Ethics of Reading, which has become a foundational text in Coetzee scholarship. His book The Experience of Poetry traces the reception of poetry from Homer to Shakespeare, while Forms of Modernist Fiction offers an ambitious study of the modernist novel, earning recognition as a Choice Outstanding Academic Title.
Attridge has held numerous prestigious fellowships, including those from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Leverhulme Trust, and research centers in the US, Europe, and South Africa. He has also held visiting professorships in universities across four continents. He is Emeritus Professor of English and Related Literature at the University of York and a Fellow of the British Academy.
His editorial work includes influential volumes such as The Cambridge Companion to James Joyce, Acts of Literature (featuring essays by Jacques Derrida), and The Cambridge History of South African Literature. His writing is known for its clarity, depth, and ability to bridge close reading with philosophical inquiry, establishing him as a key figure in the fields of poetics, modernism, and literary ethics.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
June 21, 2018
Probably the most paradoxical book I have ever read. It impacted me deeply and yet I do not remember a single theory of it. (I mean I do but in abstract ways. I probably can't explain them to any other human.) +The language was extremely confusing and simple at the same time. The tone was very calm and collected and yet extremely passionate, even piercing. At times, it sent chills down my spine. My reaction to a single sentence could vary from "of course that's obvious" to "whoa how did I not see that before". It made me exhausted and refreshed at the same time. How can you rate a book like that? Well, at its core, I really liked it.
July 10, 2013
The book is not very original and does not explain what is it about literature that is so singular: "My attempt to convey in the language of argument and description the essence of the literary has, of course, failed; but as an event communicated in the event of reading, this failure offers itself as testimony to the vitality and persistence of literature(p. 138)." In my opinion it is better to take any work of literature than to read books about literature. However, if someone is interested in philosophical qua Derridean musings on the literariness as such then "The singularity of Literature" will be a welcome encounter with otherness, alterity, and so on and so forth.
June 11, 2017
much more fun than the atrocious cover art would imply. thanks, Derek.
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July 9, 2017Literature = inventive, singular event inviting response.
May 2, 2018
Maybe the most important book on the intangible essence of literature and how it affects the world around it and the world within it.
September 8, 2021
I know a lot of my classmates were very annoyed with this because of its suspiciously formalist undertones, but I genuinely thought it was good. Attridge's writing is so very accessible, and that's not because of the simplicity of the ideas as much as it is because of his considerateness as a scholar and writer. He makes space for the reader at every turn to participate in the book, and his ideas flow in a mostly organic and lucid manner. I did find the size of the book disproportionate to his ideas--it could have easily been much shorter and succinct, but I do appreciate that he clearly prioritises reiteration and long explanatory paragraphs over any other considerations.
October 30, 2019
An illusion of a book.
February 7, 2021
3.5 stars!
Pretty interesting read, especially in the details. The main point/argument of this book seemed to be not that inventive (hark hark), but the details and descriptions of those events were more interesting. At times unnecessarily "snobbish" (for lack of a better word)—for instance, there is no need to add "that everybody knows" to the introduction of Blake's "Sick Rose"—or convoluted in the details, but very interesting nonetheless.
Definitely recommend this to anyone interested in the question of the 'meaning'/'existence' of literature!
Pretty interesting read, especially in the details. The main point/argument of this book seemed to be not that inventive (hark hark), but the details and descriptions of those events were more interesting. At times unnecessarily "snobbish" (for lack of a better word)—for instance, there is no need to add "that everybody knows" to the introduction of Blake's "Sick Rose"—or convoluted in the details, but very interesting nonetheless.
Definitely recommend this to anyone interested in the question of the 'meaning'/'existence' of literature!
October 15, 2009
During my second reading I discovered that this is an absolute gem, and not the clunker I had previously thought it. Attridge is generous, responsible, and erudite - and if the man loves Levinas so much, well, I guess that's allright. His sustained engagement with alterity, ethics, and innovation is a perfect method of exploring why, exactly, good books matter; and his is one of the best long-form definitions of literature I've encountered yet. If you have the time, the effort, and the background (because yes, sadly, I believe this might need a mixture of the three), then The Singularity of Literature is worth the read - after all, it packs a powerful punch for less than 150 pages.
March 22, 2011
Very accessible, I'd very much recommend it for anyone interested in reading literature seriously.
October 10, 2012
One of the most exciting works of literary theory I've ever read.
January 19, 2017
A passionate and convincing argument for aestheticism.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
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