"What is an Author?"

Article Review # 100012

English > Analysis
Philosophy

An analysis of Michel Foucault's understanding of authorship, according to his essay, "What is an Author?".

2,180 words () | 4 sources | MLA | 2007 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the famous French philosopher and writer, Michel Foucault and his understanding of authorship, according to one of his most well known and controversial essays, "What is an Author?". It discusses his argument that our current social understanding of authorship is fundamentally flawed. The paper then looks at the validity of his statements and suggests that his argument remains largely compelling.

From the Paper:

"Altogether, Foucault determines that authorship has only manifested itself in artistic and intellectual expressions which possess the potential to threaten the basic power structures of our society. This is why it does not affect all forms of expression in the same manner or to the same degree. Since he has argued that it is essentially a worthless way to attempt to genuinely understand a piece of literature and even the individual human being who is responsible for producing it, he is left with the conclusion that it must be useful for limiting the spread of information and keeping power mechanisms within society properly functioning: "How can one reduce the great peril, the great danger with which fiction threatens our world? The answer is: one can reduce it with the author. The author allows a limitation of the cancerous and dangerous proliferation of significations within a world where one is thrifty not only with one's resources and riches, but also with one's discourses and their significations," (Foucault)."

Sample of Sources Used:

Chartier, Roger. "The Chimera of the Origin: Archaeology, Cultural History, and the French Revolution." From Foucault and the Writing of History, edited by Jan Goldstein. Cambridge: Blackwell, 1994. Pages 167-186.
Fink-Eitel, Hinrich. Foucault: an Introduction. Philadelphia: Pennbridge, 1992.
Foucault, Michel. "What is an Author?" Foucault Reader, 1984. Available: http://www.hope.edu/academic/english/pannapacker/Foucault.html.
Spurgin, Tim. "Readers' Guide to Foucault's 'What is an Author.'" Lawrence College, Sept. 26, 1997. Available: http://www.lawrence.edu/dept/english/courses/60A/handouts/author.html.