Hermeneutics of written texts, religious discourse in Mexican literature

grantor: University of TorontoThe aspiration of this thesis is towards a lucid understanding of the relationship between religious discourse and action in contemporary México. This question is approached through the study of the contemporary Mexican novel. However, in order to confront the arguments of art for art's sake, or of literature as a celebration of the enclosed world of language, it was necessary to integrate a theoretical discussion of the relationship between the written text and the world of action along with the exploration of the above-mentioned theme. The central problematic of the thesis was thus undertaken in two directions: (I) through an examination of the act of inscribing the world of action as written text, and (II) through analysis of the related issue of the referentiality of the written text to the world of action. The thesis is organized consistent with Ricoeur's conceptualization of the interpretation of texts as a three-fold mimesis; or, in Valdés' terms, with the three areas of engagement of the literary critic. Valdés' four stages of operation of literary criticism are integrated with these three areas, for these stages clearly serve to actualize Ricoeur's philosophical hermeneutics. This present work is thus divided into three major sections through which four sub-sections are interwoven. The first major section, "Prefiguration", provides the prefigurative basis for the work, briefly reviewing the philosophical tradition on which this thesis develops its innovations. These innovations are suggested with respect to the importance of ostensive references in inscribing the world of action, along with discussion pertinent to religious discourse and action as expressed in a selection of contemporary Mexican novels. The second major section, "Configuration", examines the act of inscribing the world of action. In this section, the phenomenon under study is religious discourse in the world of action of contemporary México. The third major section, "Refiguration", explores the manner in which the text, once written, refers to a world of action. In this section the phenomenon under study is no longer the world of action itself, but rather the written document. The work is concluded with a short section entitled "Return to the prefigurative". This section serves to provide a review and summary of the main arguments of the thesis. It also reflects the circular movement of open hermeneutic commentary, for such reflections are both grounded in tradition and return to it, enhancing the prefigurative matrix and offering possibilities for further innovation. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)Ph.D