Saugata BHADURI « “Literary Theory”, Ideology-Critique, and Beyond »

This first lecture will focus on recent developments in the area of Literary Theory, or to be more specific, on how ideology critique, which would have been one of the methodological mainstays of reading literature and culture under the aegis of Literary Theory, has been challenged over the last couple of decades, in the form of post-critical and post-theoretical developments, to lead to more ‘affective’ modes of dealing with literature and culture. The move, from the late 1990s, towards literary pedagogic practices being oriented more towards affect and enjoyment has been complicated, however, over the last few years with an unforeseen rise in cybernetic cultures including the social media, the global rise of sectarianism and new-fascisms, and the unforeseen pandemic situation, having ushered discursivity and narrativity, on an unprecedented scale, into regimes of fake news and post-truth. Is there a need, therefore, to revitalize ideology critique as one of the primary modes of studying literature and culture ? Or, considering that ideology is itself, by definition, false consciousness, and ideological interpellation is always connected to projections of identities, and thus identity politics, is there a need for strengthening a literary critical practice that is otherwise than ideological – premised on a robust economy of Truth and an ethical outlook of being other-regarding, rather than being sectarian and identitarian ?