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"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”
– Nelson Mandela

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Week 1 Discussion Forum 2

Week 1 Discussion Forum 2

Q For this forum, please answer the following question. Your post to the following question should be between 120-200 words Question: The culture of a society drives the literature that is produced. Cultural studies encompass literary theory as a specific cultural element. At first blush, it is unclear whether literary theory gains new importance in cultural studies or is diminished by many other segments of culture. There two tend to be different approaches taken by literary theorists to understand the meaning of a given text. One approach, called poetics, has the theorist starting with some preconceived meaning of a work (irony, for example) and then goes about providing evidence of the use of that construct. In hermeneutics, the theorist approaches a work in an unbiased fashion and then discovers what meaning it has. Modern interpretation in the main follows the latter process. In this forum, describe to me how you think we interpret works of literature. What comes into play? What is the process of interpretation like? What does it involve? And, although hermeneutics strives for an "unbiased interpretation," do you think we can ever achieve such objectivity when we encounter a text (or any other work of art for that matter)? Why or why not? I think it depends on how we approach the work of literature. Someone who doesn't have a personal bias towards politics will see a film, like V for Vendetta for example, and conclude that big government is bad. But i have seen people who have a left bias claim that everything mentioned in the film is coming true because of the conservative party just like in the movie, "He's a deeply religious man and a member of the conservative party."- V talking about the politician that destroyed his own country with a virus to gain complete control over its citizens. But i have also seen people who are more moderate or full on conservative say that events happening today are similar to the film except its the fault of the left and they use "Poetics" to confirm their theory about the film.

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I would say most people use hermeneutics though, as I don't go into a film with theories already in my mind looking for the symbolism that confirms my thoughts, i just want to enjoy a book or a film