The Death of the Author
Sheriff Ayew
Mr. Kobina Graham
Text and Meaning
“The death of the author”
Group D
November 21, 2012
“The death of the author” Writings make authors. The writings that make these authors prevalent are read and appraised by a hefty group of people titled “the readers”. The readers are therefore in this framework more treasured than the authors. In light of this context, my piece of writing will enumerate and aid as a mirror to reflect on “the death of the author” and also use a popular text known as the private experience which was written by Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie. Taking stands in “the death of the author” to begin with, looking at it in the economic point of view as the theory of Marxism is applied, leaves the author no superior or significant than the bibliophile. Making a comparison of readers or critics of a text to the ingenious authors, the readers or the critics enjoy a more comfortable and sustainable life than the authors. Readers and critics benefit heavily from their job securities, their social status and their employment advantages than authors. In reference to money, readers or critics earn more money than the authors who solely have that as their profession. As suggested by Karl Marx, there are levels into which people according to their wealth are placed and they are the lower class, the middle class and the upper class. In respect to this, most authors with writing as their main profession fall into the ranges between the lower class and the middle class. Supposing no reader or critic patronizes the works of an author whose profession is solely on that. How then does this author survive? Against this background, we dare not place the value of the author above the reader. The author is dead in this case. Who creates more implications into a particular text? Is it the author or the reader? The author pens the piece of text with only one meaning whereas the text is being interpreted into many meanings by the
Mr. Kobina Graham
Text and Meaning
“The death of the author”
Group D
November 21, 2012
“The death of the author” Writings make authors. The writings that make these authors prevalent are read and appraised by a hefty group of people titled “the readers”. The readers are therefore in this framework more treasured than the authors. In light of this context, my piece of writing will enumerate and aid as a mirror to reflect on “the death of the author” and also use a popular text known as the private experience which was written by Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie. Taking stands in “the death of the author” to begin with, looking at it in the economic point of view as the theory of Marxism is applied, leaves the author no superior or significant than the bibliophile. Making a comparison of readers or critics of a text to the ingenious authors, the readers or the critics enjoy a more comfortable and sustainable life than the authors. Readers and critics benefit heavily from their job securities, their social status and their employment advantages than authors. In reference to money, readers or critics earn more money than the authors who solely have that as their profession. As suggested by Karl Marx, there are levels into which people according to their wealth are placed and they are the lower class, the middle class and the upper class. In respect to this, most authors with writing as their main profession fall into the ranges between the lower class and the middle class. Supposing no reader or critic patronizes the works of an author whose profession is solely on that. How then does this author survive? Against this background, we dare not place the value of the author above the reader. The author is dead in this case. Who creates more implications into a particular text? Is it the author or the reader? The author pens the piece of text with only one meaning whereas the text is being interpreted into many meanings by the