Literature as Ritual. The Ritual Stakes in Contemporary Literature

Concepts drawn from Anthropology allow us to probe the multiple ways in which ritual and literature are related. Firstly, by focusing on the intrinsic parameters of textual analysis, one may ask: how does a text construct a certain representation from within itself, and how does it define the role of the author, the position of the reader, and the modalities and boundaries of their interaction? Secondly, by focusing on contextual elements, one may inquire, in turn, about the beliefs and values that are brought into play as well as the modes of legitimation. Building on both the bedrock of memory (the substratum that gives an identity to a culture) and the emotional dimension of the text (speech act), literature is the author’s wager that communication and sharing are possible with a reader who, while unknown, may be expected to become a kindred spirit with whom the author may form a collective “we”, thus transcending temporal and existential limitations.