Denial of the Presence of the Other

The book “Denial of the Presence of Another” was written by Siavash Jamadi (born 1951). The main focus of this book is the novel and literary criticism. The author believes that at the dawn of the 21st century, literary criticism has a rich and extensive background of what has been written about literary theory and various criticism methods from the beginning of modernism to today. It seems that the fruitful debates about the critical approach to literary texts, especially novels, have reached a point where it is no longer possible to arrive at a consensual definition of literary criticism. This, however, does not indicate incapacity, and even less does it justify interpretative anarchy. Criticism is always a critique of something that guides the critic, even toward the meaning that Roland Barthes called a second language over the language of the work in his book “Criticism and Truth.” This book, in seven chapters, critiques and analyzes prominent novels in their philosophical and historical contexts. In the introduction, titled “An Introduction to the Genealogy of the Novel and Literary Criticism,” the author clarifies his perspective and method on literary criticism through discussing issues such as the problem of defining literary criticism, the relationship between the work and the text, the creator of the literary work, and the role of the novel in the modern world.