Conflicting Readings

Variety and Validity in Interpretation

By Paul B. Armstrong

208 pp., 5.5 x 8.5

  • Paperback ISBN: 978-0-8078-4279-9
    Published: October 1990
  • E-book EPUB ISBN: 978-1-4696-1714-5
    Published: October 2017
  • E-book PDF ISBN: 979-8-8908-8111-3
    Published: October 2017

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Armstrong argues that conflicting readings occur because readers with opposing suppositions about language, literature, and life can generate irreconcilable hypotheses about a text. Without endorsing a particular critical methodology, the author offers a theory designed to help readers better understand the causes and consequences of interpretive disagreement so that they may make more informed choices about the various interpretive strategies available to them.

Originally published in 1990.

A UNC Press Enduring Edition -- UNC Press Enduring Editions use the latest in digital technology to make available again books from our distinguished backlist that were previously out of print. These editions are published unaltered from the original, and are presented in affordable paperback formats, bringing readers both historical and cultural value.

Reviews

"It is the sort of book that one would want one's graduate students and professional colleagues to take to heart for its democratizing the critical enterprise."--Style

"A timely contribution to current debates about the interpretation of texts, both literary and nonliterary. The author steers a judicious middle course without ignoring the legitimate points made by the best 'anarchist' and 'absolutist' critics."--Paul Hernadi, University of California, Santa Barbara