About this video

• Video Title: Frederic Jameson's Lecture October 7 1977 side 1 and 2
• Channel: Bao Nguyen - Grad. Admin Comparative Literature
• Speakers: Frederic Jameson
• Duration: 01:48:42

Overview

This video is a recording of a lecture by Frederic Jameson given on October 7, 1977. The lecture delves into literary analysis, focusing on the works of Gustave Flaubert and the concept of the "reality effect." Jameson discusses how literary texts create an illusion of realism through concrete, non-symbolic details, and how this contrasts with older modes of representation. He also explores themes of history, modernization, and the production of everyday life within literary narratives.

Key takeaways

• The "Reality Effect" in Realism: Jameson explains that 19th-century realism, particularly in Flaubert's work, creates an illusion of reality through meticulously described, seemingly non-symbolic details. These details, like the barometer in the described passage, function to connote "realness" and the concrete world, rather than carrying specific symbolic meanings.
• Contingency vs. Symbolism: A core theme is the tension between contingency and symbolism. Jameson argues that our experience of daily life is one of contingency, while overly symbolic texts can feel arbitrary or unrealistic. Flaubert's writing, he suggests, aims to present contingent details that resist easy symbolic interpretation.
• Modernism and Flaubert: Flaubert's work is presented as a pivotal moment marking a break with earlier forms of representation, leading to modernism. This shift involves a new experience of the body and objects, characterized by contingency and a move away from purely symbolic meaning.
• History as an Absent Cause: Jameson posits that history in Flaubert's work functions as an "absent cause" or an "invisible outer limit." It is present not through direct depiction, but through constant substitution and displacement, leading away from individual characters and towards an ungraspable historical reality.
• The Production of Daily Life: The lecture connects literary analysis to broader societal changes, framing Flaubert's work as contributing to the "production of daily life" and the "bourgeois Cultural Revolution." This involves not only material changes but also the cultivation of new mentalities suited to modern capitalism.
• Interpretation and Subtext: Jameson emphasizes that interpretation involves reconstructing subtexts rather than simply finding a single, definitive meaning. He suggests that understanding a work requires considering multiple layers of meaning and historical context.