The Application of Rogerian Theory to Literary Study

Abstract

When applied to literary study, Rogerian psychological theory will yield fruitful results in four areas: the theory of literary creativity, method of interpretation, analysis of character, and value theory. (a) The origin of a literary work is the author's personal, experiential insight into the nature of reality; the writer then plays with this insight until it jells into a form that "feels right" to him or her. (b) A literary work contains a system of values that can be apprehended by the reader through his or her emotional responses to the work. (c) Character analysis proceeds by recognizing incongruence between the character's internally experienced reactions and those the character feels obligated to have because of pressures from the environment. (d) Literature has value for the reader because it increases awareness of the reader's own organismic experience.

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