SummaryOfTheAuthor-Group02

The chapter began by discussing the root of the "author" within the term "auctore" from the 15th Century to the first half of the 20th century (pages 107-110). On page 107 it is stated that, "Unlike the medieval auctor who based his authority on divine revelation, an author himself claimed authority for his words and based his individuality on the stories he composed." The history section also discussed the cultural implications of the auctore and author while also talking about the idea of "the genius" (108) and "other nature" (109). On page 111, the chapter starts to get into the author in regards to criticism, the social world, and the text. Before the next major section, the chapter notes that the cultural realms have been separated from the politcal and economical, in regards to the author. This separation has resulted in separating the author from his work. The rest of the chapter mostly discusses the author in terms of various criticisms. The first criticism to be discussed is the New Critic's "autotelic" or "autonomous" text which is defined as utterly separate from the surrounding environment (111). The second major discussion is about Barthes' article that claims the death of the author. Foucault then controversially challenged Barthes' idea with his own "Fundamental author." Poststructialism is also discussed in that poststructuralists are ruled by the critic, or the authorless subject.