Memory and Mental States in the Appreciation of Literature

Abstract

An implicit supposition in literary studies is that ideal readers have unconstrained access to the text. However, we argue instead that the processing of literary narrative must be mediated by the fragmentary and distorted memory of real readers. In the present chapter, we focus on an important determinant of memory: the variation in readers' mental states during reading. In particular, we identify two prevalent fluctuations that have critical implications for memory and literary appreciation: mind wandering, in which the reader momentarily gives relatively little priority to processing the text; and engagement, in which the reader constructs elaborate and personally meaningful representations of the story world. We describe how the variation in these mental states over the course of reading affects reading processes and determines memory for both text and aesthetic reactions. This analysis is supported by the results of two experiments in which readers' mental states were probed online during reading.

Beyond Ontology: On Blaustein’s Reconsideration of Ingarden’s Aesthetics

“…See also (Casey, 1973, xx). For recent presentations and discussions, see (Sepp, 2005, 392;Bundgaard, 2013;Bortolussi & Dixon, 2015). In the "Preface to the first German edition" to Das literarische Kunstwerk, Ingarden declares: "Although the main subject of my investigations in the literary work, of the literary work of art, the ultimate motives for my work on this subject are of a general philosophical nature, and they far transcend this particular subject.…”

Spontaneous eye movements during focused-attention mindfulness meditation

“…This method is based on requesting the subject to report his / her mind-wandering whenever he / she realizes that his / her attention is off-task (self-caught mind-wandering), or intermittently interrupting the subject to ask about the content of his / her thoughts (probe-caught mind-wandering). Thought sampling methods enable the investigation of mind-wandering in terms of its frequency and content [12–14], in terms of the use or not of intentionality in its initiation and continuation [15], and in terms of its relation with individual characteristics [7,8,16–18], medical conditions [4,19] and its consequences on task performance [10,20–22]. Although mind-wandering has been linked to useful mental functions such as emotional processing [23], creative thinking [24] and autobiographical planning [12,14], it has also been related to reductions in task performance, which frequently occur during repetitive tasks [25–26].…”

Book review: Memory in the Twenty-First Century: New Critical Perspectives from the Arts, Humanities, and Sciences

“…We can consider that in the twenty-first century, the modernist subject matters of inwardness and consciousness continue to be explored, but in ways that now also give emphasis to memory. Such themes begun by modernist writers and critics have not only continued but have been augmented by the study of reading and writing literature in empirical research, as discussed, for instance, by Marisa Bortolussi and Peter Dixon (2015). In this new era, there has been a coming together of psychologists, artistic writers, and people in the humanities.…”