Reading The Eve of St. Agnes: The Multiples of Complex Literary Transaction

Using the 180-year history of Keats's "The Eve of St. Agnes" as a basis for theorizing about the reading process, this book explores the nature and whereabouts of "meaning" in complex works. A proponent of authorial intent, Jack Stillinger argues a theoretical compromise between author and reader, applying a theory of interpretive democracy that includes the endlessly multifarious reader's response as well as Keats's guessed-at intent. Stillinger also ruminates on the process of constructing meaning, and posits an answer to why Keats's work is considered canonical, and why it is still being read and admired.; This book is intended for college libraries, scholars and critics.