The World, the Text, and the Critic

By: Edward W. Said

Narrated by: Peter Ganim

A sweeping and intellectually rigorous work of literary criticism that moves the field forward, from one of the preeminent public scholars

“[Said’s] book is relaxed and discursive, original, immensely learned, fluently written.”―John Bayley, The New York Times Book Review

Edward W. Said, author of Beginnings and the controversial yet seminal Orientalism, is one of the most acclaimed public intellectuals of our time. In this sweeping and rigorous work of literary criticism, he pushes the field even further forward. Moving from Derrida to Foucault, from Marxism to psychoanalysis, and from Swift to Conrad, Said argues that the dogmas of the dominant culture have crippled our engagement with literature, forcing a text to meet the requirements of theory while ignoring the tethers that bind it to the living world.

Provocatively, Said advocates for freedom of consciousness and for responsiveness to history; to the exigencies of the text; to political, social, and human values; and to the heterogeneity of human experience. The World, the Text, and the Critic asks daring questions, investigates problems of urgent significance, and gives a subtle yet powerful new meaning to the enterprise of criticism in modern society.

Critic reviews

“A genuinely emergent way of thinking.”
―Raymond Williams, The Guardian

“Provocative and exacting . . . . the book issues from a remarkably sharp intelligence, forcing us to face questions and possibilities that literary theorists on the whole prefer not even to raise.”
―Denis Donoghue, The New Republic

“[Said] challenges and stimulates our thinking in every area.”
—The Washington Post Book World

“Said reads passionately and bravely. . . . He challenges everyone to read fiction in the most comprehensive manner possible.”
—Philadelphia Inquirer

“The intellectual excitement of each essay and the enlightening effect of the brilliant thinking and writing of the book as a whole move the reader to the recognition of Said’s major contribution to contemporary literary critical theory and practice.”
―English Literature in Transition

“Said's extraordinary moral imagination, political range, and cultural awareness provide a unique perspective.”
—Richard Falk