Ordinary Literature Philosophy

Ordinary Literature Philosophy is no ordinary book. In Habjan's powerful and challenging argument, speech-act theory, from Austin to Butler, is recast as a powerful weapon for thinking subjectivity and institutional politics. This extraordinary book moves from Dead Poets Society to Romeo and Juliet and beyond to reveal the ideological limits we face and suggests how we might overcome them. * Benjamin Noys, Professor of Critical Theory, University of Chichester, UK * Habjan traverses an untrodden path in Lacanian literary studies. By exposing the relevance of Austin's speech act to Lacan's (un-signified)-signifier and critical reception of the idea by Derrida and Butler, Habjan authenticates a return to Austin's philosophy of doing things with words. He views Ducrot's enunciative theory as an analogue of Lacan's theory of discourses. * Ehsan Azari Stanizai, Lecturer in Literary Studies, National Institute of Dramatic Art, Australia * Jernej Habjan's Lacanian interpretation of speech act theory is an important intervention into the continental reception of the work of Austin and Searle, and of ordinary language philosophy more generally. Habjan's analysis of etiolated (i.e., non-pragmatic) speech acts, such as literary writing, is an erudite and incisive reframing of post-structuralist approaches to literature. He successfully brings the social context back into the discussion in a critical way while highlighting the effect of subjectivation that happens with speech acts. His discussion of Derrida and Butler then takes shape as an appropriative critique that develops and extends the deconstructive analysis of Austin and Searle, but at the same time argues against their neglect of subjectivity. It is also accessibly written and clearly structured. * Geoff Boucher, Associate Professor in Literary Studies, Deakin University, Australia *