The Anxiety of Irrelevance: Digital Humanities and Contemporary Literary Theory (original) (raw)

The paper explores the intersection of digital humanities and contemporary literary theory, emphasizing the shift from traditional literary analyses towards scientific frameworks that prioritize causal explanations over subjective interpretations. It critiques a growing trend among scholars to rely on non-cognitive, biological approaches, suggesting that this undermines the inherent value of critical and aesthetic methods in understanding literature. The author argues for the importance of recognizing the collaborative processes involved in the creation and interpretation of literary works, particularly medieval texts, highlighting how traditional consumption through edited versions deprives them of their broader cultural significance.