Welcome to Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art,

Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art ›› 2019, Vol. 39 ›› Issue (6): 205-212.

• Western Literary Theory • Previous Articles    

The Mind of the Other, Political Organism, and the Dramatic Nature of Ordinary Language: A Case Study of Stanley Cavell's Comments on Coriolanus

Lin Yunke   

  1. School of Literature, Nankai University
  • Online:2019-11-25 Published:2020-03-20
  • About author:Lin Yunke, Ph. D., is an assistant researcher at School of Literature, Nankai University. His research interests include Western literary theory and ordinary language philosophy.
  • Supported by:

    the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities [No. 63192232]

Abstract: Stanly Cavell is the precursor to apply the philosophy of ordinary language, especially the thought of later Ludwig Wittgenstein, into analyzing literary and artistic works. Through detailed analysis of Wittgenstein's discussions on the issues of "the mind of the other" and "private language"s, Cavell claims that thinking in ordinary language is a seduction of the skepticism brought about by the myth of positivism. In his reading of Shakespeare's Coriolanus, Cavell expounds "appetite" as a metaphor of political organism, demonstrating how Wittgenstein's criticism is embodied in a dramatic way. The ontological mechanism of drama realized through explorations of ordinary language is itself also a practice of what Wittgenstein refers to as "therapy".

Key words: Stanley Cavell, later Wittgenstein, the mind of the other, Shakespeare, drama therapy