Classic categorizations, such
as “human beings are animals with two feet,” have obvious defections, as they
are too limited to cover the wide range of instances or not rich enough to fully
represent the characteristics of the type of beings. The literary prototype
theory based on the classic categorization, which regards prototypes as combinations
of universal properties and specific particularities, is essentialist and
incapable of exploring the true value of prototypes. It is discovered by Eleanor
Rosch and other scholars that the abstract attributes are not the criteria for classification
of types in everyday life; rather, the most typical prototypes are often used
as models to specify the members. A case in point is the robin which has most
of the attributes of birds such as laying eggs, beak, wings, feathers, but
other members within this category do not equally share the same attributes,
with a gradience from the prototypes to the marginal ones, hence the display of
richness and extensiveness. The literary prototype based on such theory can
fully represent the kind of people, transcending the essentialist theory of prototype
both vertically and horizontally. Rosch also divides categories into three
levels. On the basic level, the category, such as a dog, is perceptively distinct.
It is the base of the whole category system and the prototype of the
superordinate and subordinate levels’ categories. On the superordinate level, categories
such as the animal have only a few common characteristics. Members of the category
on the subordinate level, such as the retriever, have only a few differences.
Literary prototypes are based on the basic concept of mankind in general sense,
characterized by subordinate categories, such as the hero and the miser. Its richness
underscores its universality.
