Abstract

This dissertation identifies a turn to literature and literary criticism as a source of insight in political and social theory. I argue that the claims made on behalf of this turn are overstated. I nevertheless highlight ways in which literary methods can act as a source of theoretical reflection and political construction. I focus on three claims: that the rejection of Enlightenment Reason entails a rejection of philosophical argument and a move towards literary theory as our paradigmatic critical practice; that literature can---by generating a moral/emotional response---provide a basis for liberal-democracy in a post-Rawlsian world; and that literature can generate insight into the political that is unavailable through behavioral social science. Examining these claims in the work of four contemporary theorists---Judith Butler, Terry Eagleton, Martha Nussbaum and Richard Rorty---I rework them in important ways. Accepting the basic tenets of postfoundationalism, I argue that the rejection of philosophy is premature, and that literary methods can enhance critical political thought not replace it. Second, I argue that whilst literature has the potential to generate critical reflection in its readers, this process is fragile and unpredictable: a product of an interaction between the reader and the text. Thus, political theories predicated on texts having predictable impacts upon their readers are methodologically flawed and politically manipulative: they seek to impose a textual reading on a citizenry to achieve a preconceived end. I offer an alternative account focused upon the effect of discussions about the texts rather than the texts themselves as a source of insight and solidarity for liberal-democracy. Finally, I argue that recent work on politics and literature is influenced by a prior 'political turn' in literary studies. Detailing this turn, I argue that it is an unsuitable model for political theory and social science: resting on a confusion between the written world---the world of the text---and the unwritten world---the world in which that text is written---and the standards of justification that pertain in the study of each. I nevertheless offer guidelines for those seeking to use literature as a critical resource in political analysis