9.2 Horizon of expectations

The horizon of expectations concept revolutionized literary theory by emphasizing how readers' prior knowledge and cultural context shape their understanding of texts. Developed by Hans Robert Jauss in the 1960s, it draws on reception theory and hermeneutics to explain the active role of readers in constructing meaning.

This concept highlights the dynamic nature of interpretation, showing how expectations evolve with changing historical contexts and literary innovations. It plays a crucial role in guiding readers' understanding, shaping their aesthetic experience, and influencing the range of possible interpretations of literary works.

Origins of concept

• Horizon of expectations emerged as a key concept in literary theory during the 1960s and 1970s, drawing on insights from reception theory and hermeneutics
• The concept aimed to explain how readers' prior knowledge, assumptions, and cultural context shape their understanding and interpretation of literary works

Jauss and reception theory

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• Hans Robert Jauss, a prominent German literary theorist, played a crucial role in developing the concept of horizon of expectations as part of his reception theory
• Jauss argued that readers approach texts with a set of expectations based on their previous literary experiences, cultural background, and historical moment
• Reception theory emphasizes the active role of the reader in constructing meaning and the importance of considering the historical reception of literary works

Gadamer's influence

• The concept of horizon of expectations also draws on the hermeneutic philosophy of Hans-Georg Gadamer, particularly his notion of the fusion of horizons
• Gadamer posited that understanding occurs when the reader's horizon (pre-understanding and prejudices) merges with the horizon of the text (its historical and cultural context)
• This fusion of horizons enables the reader to grasp the meaning of the text while simultaneously broadening their own understanding and expectations

Key components

• Horizon of expectations consists of several interrelated elements that shape readers' encounters with literary works and influence their interpretations
• These components include the reader's pre-understanding, the socio-historical context, and the literary and genre conventions prevalent at the time of reading

Reader's pre-understanding

• Readers approach texts with a pre-existing set of knowledge, beliefs, values, and experiences that form their pre-understanding or prejudices
• This pre-understanding influences how readers perceive and interpret literary works, guiding their expectations and shaping their aesthetic experience
• Examples of pre-understanding include personal background (education, cultural upbringing), ideological commitments (political beliefs, religious faith), and prior literary encounters (familiarity with genres, authors, or specific works)

Socio-historical context

• The socio-historical context in which a reader encounters a text plays a significant role in shaping their horizon of expectations
• This context includes the prevailing cultural norms, social structures, political climate, and intellectual currents of the reader's time and place
• For instance, a reader's expectations of a novel in the Victorian era (social mores, gender roles) would differ from those of a contemporary reader approaching the same text

Literary and genre conventions

• Readers' expectations are also influenced by their familiarity with literary and genre conventions prevalent at the time of reading
• Genre conventions (narrative structure, character types, themes) create a framework of expectations that readers bring to their encounter with a text
• Examples include the expectations associated with specific genres like romance (happy ending, idealized love), detective fiction (mystery, clues, resolution), or epic poetry (heroic protagonists, grand scale, elevated language)

Dynamic nature

• Horizon of expectations is not a static concept but rather a dynamic and evolving one, shaped by changing reader expectations, shifting historical contexts, and the interplay of tradition and innovation in literary production

Evolving reader expectations

• Readers' expectations are not fixed but can evolve over time as they encounter new literary works, engage with different interpretive communities, and experience changes in their personal and cultural circumstances
• This evolution of expectations can lead to new readings and interpretations of texts, as well as shifts in the canon and critical reception of literary works
• For example, feminist criticism has transformed readers' expectations and interpretations of classic texts (Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice) by foregrounding issues of gender, power, and agency

Shifting historical contexts

• As historical contexts change, so do the horizons of expectations that readers bring to their encounters with literary works
• Shifts in social norms, political ideologies, and cultural values can significantly alter how readers perceive and interpret texts from different historical periods
• For instance, contemporary readers may approach colonial literature (Heart of Darkness, Kim) with a critical awareness of imperialism and racism that was not part of the original audience's horizon of expectations

Interplay of tradition and innovation

• The dynamic nature of horizon of expectations is also shaped by the interplay between literary tradition and innovation
• Authors can challenge or subvert readers' expectations by introducing new forms, styles, or themes that break with established conventions and create a sense of defamiliarization
• Examples include the modernist experimentation of James Joyce (stream of consciousness, fragmentation) or the postmodern metafiction of John Barth (self-reflexivity, blurring of reality and fiction), which disrupted traditional narrative expectations

Role in interpretation

• Horizon of expectations plays a crucial role in guiding readers' understanding of literary works, shaping their aesthetic experience, and enabling or limiting possible interpretations

Guiding reader's understanding

• The reader's horizon of expectations serves as a lens through which they approach and make sense of a literary text
• This horizon provides a framework for understanding the text's meaning, themes, and significance, guiding the reader's interpretation and response
• For example, a reader's familiarity with the conventions of tragic drama (noble protagonist, fatal flaw, inevitable downfall) will shape their understanding of a play like Oedipus Rex

Shaping aesthetic experience

• Horizon of expectations also influences the reader's aesthetic experience of a literary work, including their emotional response, appreciation of form and style, and evaluation of the text's quality or value
• When a text meets or exceeds readers' expectations, it can produce a sense of satisfaction, pleasure, or admiration
• Conversely, when a text violates or challenges readers' expectations, it can create feelings of frustration, confusion, or even rejection

Enabling or limiting interpretations

• The reader's horizon of expectations can both enable and limit the range of possible interpretations of a literary work
• On one hand, the horizon provides a necessary starting point for understanding and engaging with the text, allowing readers to draw on their prior knowledge and experience to construct meaning
• On the other hand, the horizon can also constrain interpretation by predisposing readers to certain readings and making it difficult to see beyond their own assumptions and biases
• For instance, a reader's expectation of a happy ending in a romance novel may limit their ability to appreciate a subversive or ambiguous conclusion

Relationship to other concepts

• Horizon of expectations is closely connected to other key concepts in literary theory, including reception theory, the hermeneutic circle, and intertextuality

Reception theory connections

• As a central concept in reception theory, horizon of expectations is part of a broader focus on the reader's role in the creation of literary meaning
• Reception theory emphasizes the historical and cultural situatedness of reading, arguing that the meaning of a text is not fixed but rather constructed through the interaction between the text and its readers
• Other key concepts in reception theory include the implied reader (the hypothetical audience presupposed by the text) and the actual reader (the real-life individuals who encounter and interpret the text)

Hermeneutic circle similarities

• The concept of horizon of expectations shares similarities with the hermeneutic circle, a central idea in the philosophy of interpretation
• The hermeneutic circle refers to the iterative process of understanding, in which the interpreter's prior knowledge and expectations (the whole) shape their understanding of the text's parts, which in turn modify their overall understanding
• Like the fusion of horizons, the hermeneutic circle involves a dialogical encounter between the interpreter's pre-understanding and the text's meaning, leading to a deepened and transformed understanding

Intertextuality and genre expectations

• Horizon of expectations is also closely linked to the concept of intertextuality, which refers to the way in which texts are shaped by and respond to other texts within a literary tradition
• Readers' expectations are often formed through their familiarity with other texts in the same genre or by the same author, creating a web of intertextual connections that guide interpretation
• For example, a reader's expectations of a sonnet will be shaped by their knowledge of the sonnet tradition (rhyme scheme, volta, themes of love and beauty) and their encounters with specific sonnets by poets like Shakespeare or Petrarch

Implications for literary analysis

• The concept of horizon of expectations has significant implications for literary analysis, emphasizing the importance of historically situated readings, challenging ahistorical interpretations, and recognizing the reader's subjectivity

Historically situated readings

• Horizon of expectations encourages literary scholars to consider the historical and cultural context in which a text was produced and received
• This approach emphasizes the importance of understanding a text's original horizon of expectations, including the literary conventions, social norms, and intellectual currents of its time
• Historically situated readings can provide insights into how a text's meaning and significance have shifted over time and across different interpretive communities

Challenging ahistorical interpretations

• By foregrounding the role of the reader's horizon of expectations, the concept challenges ahistorical or universalizing interpretations of literary works
• Ahistorical interpretations assume that a text's meaning is fixed and unchanging, transcending historical and cultural boundaries
• The horizon of expectations reveals the limitations of such interpretations, demonstrating how the meaning of a text is always shaped by the specific contexts in which it is read and understood

Recognizing reader's subjectivity

• The concept of horizon of expectations also highlights the subjective nature of literary interpretation, acknowledging the role of the reader's individual background, experiences, and assumptions in shaping their understanding of a text
• This recognition of subjectivity challenges the notion of a single, authoritative interpretation and instead embraces a plurality of possible readings
• By acknowledging the reader's subjectivity, literary scholars can engage in more self-reflexive and nuanced analyses that account for their own biases and limitations

Critiques and limitations

• Despite its influential role in literary theory, the concept of horizon of expectations has also faced critiques and limitations, including accusations of relativism, the downplaying of authorial intent, and the difficulty of defining expectations

Accusations of relativism

• Some critics argue that the emphasis on the reader's horizon of expectations can lead to a form of relativism, suggesting that all interpretations are equally valid and that there is no objective meaning to a text
• This critique contends that the concept undermines the possibility of shared understanding and the evaluation of interpretations based on textual evidence and logical reasoning
• Proponents of the concept, however, argue that recognizing the role of the reader's horizon does not necessarily entail a complete relativism and that interpretations can still be assessed based on their coherence, persuasiveness, and fidelity to the text

Downplaying authorial intent

• Another critique of the horizon of expectations is that it can downplay the importance of authorial intent and the text's inherent meaning
• By emphasizing the reader's role in constructing meaning, the concept may seem to suggest that the author's intentions are irrelevant or inaccessible
• However, advocates of the concept argue that it does not necessarily exclude authorial intent but rather situates it within a broader network of influences and constraints, including the author's own horizon of expectations

Difficulty defining expectations

• A practical limitation of the concept is the difficulty of precisely defining and reconstructing the horizon of expectations for a given text or historical moment
• Expectations are often complex, varied, and implicit, making it challenging for literary scholars to identify and analyze them in a systematic way
• This difficulty can lead to speculative or overly generalized claims about readers' expectations and the way they shape interpretation
• Despite these limitations, the concept remains a valuable tool for exploring the dynamic and context-dependent nature of literary meaning and interpretation