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GATE 2022 XH2 (English) – Question 45

Critical Theories and Intellectual Traditions · Theoretical Paradigms: Structuralism, Marxism, feminism, existentialism, poststructuralism, modernism, postmodernism, new historicism, postcolonialism, posthumanism · 2 marks · Multiple choice

Roland Barthes in his famous essay, “The Death of the Author” ________.

  1. believes that the text is to be interpreted in the biographical context of the author
  2. challenges the author’s claim as “cogito”, or origin of all knowledge
  3. believes that the author has sole claim to his work
  4. concludes that an author is an atypical product of his social milieu

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Show answer and explanation

Correct answer: (B) challenges the author’s claim as “cogito”, or origin of all knowledge

Explanation

Barthes rejects the author as the origin and final authority of a text's meaning, and moves that authority to the reader. The other options say the opposite.