Reading Graphs, Maps, and Trees: Responses to Franco Moretti

Marc Notes: A Valve Book event.; Includes bibliographical references. Publisher Marketing: Franco Moretti's GRAPHS, MAPS, TREES: ABSTRACT MODELS FOR LITERARY HISTORY is one of the most provocative recent works of literary history. The present volume collects generalist and specialist, academic and nonacademic responses by statisticians, philosophers, historians, literary scholars and others. And Moretti's responses to these responses. Originally written as contributions to an online book event hosted at The Valve (www.thevalve.org), and edited for this volume, these essays explore, extend and criticize many aspects of Franco Moretti's work. They will be of interest to anyone interested in Moretti's brand of "distant reading"; or in the prospects for quantitative approaches to literary style and genre; or recent interdisciplinary work in the humanities generally. CONTRIBUTORS: Bill Benzon, Tim Burke, Jenny Davidson, Ray Davis, Jonathan Goodwin, Eric Hayot, John Holbo, Steven Berlin Johnson, Matthew Kirschenbaum, Sean McCann, Franco Moretti, Adam Roberts, Cosma Shalizi. ABOUT THE EDITORS: JONATHAN GOODWIN is Assistant Professor of English at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He works on modernist literature, film, and narrative theory. JOHN HOLBO is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at the National University of Singapore and the author, with Belle Waring, of Reason and Persuasion: Three Dialogues by Plato (Pearson 2009). Contributor Bio:  Moretti, Franco Franco Moretti teaches literature at Stanford, where he directs the Literary Lab. He is the author of Signs Taken for Wonders, The Way of the World, Modern Epic, Atlas of the European Novel 1800-1900, and Graphs, Maps, Trees as well as chief editor of The Novel.