Befogadásielméletek

Befogadásielméletek, or reception theory, is a broad approach within literary criticism and cultural studies that shifts the focus from the author's intent or the text's inherent meaning to the reader's role in creating meaning. It posits that a text does not possess a fixed, objective meaning but rather derives its significance from the act of reception by an audience.

This theoretical framework emerged primarily in the latter half of the 20th century, influenced by thinkers like Hans Robert Jauss and Wolfgang Iser, who were associated with the Constance School. Jauss, in particular, emphasized the historical dimension of reception, arguing that readers approach texts with a "horizon of expectations" shaped by their prior literary and cultural experiences. The meaning of a text, therefore, can evolve over time as different generations of readers engage with it.

Wolfgang Iser contributed the concept of the "implied reader" and the idea of the text as a dynamic structure that readers actively complete. He suggested that texts contain gaps or indeterminacies that readers must fill in with their own imagination and knowledge, thereby co-creating the work's meaning.

Befogadásielméletek also encompasses reader-response criticism, which explores how individual readers interpret and react to texts, and feminist and postcolonial approaches that examine how different groups of readers, with their specific social and political positions, might engage with and interpret texts in varied ways. The core idea is that the reader is not a passive recipient but an active participant in the construction of textual meaning.