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American psycho: Resepsjonshistorien og leseopplevelsen

Berge, Maria
Master thesis
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URI
https://hdl.handle.net/1956/5002
Date
2010-11-21
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  • Department of Linguistics, Literary and Aestetic Studies [809]
Abstract
Denne masteroppgaven omhandler romanen American Psycho av Bret Easton Ellis og dens resepsjonshistorie. American Psycho skildrer jappekulturen i New York på 80-tallet. Romanen inneholder sterke voldsscener og vakte stor oppsikt da den ble utgitt i USA i 1991. Masteroppgaven deler romanens resepsjon inn i to lesegrupper, den tidligste og den senere, og viser hvordan de tolker teksten på forskjellige måter. Romanens første lesere fokuserer i stor grad på voldsscenene i romanen, og diskuterer deres betydning og verdi. Andre sider ved romanen, som strukturen, språket og samfunnskritikken den presenterer blir undervurdert, og i stor grad oversett, av denne lesegruppen. Den senere lesegruppen analyserer teksten som helhet og voldens plass i handlingen, men ser i liten grad på den ubehagelige leseropplevelsen voldsscenene kan gi. Masteroppgaven argumenterer for at disse to tilnærmingsmåtene til teksten hver for seg er mangelfulle, og prøver å gi en mer utfyllende lesning av American Psycho ved å kombinere dem. Oppgaven undersøker samfunnskritikken romanen presenterer ved å analysere jappekulturen som skildres i teksten, men undersøker i tillegg den mer sanselige og umiddelbare leseopplevelsen, gjennom å se på fortellerstemme og språklig stil. Oppgaven viser at en slik tilnærmingsmåte er givende og utfyllende.
 
This master's thesis concerns the novel American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis and the history if its reception. American Psycho depicts yuppie culture in the 1980's. With its scenes of graphic violence, it caused much controversy when it was released in America in 1991. My thesis distinguishes two main strands in the novel's reception: the reaction of the novel's very first readers and the response of readers in the years since. The first readers focus upon the violence in the novel, discussing its role and significance while largely overlooking other aspects such as the novel's structure, language and social commentary. More recent readings of American Psycho have taken up these aspects, placing the violence in the context of the novel as a whole and its plot. However, what they neglect is the extreme discomfort the scenes of violence provoke in the novel's readers. My master's thesis points out the shortcomings of these two ways of approaching the text, and attempts to give a more complete reading of American Psycho by combining aspects of both. I examine the social commentary the novel presents by analysing its depiction of yuppie culture, but in addition give weight to the more immediate, visceral experience of reading American Psycho with a look at the narrative voice and style it employs. My thesis thus attempts to give a better and more complete picture of the novel.
 
Publisher
The University of Bergen

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