Blakey Vermeule with discussants: Louis Menand (Harvard), Jonathan Kramnick (Rutgers).
Blakey Vermeule: http://english.stanford.edu/bio.php?name_id=119
Louis Menand: http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~amciv/faculty/menand.shtml
Jonathan Kramnick: http://www.rci.rutgers.edu/~engweb/faculty/profiles/kramnick.html
About "Why Do We Care about Literary Characters?" : From the perspective of cognitive science, Vermeule finds that caring about literary characters is not all that different from caring about other people, especially strangers. The tools used by literary authors to sharpen and focus reader interest tap into evolved neural mechanisms that trigger a caring response. <br/><br/>This book contributes to the emerging field of evolutionary literary criticism. Vermeule draws upon recent research in cognitive science to understand the mental processes underlying human social interactions without sacrificing solid literary criticism. People interested in literary theory, in cognitive analyses of the arts, and in Darwinian approaches to human culture will find much to ponder in "Why Do We Care about Literary Characters?"
