I think Roland Bathes's idea that the author is dead and context shouldn't matter is completely and utterly idiotic. No disrespect to Mr. Barthes as I do understand from where his ideas on this topic come from, but I think reading a piece without any knowledge about the author or context would make an accurate reading nearly impossible... unless, of course, the author had written the piece to be read without such knowledge.
Take for example... The Bell Jar, one of my favorites. While one is certainly able to just pick up The Bell Jar at random and begin reading it, it wouldn't be possible to fully understand the meaning of it without at least considering the historical context of the novel. Why would Esther be so hesitant to get married? Why is she so eager to rebel, to release her sexual tension? If the reader didn't know anything about life for women in the 1950s-60s, that women who were often the ideal housewives were unhappy and trapped, how would they fully comprehend Esther's need to break through the social constructs that (help to) encase her in the bell jar? Also, Sylvia Plath's life itself is an important contextual factor. The Bell Jar is autobiographical, and full appreciation/comprehension of the novel is definitely dependent upon Sylvia's struggle with her inner demons and depression.
Oh, Animal Farm... what on earth is that about? Without knowing something about George Orwell or the time in which he lived, Animal Farm would seem totally ridiculous. Talking pigs? Animals overtaking a farm? The pigs becoming the leaders of the entire farm? What?
And then there's Picasso's "Guernica." To the naked eye, "Guernica" looks like a bunch of mangled images. A horse, an eye with a lightbulb pupil, an arm with a broken sword, a floating ghostly head. It's a lot more than that, of course, but who would know unless you did a little research?
So, Roland Barthes... what were you thinking? Yeah, books standing alone may have their own meanings (and sometimes the wrong ones), but the meanings are so much stronger with all the background information.
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