From texts to readers: Literary criticism, sociology of practice and cultural history ; De los textos a los lectores: crítica literaria, sociología de las prácticas y historia cultural

This essay is devoted to two questions. Firstly, it analyzes how reading was conceived by literary criticism, sociology of practices, and cultural history in the end of the twentieth century. What is at stake here is the conceptualization of the relationship between the text and the reader and the process through which meaning is constructed. Secondly, it recalls some fundamental questions raised by the history of reading, not for their own sake but because they can suggest some approaches for the analysis of reading practices in modern times. ; Este ensayo estará dedicado a dos cuestiones. En primer lugar, quisiera analizar la manera en que la lectura fue concebida por la crítica literaria, la sociología de las prácticas y la historia cultural a finales del siglo XX. Lo que estaba en juego aquí era la conceptualización de la relación entre el texto y el lector y el proceso a través del cual se construye el significado. En segundo lugar, me gustaría recordar algunas cuestiones fundamentales planteadas por la historia de la lectura, no por sí mismas, sino porque pueden sugerir algunos enfoques para el análisis de las prácticas de lectura en los tiempos modernos. ; This essay is devoted to two questions. Firstly, it analyzes how reading was conceived by literary criticism, sociology of practices, and cultural history in the end of the twentieth century. What is at stake here is the conceptualization of the relationship between the text and the reader and the process through which meaning is constructed. Secondly, it recalls some fundamental questions raised by the history of reading, not for their own sake but because they can suggest some approaches for the analysis of reading practices in modern times.