Print Publication Date: Jan 2015 Subject: Literature, Literary Studies - 20th Century Onwards Online Publication Date: Mar 2015 DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199978069.013.0001 Introduction to Cognitive Literary Studies Lisa Zunshine The Oxford Handbook of Cognitive Literary Studies Edited by Lisa Zunshine Oxford Handbooks Online Abstract and Keywords Introducing the volume, this short chapter discusses the dynamic, relational nature of cognitive literary studies and the field’s commitment to seeking points of convergence with a variety of theoretical paradigms in literary and cultural studies. It argues against “consilience” between literary studies and sciences, pointing out that the division between the sciences and the humanities, though far from ideal in many ways, reflects meaningful differences in ways of thinking about the world. It further stresses the openness and unpredictability of new areas of cognitive literary criticism, including cognitive disability studies, cognitive queer studies, and studies of the new unconscious, and it discusses the centrality of the study of emotions to a cognitivist inquiry. The introduction concludes by commenting on other thriving areas of cognitive theory, including those represented by the Society for Cognitive Studies of the Moving Image (SCSMI). Keywords: cognitive literary studies, cognitive disability studies, cognitive queer studies, new unconscious, emotions, SCSMI THE best definition of cognitive literary studies was offered by Alan Richardson in 2004. Richardson starts by pointing out that “cognitive” is a broad term, referring to “an overriding interest in the active (and largely unconscious) mental processing that makes behavior understandable.” Given the tremendous variety of research programs that investigate mental processing, “cognitive science,” too, is a broad umbrella term. It signifies an interdisciplinary venture, “rather like ‘feminist studies’ or ‘cultural studies,’” that is “loosely held together by a set of common interests, allegiances, and reference points rather than a coherent discipline unified by shared paradigms and methodologies.” It is fitting then that the definition of cognitive literary studies should focus not on the boundaries, goals, or methods of the field but on its dynamic, relational nature. Richardson sees it as “the work of literary critics and theorists vitally interested in cognitive science. . ., and therefore with a good deal to say to one another, whatever their differences.” This dialogic, decentralized view has shaped the trajectory of cognitive approaches to literature over the last decade. On the one hand, cognitive literary scholars actively seek professional venues for talking to one another (for instance, the membership in the Modern Language Association official discussion group on cognitive approaches to literature 1 Introduction to Cognitive Literary Studies - Oxford Handbooks http://www.oxfordhandbooks.com/view/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199... 1 of 9 2/17/17, 8:08 AM