Umberto Eco, The Da Vinci Code, and the Intellectual in the Age of Popular Culture
This book provides a philosophical overview of Umberto Eco's historical and cultural development as a unique, internationally recognized public intellectual who communicates his ideas to both an academic and a popular audience. It describes Eco’s intellec
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Douglass Merrell
Umberto Eco, The Da Vinci Code, and the Intellectual in the Age of Popular Culture
Douglass Merrell Seattle, Washington, USA
ISBN 978-3-319-54788-6 DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-54789-3
ISBN 978-3-319-54789-3 (eBook)
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017938571 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2017 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Cover illustration: © Alan Wylie / Alamy Stock Photo Printed on acid-free paper This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
CONTENTS
1 The Intermediate Thinker
1
2 The Intellectual Species
25
3 A Medievalist in Hibernation
51
4 The Exiled Heretic
79
5 The Art of Adventure: Eco, Joyce, and the Open Work
103
6 The Gruppo 63 and the Italian Neo-avant-garde
131
7 The Aesthetics of Superman and Charlie Brown
149
8 The Semiotic Species: A Grand Unified Theory of Culture
169
9 The Reader in the Story
201
10 The Literary Provocateur
235
v
vi
CONTENTS
Bibliography
281
Index
287
CHAPTER 1
The Intermediate Thinker
INDEXES
OF
POPULARITY
The internet is a great potential democratizer of knowledge. As a medium of communication, it offers a vast array of information readily accessible to a mass popular audience. Through the internet, one can instantly obtain a variety of facts such as the list compiled by Wikipedia of books that have become international bestsellers.1 The bestseller list, while including a disclaimer concerning its accuracy and completeness, and obviously subject to constant revision, provides at least a general indicator of the ranking of the most popular readings over time based on available sales figures. In an age increasingly dominated by visual culture, the bestselle
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