Chaos and Order: Complex Dynamics in Literature and Science (New Practices of Inquiry)

Hayles, N. Katherine [Editor]

ISBN 10: 0226321444 / ISBN 13: 9780226321448

Published by University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1991

About this Item

Unread book in pristine condition. Spine tight with no creases. Pages clean and unmarked.

The scientific discovery that chaotic systems embody deep structures of order is one of such wide-ranging implications that it has attracted attention across a spectrum of disciplines, including the humanities. In this volume, fourteen theorists explore the significance for literary and cultural studies of the new paradigm of chaotics, forging connections between contemporary literature and the science of chaos. They examine how changing ideas of order and disorder enable new readings of scientific and literary texts, from Newton's Principia to Ruskin's autobiography, from Victorian serial fiction to Borges's short stories.

Seller Inventory # ABE-1786197002337

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Chaos and Order: Complex Dynamics in Literature and Science (New Practices of Inquiry)
• Publisher: University of Chicago Press, Chicago
• Publication Date: 1991
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0226321444
• ISBN 13: 9780226321448
• Binding: Soft cover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: As New
• Dimensions: 6.05W x 9H x 0.72D inches 6.05 inches width by 9 inches height by 0.72 inches depth
• Weight: 0.688 pounds

About this title

Synopsis

The scientific discovery that chaotic systems embody deep structures of order is one of such wide-ranging implications that it has attracted attention across a spectrum of disciplines, including the humanities. In this volume, fourteen theorists explore the significance for literary and cultural studies of the new paradigm of chaotics, forging connections between contemporary literature and the science of chaos. They examine how changing ideas of order and disorder enable new readings of scientific and literary texts, from Newton's Principia to Ruskin's autobiography, from Victorian serial fiction to Borges's short stories.

N. Katherine Hayles traces shifts in meaning that chaos has undergone within the Western tradition, suggesting that the science of chaos articulates categories that cannot be assimilated into the traditional dichotomy of order and disorder. She and her contributors take the relation between order and disorder as a theme and develop its implications for understanding texts, metaphors, metafiction, audience response, and the process of interpretation itself. Their innovative and diverse work opens the interdisciplinary field of chaotics to literary inquiry.

About the Author

N. Katherine Hayles is distinguished research professor of English at the University of California, Los Angeles and James B. Duke Distinguished Professor Emerita of literature at Duke University. She is the author of many books, most recently Postprint: Books and Becoming Computational.