Concepedia

Abstract

he dominant form of the fiction workshop in creative writing programs of contemporary American literature departments is founded upon a set of assumptions that have all been put in question by postmodern critical theory. These assumptions include the idea of the free subject, the integrity of experience, the sharp separation of reading from writing, the individual voice, the authority of the author, uniqueness of style, the obedience of the reader, originality, and intuition. In her essay, 'Homeward Ho!': Silicon Valley Pushkin, Marjorie Perloff concludes that the batte now under way between contemporary creative writing practices and postmodern critical theory in the American academy is specifically being fought between the Creative Writing Workshop and the Graduate Seminar in Theory.' The A Team, she says, accuses the B Team of