"Understanding Rhetorical Nuance: Western Music and Narrative Theory," by Professor of Comparative Literature Peter J. Rabinowitz, has appeared in Xushi Congkan (Narrative Series 1), edited by Fu Xiu-Yan and published by the China Social Sciences Publishing House in Beijing. The article, in a Chinese translation by Zhou Jingbo, is based on the plenary talk Rabinowitz originally delivered at the First International Narratological Conference, sponsored by the Jiangxi Academy of Social Sciences in 2007.
In the article, Rabinowitz adapts aspects of rhetorical narrative theory to certain musical situations, sketching out a rhetoric of music grounded in the listener's collaborative role in the musical experience. In particular, using Mozart's A Musical Joke as his prime example, he demonstrates how such traditionally literary concepts as fictionality can also elucidate the meaning and effect of untexted music.
In the article, Rabinowitz adapts aspects of rhetorical narrative theory to certain musical situations, sketching out a rhetoric of music grounded in the listener's collaborative role in the musical experience. In particular, using Mozart's A Musical Joke as his prime example, he demonstrates how such traditionally literary concepts as fictionality can also elucidate the meaning and effect of untexted music.
