THE RECEPTION THEORY OF HANS ROBERT JAUSS

Abstract

As a theoretical founder and the top representative of the reception theory - the Konstanz school, Hans Robert Jauss made great contribution to German literary theory as well as to the 20th-century world literature. During the early period of his studying, Jauss tried to point out the historical nature of literature. He demonstrated how the readers’ understanding and interpreting of a literary work kept changing under historical and social influences, from which he suggested to write the history of literature based on the history of literary reception. In the second period, he was more concerned about the historical nature of aesthetic experiences and the relationship among three steps: production, reception, and interaction, proposing a model for studying the interaction of literature, viewing the literary history as an interacting process.