'n Kreatiewer literatuurwetenskap?

Abstract

With reference to criticism that in South Africa too little research in the humanities is being done which can be regarded as a real contribution to the development of a particular science, the author advocates greater concern for the philosophy of science, since the expertise of academics regarding the possibilities and limitations of science obviously cannot be taken for granted. In the light of the aims of science, the author describes several criteria for scientific communication. And because the philosophy of science makes it a requisite for disciplinary development, he outlines, in terms of a theoretical framework for the science of literature, the field of inquiry and kind of knowledge with which this discipline is concerned. A positive result of having this model is the fact that it is possible to describe as complementary the relationships, on the one hand, between literary theory and comparative literature as the fundamental components of the science of literature, and on the other, between the literary communication situation as a cultural activity and the scientific communication situation as a meta-cultural activity.

Opsomming
Na aanleiding van die kritiek dat daar in Suid-Afrika te min geesteswetenskaplike navorsing gedoen word wat beskou kan word as 'n daadwerklike bydrae tot die ontwikkeling van die betrokke vakwetenskap, word 'n groter bemoeienis met die wetenskapsfilosofie bepleit, want akademici se kundigheid omtrent die vermoens en onvermoens van die wetenskap kan kennelik nie as vanselfsprekend veronderstel word nie. Uitgaande van die doel van ook die literatuurwetenskap, word enkele kriteria vir wetenskaplike kommunikasie beskryf. En omdat die wetenskapsfilosofie dit as vereiste stel vir vakwetenskaplike ontwikkeling, word vervolgens die studieterrein en die soort kennis wat die wetenskap beoog, onderskei aan die hand van 'n teoretiese raamwerk vir die literatuurwetenskap. Danksy die model is dit hierna ook moontlik om die verhoudings, enersyds tussen literatuurteorie en komparatisme as die twee fundementele komponente van die literatuurwetenskap, en andersyds tussen die literere kommunikasiesituasie as kulturele aktiwiteit en die literatuurwetenskaplike kommunikasisituasie as metakulturele aktiwiteit, te beskryf as komplementer.