Recent Moves in the Sociology of Literature

Building on earlier work in the production of culture, reception aesthetics, and cultural capital, sociology of literature research during the past few years has concentrated on readers' construction of meaning and on networks within literary systems. New directions include studying the relationship between literature and group identities; connecting institutional and reader-response analyses; reintroducing the role of authorial intentionality; and developing a clearer understanding of how literature is and is not like other media.