| Summary: | <p>This thesis explores the philosophy of Simone de Beauvoir and Iris Murdoch on the topic of literature and its relation to philosophy. As dual practitioners they were each expertly positioned to reflect on these topics. Yet neither of them has been studied much as a philosopher of literature. I offer a detailed analysis of their thinking in this area and challenge some common misconceptions that have built up over recent years. In particular I challenge the view, in the case of Beauvoir, that she was advocating a new literary way of ‘doing’ philosophy and, in the case of Murdoch, that the close connection she perceived between art and morals was to do with the moral effects of art. The ideas of each of them on literature cannot be understood without a proper grasp of their thinking on language. I therefore also look at their views on language, focusing particularly on the kind of language ‘use’ represented by literature, and show how their own experience of language-learning played a part in shaping those views.</p>
<p>My study is primarily about reassessing Murdoch’s and Beauvoir’s thinking on literature. It is not intended as a direct comparison of the two philosophers. But it necessarily brings them into closer dialogue. This has rarely happened before. On the few occasions when they have been considered together, they have usually been seen as polar opposites. I question that view and suggest the true position is far more complex. In their discussions of literature they were often not talking about the same thing or they were using terminology in very different ways. By examining their use of philosophical terms in their respective tongues, I show that what might appear to be clear differences or clear similarities in their thinking masks a far more nuanced picture.</p>
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