Michael Riffaterre
Encyclopedia
Michael or Michel Riffaterre (20 November 1924, Bourganeuf
, Creuse
— 27 May 2006) was an influential French literary critic and theorist. He pursued a generally structuralist
approach. He is well known in particular for his book Semiotics of Poetry, and the concepts of hypogram and syllepsis.
He was born in Bourganeuf
, in the Limousin
region of France
. After receiving the concours général
prize in French literature he went on to study at the University of Lyon
. After World War II
he entered the Sorbonne
, where he earned his M.A. in classics
in 1947, and then became a doctoral student at Columbia University
, earning his Ph.D. there in 1955, and remained for his entire academic career. He served as the chairman of the Department of French from 1974-1983. In 1982 he became a University Professor, the highest professorial rank at Columbia.
Riffaterre was a Guggenheim Fellow twice, a fellow at Oxford, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
, an officer in the order of the palmes académiques
, and held honorary degrees from the Université Blaise-Pascal as well as the Sorbonne. In addition to teaching at Columbia he held visiting professorships at Johns Hopkins
, the Collège de France
, Yale
, Harvard, the City University of New York
, and the University of Pennsylvania
. He is a past president of the Semiotic Society of America
(1986).
He retired in 2004 and died in his home in New York City
in 2006.
Bourganeuf
Bourganeuf is a commune in the Creuse department in the Limousin region in central France.-Geography:An area of farming and forestry, comprising the village and several hamlets situated in the valley of the Taurion river, some south of Guéret, at the junction of the D8, D912, D940 and the...
, Creuse
Creuse
Creuse is a department in central France named after the Creuse River.-History:Creuse is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from the former province of La Marche....
— 27 May 2006) was an influential French literary critic and theorist. He pursued a generally structuralist
Structuralism
Structuralism originated in the structural linguistics of Ferdinand de Saussure and the subsequent Prague and Moscow schools of linguistics. Just as structural linguistics was facing serious challenges from the likes of Noam Chomsky and thus fading in importance in linguistics, structuralism...
approach. He is well known in particular for his book Semiotics of Poetry, and the concepts of hypogram and syllepsis.
He was born in Bourganeuf
Bourganeuf
Bourganeuf is a commune in the Creuse department in the Limousin region in central France.-Geography:An area of farming and forestry, comprising the village and several hamlets situated in the valley of the Taurion river, some south of Guéret, at the junction of the D8, D912, D940 and the...
, in the Limousin
Limousin (région)
Limousin is one of the 27 regions of France. It is composed of three départements: Corrèze, Creuse and the Haute-Vienne.Situated largely in the Massif Central, as of January 1st 2008, the Limousin comprised 740,743 inhabitants on nearly 17 000 km2, making it the second least populated region of...
region of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. After receiving the concours général
Concours général
In France, the concours général is a national competition held every year between students of Première and Terminale in almost all subjects taught in both general, technological and professional high schools...
prize in French literature he went on to study at the University of Lyon
University of Lyon
The University of Lyon , located in Lyon and Saint Etienne, France, is a center for higher education and research comprising 16 institutions of higher education...
. After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he entered the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
, where he earned his M.A. in classics
Classics
Classics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
in 1947, and then became a doctoral student at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, earning his Ph.D. there in 1955, and remained for his entire academic career. He served as the chairman of the Department of French from 1974-1983. In 1982 he became a University Professor, the highest professorial rank at Columbia.
Riffaterre was a Guggenheim Fellow twice, a fellow at Oxford, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
, an officer in the order of the palmes académiques
Palmes académiques
The Ordre des Palmes Académiques is an Order of Chivalry of France for academics and cultural and educational figures...
, and held honorary degrees from the Université Blaise-Pascal as well as the Sorbonne. In addition to teaching at Columbia he held visiting professorships at Johns Hopkins
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
, the Collège de France
Collège de France
The Collège de France is a higher education and research establishment located in Paris, France, in the 5th arrondissement, or Latin Quarter, across the street from the historical campus of La Sorbonne at the intersection of Rue Saint-Jacques and Rue des Écoles...
, Yale
YALE
RapidMiner, formerly YALE , is an environment for machine learning, data mining, text mining, predictive analytics, and business analytics. It is used for research, education, training, rapid prototyping, application development, and industrial applications...
, Harvard, the City University of New York
City University of New York
The City University of New York is the public university system of New York City, with its administrative offices in Yorkville in Manhattan. It is the largest urban university in the United States, consisting of 23 institutions: 11 senior colleges, six community colleges, the William E...
, and the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
. He is a past president of the Semiotic Society of America
Semiotic Society of America
The Semiotic Society of America is an interdisciplinary professional association serving scholars from many disciplines with common interests in semiotics, the study of signs and sign-systems. It was founded in 1975 and includes members from the United States and Canada. Its official journal is The...
(1986).
He retired in 2004 and died in his home in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 2006.
Works
- Le Style des Pleiades de Gobineau: Essai d'application d'une methode stylistique (1957); doctoral dissertation
- Essais de stylistique structurale (1971); translated by Daniel Delas
- Semiotics of Poetry (1978)
- La Production du texte (1979) 1983 English translation Text Production
- Fictional Truth (1990)