What is intertextuality? How does intertextuality challenge E.D. Hirsch's idea that a text has a single meaning created by its author? Explain with reference to examples drawn from any media format.

According to American literary critic, E.D. Hirsch, in order to interpret a body of text, one must ask one's self the only question that can be answered objectively – "what, in all probability, did the author mean to convey?" He believed that the author's intended meaning equates the meaning of a text and it is in fact, the reader's duty to uncover the the author's intentions.

"The meaning of a text and its author's intentions are one and the same."

Hirsch's concept revolves around the assumption that a body of text is original, and is purely a body of the author's sole "intentions". The production of text, if one were to adhere to Hirsch's theory, is therefore exclusive to the author's own ideas and concepts and free of external influence. However, the notions of langue......

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Title: Intertextuality
Approximate Word Count: 1924
Approximate Pages: 8 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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