Recent developments in adaptation studies have found influence in poststructuralist studies, and prioritise a non-hierarchical, open approach to adaptations, rather than the previous comparative...Show moreRecent developments in adaptation studies have found influence in poststructuralist studies, and prioritise a non-hierarchical, open approach to adaptations, rather than the previous comparative approaches that determined the framework for adaptation studies. This new perspective, in line with the poststructuralist de-emphasis of the figure of the literary author, diminishes the role of the literary author in the meaning of a literary text. This allows the adaptation to be examined in relation to the adapted text. Which aids the acknowledgement of their interconnection, without discrediting the adaptation, and encourages the examination of the respective cultural and social contexts of the adapted text, and the adaptation. However, images of literary authors return throughout pop culture, even in cinematic adaptations. This thesis is concerned with the portrayal of literary authors in cinematic adaptations of their literary works. In relation to Barthes' 'The Death of the Author' and other theories on literary authorship, this thesis examines the potential function of a representation of the literary author in an adaptation of their literary text.Show less
