CHEI DE LECTURĂ ÎN CONTESA SÎNGEROASĂ DE A. CODRESCU
READING KEYS IN THE BLOOD COUNTESS BY A. CODRESCU

Summary/Abstract: The study offers keys for reading Andrei Codrescu's novel The Blood Countess. While taking into consideration well-known hermeneutical concepts from U. Eco, W. Iser, M. Calinescu, we also advance the suggestion that the three opening scenes of the novel constitute a metanarrative sequence intended to seal the narrative pact between the narrator and the reader. This opening triptych offers the reader keys in reading and interpreting the novel. The technique of autofiction used by Codrescu, the multi-layered structure of the novel, and the network of intertextual references offer the reader textual "gaps" (in Iser's words) requiring the latter's imaginative input. Anarchetypal personality, Andrei Codrescu invites the reader to follow through on the three narrative avenues outlined in the pact and to weave together the different strands of interpretation posited therein. The second objective of the article is to reveal the witty play between the textual god-heads ( the author and the narrator, respectively) Ŕ and the reader, on the one hand; and, on the other hand, the intricate interaction between the characters in the novel, one of whom holds a godlike position as a judge. We highlight relevant narrative structures and aspects of the author's style, taking into account his previous prose and poems.

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