ABSTRACT
Mr Bateson's attempt to disqualify linguistics as a discipline of relevance to literature (Essays in Criticism; see this volume, Paper Four) comprises a very cunning and apparently substantial argument inter-woven with a misleading line of polemic. In his usual masterly fashion, he has constructed a case against which it is very difficult to argue in an organized way. I will try to show that his argument (1) rests on premises which cannot provide an adequate aesthetic for literature, (2) is ineffective as a disqualification of linguistics because of misconceptions about the nature of linguistics, (3) is motivated by a set of prejudices which inhibit constructive discussion of the present issue.
