ABSTRACT
In examining a major controversy that generated heated debates within Australian academia, I will highlight the strong, if not sometimes overriding influence of emotions in literary appreciation. The general context of controversies related to identity litigations is every bit as relevant to understanding why the Demidenko affair generated so many hate-filled comments following the release in 1994 of her controversial debut novel.
Rather than offering a close study of The Hand That Signed the Paper, this chapter will examine the passionate controversy that its mixed reception generated. The divisive role emotional involvement played in the Australian literary reception of this piece of creative writing, and in the literary community at large, will be analyzed in detail. The close examination of the main arguments of this literary debate about the aesthetic experience and the philosophical status of fiction will ultimately challenge the idea that some emotions would intrinsically be negative.
