With published work spanning more than forty years, Julia Kristeva's influence in psychoanalysis and literary theory is difficult to overstate. In addition to this scholarship Kristeva has written several novels, however this portion of her oeuvre has received comparatively scant attention. In this book, Kristeva scholars from a number of disciplines analyze her novels in relation to her work in psychoanalysis, interrogating the relationships between fiction and theory. The essays explore questions including, what is the value of experimental writing that escapes easy definition and classification, putting ideas at the same level as character, pacing, plot, suspense, form, and style? And, how might such fiction help its readers overcome the psychological maladies that affect contemporary society? The contributors make a compelling case for understanding Kristeva's fiction as a crucial influence to her wider psychoanalytic project.

Acknowledgments Introduction Benigno Trigo Part I 1. Whodunit? Reading Kristeva with the Help of Detective Fiction S. K. Keltner 2. Revolution Has Italian Roots: Kristeva's Fiction and Theory Carol Mastrangelo Bové 3. Not a Country for Old Men: Scapegoats and Sacrifice in Santa Varvara Martha Reineke 4. Sebastian's Skull: Establishing the "Society of the Icon" Frances L. Restuccia 5. From the Agency of the Letter to the Agency of the Icon: Femininity and Bulgaria in Julia Kristeva's Murder in Byzantium Ewa Plonowska Ziarek Part II 6. Noir Analysis: How Kristeva's Detective Novels Renew Psychoanalysis Benigno Trigo 7. Fiction, Analysis, Possession, and Violence in Kristeva's Mirror of Writing John Lechte 8. Byzantium, or Fiction as Inverted Theory Miglena Nikolchina 9. The Vital Legacy of the Novel and Julia Kristeva's Fictional Revolt Maria Margaroni Works Cited Contributors Index