This study presents a systematization of the debate about the concept of the literary work and outlines a pragmatic approach that allows us to examine both the normativity and the functionality of this contentious category. By looking at the oeuvre of Max Frisch, it analyzes examples of the aesthetic, epistemic, moral, legal, and economic functions of attributing the work status to texts.

Autorentext

Thomas Kater, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany.