Ontology, stratification, and literary polyphony in Roman Ingarden

Abstract

Among Ingarden’s descriptions about the possibilities of existence of entities that, being both real and ideal, can be up ontologically autonomous and independent of any transcendental intentionality, this article revisits The Literary Work of Art to highlight the polyphonic layering of literary work. Starting from the ontological characterization of the literary object as a purely intentional object, we will reach his stratified schematism. Understanding that each constituent unit retains in itself a significant plurality to its own within the overall body of work, we characterize how each stratification of literature is composed within the scope of Ingarden, as follows: 1) formation of phonic linguistics, 2) units of significance, 3) presented objectivities and 4) the layer of the schematic aspects. That said, we finally have what Roman Ingarden qualifies as the organic character and polyphony of literary work: a significant totality of relationship, called from a non-hierarchical harmony between different heterogeneous strata.