TODOROV, Tzvetan

(1939-)

   Bulgarian literary critic who pursued his postgraduate studies in Paris under the direction of the semiotic philosopher Roland Barthes (1915-1980). Among TT's several books and essays on structuralistcriticism, all written in French, Introduction a la litterature fantastique (1970; trans Richard Howard as The Fantastic: A Structural Approach to Literary Genre 1973; US paperback 1975 with intro by RobertSCHOLES) has relevance to the student of sf, along with Scholes's own Structural Fabulation (1975). (Structuralism has been important in sf criticism, influencing critics as otherwise diverse as Samuel R. DELANY, Mark ROSE and Darko SUVIN.) An interesting controversy about TT's bookarose in SCIENCE-FICTION STUDIES, the Fall 1974 and July 1975 issues containing an attack on TT's work by Stanislaw LEM and further debate. Also relevant is "Historical Genres/Theoretical Genres: A Discussion ofTodorov on the Fantastic" by Christine BROOKE-ROSE in New Literary History, Autumn 1976. TT's definition of "the fantastic" is much more exclusive than most (DEFINITIONS OF SF; FANTASY); he devotes only a half-page to sf.

   PN

   See also: CRITICAL AND HISTORICAL WORKS ABOUT SF.