Dalla parte del lettore. Lector in fabula quarant'anni dopo

This article introduces a virtual debate dedicated to the 40th anniversary of the publication of Lector in fabula by Umberto Eco. Among Eco’s complete works, Lector in fabula can be regarded as a fundamental cornerstone: it is both the culmination of previous researches – beginning with The Open Work (1962) – and the starting point for subsequent theoretical developments, through to Kant and the platypus (1997). Regarding interpretation of the text, the fundamental choice made by Eco was to prefer the intentio operis over the intentio auctoris and the intentio lectoris, acknowleging the text with an internal structure that provides a precise set of reading instructions. This idea has been exported from the literary text to many other semiotic fields, and also maintains a fundamental relevance also in the contemporary panorama of new forms of narration and media enterteinment. Keywords: Textual Semiotics; Interpretative Cooperation; Debate on Interpretation; Contemporary Narratives.