After the Reformation, science superseded both religion and literature as the favored source of knowledge. As people became free of a catechism of rote responses, they found the concept of self-determination both liberating and terrifying. Literature stepped in by providing examples of fictional characters that made choices in circumstances similar to the quandaries faced by readers--situations that could not be easily resolved by scripture alone. As a critical theory, dialogism makes our literary heritage germane. It offers a strategy for readers to improve their immediate lives through...