In 1967, John Barth wrote an essay that characterized modern literature in a state of exhaustion, an "exhausted" form ". The ultimate question then was: what do we do with literature? Barth's response suggests presenting narrators who are aware of themselves and the exhaustion of their medium. Also, that we repurpose and give new meaning to stories that have already been told, like the Greek myths that the second half of the novel focuses on. Meta-fiction is defined as fiction that includes commentary on its own narrative construction and process, as well as its relationship with the reader. Barth's Lost in the Funhouse addresses the complications of post-modernity and text. It rejects the idea of ​​a knowable Cartesian self, capable of authoritatively constructing a unified and coherent narrative because the protagonist is no longer capable of defining himself. Meta-fiction addresses this lack of center not only within the self, but also within language, and addresses the effects it has on the future of the reader, the role of the medium and the author, as well as the intersections between them. Barth redefines this relationship as one of inherent, but undefined, meaning, entering into self-reflexivity and consciousness as the novel progresses. Barth advances the deconstructive project by affirming the fictionality of LF to engage the reader in the game, rather than in a passive consumption of the author's intention. (Worthington) As Lost in the Funhouse is constitutive of many stories that speak to the inability of traditional narrative to meet contemporary needs, “the old analogy between the author and God…can no longer be used” (LF 125). The novel raises the question of what literature can do if the medium is “moribund…if it is not already dead.” (LF...... middle of article ......y of the autobiography in John Barth's Lost in the Funhouse." Studies in Short Fiction 34.2 (1997): 151. Academic research completed. EBSCO . Web. April 26, 2010. Morris, Christopher D. “Barth and Lacan: The World of the Moebius Strip.” Critique 17.1 (1975): 69. Academic Research Completed April 26, 2010. Stirling, Grant “Neurotic Narrative: Theory. of Metafiction and Object Relations." Academic Literature 27.2 (2000): 80. Academic Research Completed. EBSCO. Web. April 26, 2010. Worthington, Marjorie. "Made with Mirrors: Restoring Lost Authority in the Funhouse by John Barth." Twentieth Century Literature 47.1 (2001): 114. Academic research completed. EBSCO Web. April 26, 2010. Woolley, Deborah A. "EMPTY TEXT," FULL VOICE: SELF-REFLEXIVITY IN BARTH'S LOST IN THE FUNHOUSE. ( 1985): 460. Academic research completed. 2010.