Which of the following critics is associated with the term “contrapuntal reading”?

The correct option is Edward Said.

Here is a step-by-step explanation of the concept and its association:

1. Definition of "Contrapuntal Reading":
Contrapuntal reading is a literary interpretive technique that involves reading a text with an understanding of both the colonizing process and the resistance to it. It requires looking at a text from the perspective of both the colonizer and the colonized simultaneously, revealing how imperialism and colonial histories are embedded in Western literature, even when not explicitly the main focus of the text.

2. Origin of the Term:
The term was introduced by the influential postcolonial theorist Edward Said in his seminal 1993 book, Culture and Imperialism. Said borrowed the term from music theory, where "counterpoint" refers to the combination of two or more independent melodic lines played simultaneously to create a harmonic relationship.

3. Application:
Said famously applied this method to Jane Austen's novel Mansfield Park. By reading the text contrapuntally, he demonstrated how the wealth and domestic comfort of the English estate (Mansfield Park) are directly dependent on the slave plantations in Antigua, revealing the hidden colonial subtext of the narrative.

4. Distinguishing from Other Critics:
- Mikhail Bakhtin is associated with concepts like "dialogism," "carnivalesque," and "heteroglossia."
- Roland Barthes is associated with semiotics, structuralism, and "the death of the author."
- Jacques Derrida is the founder of "deconstruction."