Literary Theories The Basics of Criticism
Dec 24, 2015
Literary Theories
The Basics of Criticism
The Basic Idea
• The point of criticism is to argue your point of view on a work of literature.
• You don’t have to “criticize” a text (but you can)
• You do have to analyze a text and support your assertions with specific evidence from experts and the text.
The Basic Idea
• A critical analysis is an in-depth examination of some aspect of the literary work
• you may examine any element of the text: character development, conflicts, narrative point of view, etc.
• Even though it’s an examination of a literary work, it’s still a persuasive essay
The Basic Idea
• The goal is to prove something about the work
• There must be a point to the discussion.
• You must answer the questions Why?, or So what?
• For example, why is a recurring symbol important? Or, why is the development of the female characters significant?
The Basic Idea
• There are many different approaches we can take to critical analysis
• Literary theories provide a framework for our discussion of a text
• We don’t have to identify the theory we’re using, though.
• We use it as a starting point for our own ideas and opinions
Historical/Biographical Approach
• views literature as the reflection of an author's life and times (or of the characters' life and times).
• it is necessary to know about the author and the political, economical, and sociological context of his times in order to truly understand his works.
Historical/Biographical Approach
Advantages:• works well for some which are obviously
political or biographical in nature. • places allusions in their proper classical,
political, or biblical background. Disadvantages:• "the intentional fallacy" • tends to reduce art to the level of biography and
make it relative (to the times) rather than universal.
Application
• What are some historical or biographical elements we might examine in a discussion of our current novel?
Moral / Philosophical Approach:
• asserts that the larger purpose of literature is to teach morality and to probe philosophical issues
• authors intend to instruct the audience in some way
Moral / Philosophical Approach:
Advantages:• useful for works which do present an
obvious moral philosophy • useful when considering the themes of works • does not view literature merely as "art" isolated
from all moral implications • recognizes that literature can affect readers and
that the message of a work is important.
Moral / Philosophical Approach:
Disadvantages:
• such an approach can be too "judgmental"
• Some believe literature should be judged primarily (if not solely) on its artistic merits, not its moral or philosophical content.
Application
• What are some moral or philosophical elements we might examine in a discussion of our current novel?
Formalism / New Criticism
• involves a close reading of the text
• all information essential to the interpretation of a work must be found within the work itself
• focuses on analyzing irony, paradox, imagery, and metaphor
• also interested in the work's setting, characters, symbols, and point of view.
Formalism / New Criticism
• no need to bring in outside information about the history, politics, or society of the time, or about the author's life
• does not view works through the lens of feminism, psychology, mythology, or any other such standpoint
• not interested in the work's affect on the reader.
Formalism / New Criticism
Terms Used in New Criticism: • intentional fallacy - the false belief that the
meaning or value of a work may be determined by the author's intention
• affective fallacy - the false belief that the meaning or value of a work may be determined by its affect on the reader
• external form - rhyme scheme, meter, stanza form, etc.
Formalism / New Criticism
Advantages:• can be performed without much research• emphasizes the value of literature apart from its
context • virtually all critical approaches must begin here
Disadvantages:• text is seen in isolation• ignores the context of the work• cannot account for allusions
Application
• What are some formal elements we might examine in a discussion of our current novel?
Psychoanalytical Approach
• views works through the lens of psychology
• looks either at the psychological motivations of the characters or of the authors themselves
• most frequently applies Freudian psychology to works, but other approaches also exist.
Freudian Approach to Personality
Three parts to an individual’s psyche:
• the id: the instinctual, pleasure seeking part of the mind
• the superego: the part of the mind that represses the id's impulses
• the ego: the part of the mind that controls but does not repress the id's impulses, releasing them in a healthy way
Sex is Everything
Freud believed that all human behavior is motivated by sexuality
• Oedipus complex: a boy's unconscious rivalry with his father for the love of his mother
• Electra complex: a girl’s unconscious rivalry with her mother for the love of her father (a.k.a. “daddy issues”)
Freudian Imagery
Recognizes symbols that are linked to sexual pleasure
• concave images, such as ponds, flowers, cups, and caves as female symbols
• phallic symbols, objects that are longer than they are wide, are male images
• dancing, riding, and flying are associated with sexual pleasure
• water is usually associated with birth, the female principle, the maternal, the womb, and the death wish.
Psychoanalytical Approach
Advantages:• can be a useful tool for understanding character
development and conflictDisadvantages:• can turn a work into a psychological case study• tends to see sex in everything, exaggerating this aspect
of literature • some works do not lend themselves readily to this
approach.
Application
• What are some psychological or psychoanalytical elements we might examine in a discussion of our current novel?
Archetypal Approach
• assumes that there is a collection of symbols, images, characters, and motifs (i.e. archetypes) that evokes basically the same response in all people
• identifies these patterns and discusses how they function in the works
• asserts that these archetypes are the source of much of literature's power.
Archetypal Approach
• based on the theories of psychologist Carl Jung
• he states that mankind possesses a "collective unconscious" that contains these archetypes and that is common to all of humanity
Some Archetypes• archetypal women - the Good Wife/Mother, the Terrible Mother,
the Virgin (often a Damsel in Distress), and the Fallen Woman.• water - creation, birth-death-resurrection, purification, redemption,
fertility, growth • garden - paradise (Eden), innocence, fertility • desert - spiritual emptiness, death, hopelessness • red - blood, sacrifice, passion, disorder • green - growth, fertility • black - chaos, death, evil • serpent - evil, sensuality, mystery, wisdom, destruction • seven - perfection • hero archetype - The hero is involved in a quest (in which he
overcomes obstacles). He experiences initiation (involving a separation, transformation, and return), and finally he serves as a scapegoat, that is, he dies to atone.
Archetypal Approach
Advantages:• provides a universalistic approach to literature
and identifies a reason why certain literature may survive the test of time
• it works well with works that are highly symbolic
Disadvantages:• literature may become a vehicle for archetypes• can easily become a list of symbols without
much analysis
Application
• What are some archetypal elements we might examine in a discussion of our current novel?
Feminist Approach
• concerned with the roles of female characters within works
• may argue that gender determines everything, or just the opposite: that all gender differences are imposed by society, and gender determines nothing
Stages of Female Identity
• Feminine: the female accepts the definitions and roles male authorities have created for her
• Feminist: rebels against male authority and intentionally challenges all male definitions and roles
• Female: no longer concerned with male definitions or restrictions; defines her own voice and values
The Mad-Woman in the Attic
• Critics Gilbert and Gubar identify a pattern in the treatment of female characters in literature, even when written by women.
• based on the plot of Jane Eyre
• the practice of removing a female character who is no longer useful to the male characters
Application
• What are some gender-based elements we might examine in a discussion of our current novel?
Marxist Approach
• Karl Marx perceived human history to have consisted of a series of struggles between classes--between the oppressed and the oppressing (“the haves” and “the have-nots”).
• Marx thought that materialism was the ultimate driving force in history
Marxist Approach
• Feudalism exploits workers to the point of revolt
• This leads to bourgeois capitalism
• In bourgeois capitalism, the privileged bourgeoisie rely on the working proletariat
• Workers are exploited to the point of revolt
Marxist Approach
• The successful working class will then establish a communist society
• In this ideal the labor, the means of production, and the profits are shared by all
• This system is an attempt at complete social and economic equality
• It’s a great theory but doesn’t work in reality
Marxist Approach
• Marxist criticism examines the nature of power structures within a novel.
• It asks questions like: Who has power? Who lacks power? Who is exploited by whom and why? How does power remain constant or shift throughout a work of literature? What makes certain characters powerful or powerless?
Marxist Approach
• It also examines commodities, possessions that give power
• Typical commodities are things like land and money but can also be things like social position, knowledge, or even a person
• Marxist criticism can also examine what commodities bring power and why within a work of literature
Application
• Who is in power within the novel?
• What commodities does that character possess that allows him/her to have power?
• How does power shift or remain static throughout the novel?
Reader Response Criticism
• analyzes the reader's role in the production of meaning• lies at the opposite end of the spectrum from formalism• the text itself has no meaning until it is read by a reader• The reader creates the meaning. • can take into account the strategies employed by the
author to elicit a certain response from readers • denies the possibility that works are universal (i.e. that
they will always mean more or less the same thing to readers everywhere)
• makes someone's reading a function of personal identity.
Reader Response Criticism
Advantages:• recognizes that different people view works
differently and that people's interpretations change over time.
Disadvantages:• tends to make interpretation too subjective• does not provide adequate criteria for
evaluating one reading in comparison to another
Application
• What are your personal responses to this novel?
• Are there certain elements you respond to strongly or with which you identify?