LITERARY THEORY AND CRITICISM DEFINITION … Literary criticism is the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Wow … thanks a lot … now everything is crystal clear … Wikipedia rocks :) Let's try again … "Literary criticism is the evaluation of literary works. This includes the classification by genre, analysis of structure, and judgement of value." Beckson & Ganz Ok, that's a bit better … And again … "Literary criticism asks what literature is, what it does, and what it is worth." Encyclopedia Britannica Nice … In my own words … Literary criticism is the method used to interpret any given work of literature. The different schools of literary criticism provide us with lenses which ultimately reveal important aspects of the literary work. Why do we have to analyze everything???? O Talking about experiences enhances our enjoyment of them O Talking about experiences involves the search for meaning which increases our understanding of them O Because Socrates said so: "The life which is unexamined is not worth living." To further explain … Literary criticism helps us to understand what is important about the text O its structure O its context: social, economic, historical O what is written O how the text manipulates the reader And there's more … O Literary criticism helps us to understand the relationship between authors, readers, and texts O The act of literary criticism ultimately enhances the enjoyment of our reading of the literary work Literary Criticism Literary criticism has two main functions: 1. To analyze, study, and evaluate works of literature. 2. To form general principles for the examination of works of literature. What is literary theory? O The capacity to generalize about phenomena and to develop concepts that form the basis for interpretation and analysis—in this instance, of a “literary” text. Critical Approaches to the Study of Literature Critical Approaches are different perspectives we consider when looking at a piece of literature. They seek to give us answers to these questions, in addition to aiding us in interpreting literature. 1. What do we read? 2. Why do we read? 3. How do we read? “Big Questions” about Literature O What is “literature”? O Does the author matter? O What are the influences on how we read a text? O How do we make connections to others in distant lands and times through a work of literature? O Literary Theories/Critical Theories are attempts to answer some of these questions. The Basic Idea O The point of criticism is to argue your point of view on a work of literature. O You don’t have to “criticize” a text (but you can) O You do have to analyze a text and support your assertions with specific evidence from experts and the text. O It’s crucial to go beyond plot development and into more abstract, higher-level thinking like theme, tone, purpose, etc. The Basic Idea O A critical analysis is an in-depth examination of some aspect of the literary work O you may examine any element of the text: character development, conflicts, narrative point of view, etc. O Literary critical theories inform us of certain ways to approach big ideas in the novel. Literary Theories O Mimetic Theory O Authorical Theory O Reader Response Theory O Literary Tradition Theory O Textual Analysis Theory
