Literary Theories: A Sampling of Lenses
Literary theory is an attempt to understand the various ways that different
people read texts. Yes, we all know that not everyone “interprets” a book, poem,
or even a song the same way. Theory gives readers a chance to view a text with
a so-called different set of lenses.
This is merely an introduction to theory so I am just going to provide you with a few of the
more common schools of criticism. Remember most of these theories are quite detailed so
this is just a very brief overview of their main ideas.
Feminist Criticism
 Views society in a “patriarchal” way, which has hindered or prevented women
from realizing their true potential. Claim that women are viewed negatively,
inferior, or as “the other.”
Using feminist criticism to analyze fiction may involve studying:

The repression of women in fiction.

How do men and women differ?

What is different about female heroines, and why are these characters important in literary
history?

Stereotypes, creativity, ideology, racial issues, marginality, and more.

Considers the gender of the author, characters

What roles does gender play in this work? (Examine power relations)

Look for sexual stereotypes either reinforced or contradicted

Imagine yourself as the opposite gender reading the text
Possible questions to ask of a text when using feminist theory:

How is the relationship between men and women portrayed?

What are the power relationships between men and women (or characters assuming
male/female roles)?

How are male and female roles defined?

What constitutes masculinity and femininity?

How do characters embody these traits?

Do characters take on traits from opposite genders? How so? How does this change others’
reactions to them?

What does the work reveal about the operations (economically, politically, socially, or
psychologically) of patriarchy?

What does the work imply about the possibilities of sisterhood as a mode of resisting
patriarchy?

What does the work say about women's creativity?

What does the history of the work's reception by the public and by the critics tell us about the
operation of patriarchy?
http://womenshistory.about.com/od/feminism/tp/feminist_theory.htm
Psychoanalytic Criticism
 Views the text as an expression of the personality, state of mind, feelings,
and desires of its author. Looks for the distinction between conscious and
unconscious motives of characters and author.
Using psychoanalytic criticism to analyze fiction may mean you:

Consider the author’s personality and own psychological conflicts to explain and interpret a
text.

Analyse the psyches of literary characters as if they were real people and see what
psychological theories are present in them (Oedipal complex, obsessive compulsive, sexual
repression, denial, guilt)?

What repressed material is expressed in imagery or symbols?

Consider how the literary work brings to light the desires and fears of its readers.
New Criticism
 Views the text as a stand-alone piece and meaning can be found
from within itself. Critics discuss how one prominent literary device
is used to communicate a theme or establish a tone etc.
In a nutshell, New Criticism:

Emphasizes explication, or "close reading," of "the work itself."

Rejects attention to biographical and sociological matters. (eg. The author’s life and times
have no influence / impact on meaning)

Examines the relationships between a text's ideas and its form, between what a text says and
the way it says it.

Attempts to be a science of literature, with a technical vocabulary.

Asserts that the goal of literature is not the pursuit of sincerity or authenticity, but subtlety,
unity, and integrity--and these are properties of the text, not the author.

Functions under the assumption that the work is not the author's; it was detached at birth. The
author's intentions are "neither available nor desirable" (nor even to be taken at face value
when supposedly found in direct statements by authors). Meaning exists on the page, and on
the page only.

Advocates for treating the text as separate from the author’s intentions and the readers’
impressions.
To Apply New Criticism:
1. Start by examining the text for its form. In other words, how is it structured? What aspects of how
it’s written—literary devices, organization, point of view, etc.—are most important to creating meaning
within the text?
2. Choose one or two specific aspects of the text to focus on. Be sure your focus isn’t too broad! (For
example, you might focus on journeys as a motif, or choose a couple of motifs, or one or two types of
imagery that pop up often eg. Water imagery…but you DON’T want to focus on motifs in general,
symbolism in general, imagery in general…)
3. Identify how that aspect (or those aspects) of the text affect the meaning of the piece. You can use
a variation of one of the following sentence-starters to articulate your observation:
The use of (literary technique or aspect of form) in (title) by (author) creates a sense of (tone or
mood)…
communicates the idea that (theme/message), OR...
connects (a couple of different concepts) to (create tone or mood OR communicate theme).
NEW HISTORICISM
 Context Matters! New Historicism assumes that every work is a product of
the historic moment that created it.
So, New Historicism = Looking into the time period and place the work was
created in and how that context impacts the text’s message, characters, etc.

New Historicism Occurred in Response to:

New Criticism’s tendency to treat works of literature in a historical vacuum, as if a poem or
novel had no relation to its historical context whatsoever.

A desire on the part of literature professors to figure out how understanding literature might
help in understanding social problems.
Major ideas in a nutshell:

Images and narratives do important cultural work. They function as a kind of workshop (or
playroom) where cultural problems, hopes, and obsessions are addressed or avoided.

The best way to interpret literature is to place it in its historical context: what
contemporaneous issues, anxieties, and struggles does the work of literature reflect, refract,
or try to work through?

The cultural/historical context of the READER also plays into the meaning-making process,
and must be taken into account.

New Historicists also tend to stress that authors and poets are not flawless—that even though
they may be more contemplative about their societies than the average citizen, they
nonetheless participate in it.

In other words: Writers are a product of their times—or, at least, they are affected by the world
in which they lived. (Duh, right?)
Questions to ask of a text from a New Historicism perspective:

What contemporaneous (existing at the time of the text’s production) cultural or social issues
does the author appear to be trying to work through in the text?

What ideas about or practices in contemporaneous culture/society is the text promoting?
What ideas or practices is it condemning or challenging?

What elements of the author’s cultural/historical context are important to understanding the
text? How are they important?

What elements of your OWN cultural/historical context are important to understanding your
reaction to the text? How are they important?