NEW HISTORICISM

NEW HISTORICISM Literature must be interpreted and studied within the context of the history of the critic and the history of the author Acknowledges that any criticism of a work is colored by the critics’ beliefs, and  social status The evaluation of how work is influenced by the time in which the author wrote it. In fact, it examines the theories and books that may have influenced them, as well as their psychological background  The main focus is to look at the elements outside the work instead of just reading the text, thus it also influences others Writers express their opinion and ideas within their writing Stephen Greenblatt’s studies of the Renaissance was well-known as a major figure associated with New Historicism

LORD OF THE FLIES BY: WILLIAM GOLDING

• five years Golding spent in the navy (from 1940 to 1945) made an enormous impact, exposing him to the incredible cruelty and barbarity of which humankind is capable• in college, he had lost faith in the rationalism of his father with its attendant belief in the perfectibility of humankind. • In Lord of the Flies, which was published in 1954, Golding combined that perception of humanity with his years of experience with schoolboys• An examination of the duality of savagery and civilization in humanity, Golding uses a pristine tropical island as a protected environment in which a group of marooned British schoolboys act out their worst impulses. • The boys loyal to the ways of civilization face persecution by the boys indulging in their innate aggression• the novel illustrates the failure of the rationalism espoused by Golding's father• a depiction of how the violent, deceitful Homo sapiens achieved victory over the gentler Neanderthals. Although this novel is the one readers have the most difficulty understanding, it remained Golding's favorite throughout his life

WORK SITED "New Historicism." New Historicism. N.p., 1 Oct. 1999.

Web. 13 Sept. 2012. http://www.chosun.ac.kr/~mgoh/criti/structuralism/newhistoricism.htm. new work cited