VIEWING TEXTS THROUGH NEW LENSES

Literary Criticism

Key Vocabulary

IdeologyBinaryLiterary TheoryLiterary Criticism

9 types: Reader Response, Gender, Biographical, Historical, Marxist (Social Power), Formalist, Postcolonial (Race), Archetypal, Psychological

POV/Point of View

Ideology

An “ideology” is a world view, or way of thinking, that a person takes from the world around them. It is nearly always unconscious, but

everyone has one It includes a persons biases, or prejudices It can work to keep things the way they are

and preserve the power of a particular group Think of the South during slavery, or during

the Civil Rights movement of the 60s– nobody wanted change because they were used to things and did not know what would result from it.

It is often good to challenge or question them, and sometimes to actively resist them.

http://www.cheaptoys.co.uk/ideology-the-war-of-ideas-board-game/

Ideology board game, featuring warring political ideologies

Putting on New Lenses

Every person’s ideology colors the way they perceive the world around them, and determines what things they will consider important How you grew up and what

you believe will affect what stands out to you

Literary criticism is about putting on a new set of lenses in order to see things differently This means that some

things that might ordinarily seem important will disappear, and new things will stand outhttp://sales.buysmrt.com/s/

feelin+groovy+glasses

Binaries

A binary is a group of two things that are considered to be opposites. Generally, we ignore any middle ground in a binary, but often the two ends are defined by one another.

Powe

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LightStraightMaleWhiteRich

DarkGayFemaleBlackPoor

What are other examples of binaries?

Literary Theory

Literary theorists and critics usually work through one or two ideologies, or lenses, at a time. Sometimes these are

naturally there for a particular critic A female critic might look

for how a text treats women,

A person who grew up in poverty might seek out references to social power

http://www.ehow.com/how_2071684_use-marxist-literary-criticism.html

Changing Your POV

Sometimes critics purposely change lenses (often switching sides of a binary) A white person could look for

references to racial inequality A man may look for how a

text treats womenStudents do this all the time,

but usually without realizing it! It is often teacher-directed.

We look for elements of a genre, or evidence of an author’s beliefs– all lenses!

Image Title: Students in class, Pitzer CollegeDescription/Notes: A view of students in a class at Pitzer College as seen through the eye glasses of the professor.http://www.flickr.com/photos/53970289@N06/5097239229/

Types of Criticism

It’s common for a whole branch of criticism to spring up in support of a “power down” group Gender criticism, Social

Power criticism, Postcolonial criticism (which looks at race, too)

Each one represents a different way of looking at a text Each reveals something

different from the others

http://joshflom.wordpress.com/2011/02/14/the-world-through-anothers-lens/

Apologies in advance…

The following slides provide an overview of nine common types of literary criticism.

There are many more than nine types, of course, but these are meant as an introduction. Nonetheless, the following slides are densely packed with information. Don’t worry! I’d like you to know the names, but there’s

no need to memorize every single piece of info from these slides.

This slideshow will be on my website for you to view at a later date, so write the name of each slide with a very brief definition– there’s no need for more.

Structure of Lit.Crit. Slides

Assumptions These are the basic ideas

a critic needs to have in mind in order to look through this lens.

Together, these ideas define the type of criticism

May or may not be the critic’s own personal beliefs about a work. Often these are not a

person’s natural beliefs, but rather they are adopted for a time, such as when looking at a particular work.

Strategies These are ways to use

the lens to view a text May include questions

you should ask yourself as you read

Reader Response Criticism

***Most common in schools!Assumptions

An author’s intentions aren’t available to readers– all you have is the text

Readers make their own personal meaning from a text, unique to them.

Responding to a text is a process, and descriptions of that process are valuable Reading journals, etc. How do you read? What

goes on in your mind when you read a text? Do you create images? Imagine things as video? Hear the character’s voices?

Strategies Read in slow motion,

describing the response of an informed reader at various points

Describe your own, personal response to the text

React to the text as a whole, embracing the subjective, unique, personal response it brings out in you.

Gender Criticism

Assumptions The text isn’t objective:

The reader’s gender and attitudes toward gender influence how it is read.

Men and women haven’t been equally able to produce written work in the past.

Men and women are different: they write and read differently. These differences should be valued.

Strategies Consider the gender of

the author or characters: what role does gender play?

Look for sexual stereotypes—are they upheld or undermined? How are men and women’s places in society reflected or distorted?

Look at the effects of POWER drawn from gender in the plot or in the form of the writing.

Biographical Criticism

Assumptions Authors write what they

care about and know well. The events of their lives are reflected in their works

The context for a work includes information about the author’s life Historical events at the time Information available/ social

norms at the time The context can give

insight into themes, references, social movements, and the creation of characters.

Strategies Research the author’s

life and relate that information to the text

Research the author’s time (books published at the time, historical events, way of life, etc.)

Historical Criticism

Assumptions A work must be

considered in its historical context

Historical = social, political, economic, cultural and intellectual climate of the time

Information about the time an author wrote, the time the work is set, and how people at those times saw the world is very important.

Strategies Research the historical

events of the time in which the author wrote

Consider historical events of the setting if it is different from the author’s time

View the text as part of a bigger story--a context of historical movements--and examine how it contributes to and reflects aspects of human history

Marxist/Social Power Criticism

Assumptions Karl Marx said that

economic factors (money/ poverty) influence the way people think

Groups who owned / controlled major industries could use the rest of the population Through conditions of

employment, forcing their values onto others.

Applies social and economic ideas to texts

Strategies Explore how groups of

people are portrayed. Evaluate level of social

realism (is it realistic?) and how society is portrayed

Consider how the text is itself a commodity that reproduces certain beliefs and practices. What is its effect on society?

Look at power drawn from social or economic class

Formalist Criticism

Assumptions Only the text matters,

not the author’s intention or the reader’s response.

Looks at form and convention Does it look like a poem,

or like prose? Is it in paragraphs? Chapters? Does the author use “correct” grammar?

A work should be treated as a self-sufficient object

Strategies Read CLOSELY.

Assume everything is carefully planned to contribute to the work’s unity Figures of speech, POV,

word choice, recurring ideas, everything

Look at how the various elements of a text work to unify it, or make it a whole, smooth, flowing work of literature.

Postcolonial Criticism

Assumptions Colonialism is a powerful

force that shapes the political futures of countries, and identities of colonized and colonizing peoples

It relies on “Othering” the colonized They are seen as

dramatically different from the colonizers and are defined by that difference

Texts from these cultures often distort the realities of the colonized, no matter whose POV

Strategies Search the text for

references to colonization or colonized people How are the colonized and

colonizers portrayed? How is colonization portrayed?

What images of “Others” are present? What processes of “Othering” are portrayed?

How are cultural conflicts between colonizers and colonized dealt with?

Archetypal Criticism

Assumptions Meaning isn’t made just

on the page, and a work can’t be treated as an independent thing

Humans have a “collective unconscious,” seen in common dreams and myths shared by many cultures. Some ideas are hard-wired.

These recurring myths, symbols, and character types appear and reappear in literature throughout history

Strategies Consider the genre

(comedy, romance, tragedy, etc.) How does this affect the

meaning of the work? Look for story patterns

and symbols: black hats, springtime, evil stepmothers, etc. Compare with other texts.

Consider what you associate with these symbols and what they mean to you.

Psychological Criticism

Assumptions Creative writing

represents repressed wishes or fears, just like dreams do.

Everyone’s personal past is unique, but there are repeating patterns for most people. Both have lasting effects

We can make educated guesses about what the author has repressed or transformed We can figure out the

underlying meanings

Strategies Try to apply a

developmental concept to the work, author, characters Oedipus complex, anal

retentiveness, castration anxiety, gender confusion, etc.

Connect the work to psychologically important events in the author’s or character’s life.

Think about how repressed ideas might be expressed through symbols and images