Grade 12 Literary Analysis

1. What is literary criticism? What are some methods of literary criticism? Why do I care (or how will literary criticism help me finish my assignment)? Grade 12 Literary Analysis

2. In everyday talk the meaning of criticism is “finding fault”. But a critic can see excellences as well as faults. We turn to criticism with the hope the critic has seen something we have missed. The most interesting critical review calls our attention to interesting things going on in the work of art. Literary Criticism: what is it?

3. Introduce me to authors or works that are new to me. Convince me that I have undervalued an author because I didn’t read carefully enough. Show me relationships between works of different times and cultures because my view is limited. Increase my understanding of a work. Throw light upon the process of artistic making. Throw light upon the relationship of art to life, economics, ethics, culture, history, etc. What is the function of a critic?

4. Professional critics look at a work of literature from a specific angle. For example, they regard themselves as Freudians or Marxists or feminist critics. This means they read texts through the lens of a particular theory, and the focus enables them to see things that might otherwise go unnoticed. (Similarly, a particular lens limits our vision too.) …So, 120 different critics might look at something 120 different ways, which means there are 120 different articles about that piece. Why is there SO MUCH written about some works?

5. Let’s try it out…

6. Types of Criticism You’ll See • Biographical – takes into account the author’s life • Historical – takes in to account the historical context • Cultural – looks at how the work was received • Deconstruction – searches for several ways of interpreting what was written • Feminist – looks for the feminine perspective in the work • Freudian – looks at the work like a psychiatrist (characters or the author) • Psychoanalytic – looks for symbols