Literary Analysis Deconstructive Perspective

1. Literary AnalysisDeconstructive Perspective Where does the text fall apart? Catherine Wishart Adjunct Instructor

2. Definition of Deconstruction • Does not mean “destruction” • A form of analysis: • “careful teasing out of warring forces of signification within the text itself” (Cuddon 210) • looks at how a text differs with itself • analyzes the innate ambiguity of human communication • Structuralism views how opposites help lead to a fruitful ending; deconstruction views how opposites impact alternate interpretations

3. A Deconstructive Critic’s Focus • While deconstructive critics focus on opposites (like structuralists do), they also examine texts for where the meaning falls apart: • Challenge an ideology presumed to be the status quo in a text • Point out contradictions in the text • Look for ambiguities and see them as a flaw instead of a writing strategy • Look for ambivalence and view this as a point where the text unravels

4. Deconstruction Analyzes How Cultural Hierarchies Impact on Voice • Challenging ideologies means challenging stereotypes and how certain people get and hold on to power • “Historically, groups traditionally ignored,suppressed, oppressed, and disadvantaged have effectively used deconstruction to question traditional notions of race, class, gender, nationality, etc.” (http://home.mesastate.edu/~blaga/deconstruction/deconstructiox.html).

5. The Deconstructive Belief • Language, as our main source of communication, is inherently flawed • Language is often self-contradictory and self-destroying • Language, as a fluid entity, is unstable and cannot be controlled by writers • These inconsistencies lead to an undermining of each text’s “logical or meaningful structure” • A meaning that seems to be clear is not clear at all.

6. How Do Texts Fall Apart? • “Deconstruction views texts as subversively undermining an apparent or surface meaning” • “Practitioners of deconstruction celebrate the text’s self-destruction”: • Internal contradiction • Free play of language • Text always in a state of change that furnishes “only provisional meanings” • “Deconstruction involves taking apart any meaning to reveal contradictory structures within”(Guerin 377).

7. Deconstructing A Sign

8. What Does This Sign Mean? • Diamond-shaped placement indicates danger • Turning a square to sit on an angle indicates precariousness for sign and message • The message is: when it rains on this road, there will be water on the roadway • “Caution” sends a clear message • The sign provides a warning that should be heeded • “Water on Road” • Indicates possible hazardous conditions • “During Rain” • Forced onto two lines • Explains when the hazard is likely to occur

9. Or Does It Mean??? • Is this tongue-in-cheek? • Why is it odd that there will be water on a road during a rainstorm? • Do other roads remain dry when it rains? • Does missing punctuation change who is being warned? • “Caution: water on road during rain” makes it clear the driver is being warned • With no colon, should sign read “Caution to water on road during rain.” • Water warned that it will be pelted by passing cars during a rainstorm • Why does the author assume the water can read? • The only time water is on the road is during a rain storm • Road must immediately dry after rain • No danger after the storm – only time of danger is “during rain”

10. Practicing Deconstruction • Each group will choose a road sign to “deconstruct.” • Determine what you believe the intended meaning of the road sign is. • Answer these questions: • What oppositions exist? How is this shown? • What elements suggest an alternate interpretation of meaning? • To whom is the sign speaking? How does the intended audience change its meaning? • Does anyone benefit from the alternate meaning? If so, who? • Orally present your analysis to the class

19. Checklist of Deconstructive Critical Questions • What oppositions exist in the work? Which of the two opposing terms of each pair is the privileged or more powerful term? How is this shown in the work? • What textual elements (descriptive details, images, incident, passages) suggest a contradiction or alternative to the privileged or more powerful term? • What is the prevailing ideology or set of cultural assumptions in the work? Where are these assumptions evident? • What passages of the work most reveal gaps, inconsistencies, or contradictions? • How stable is the text? How decidable is its meaning? (DiYanni 1587-88).

20. Structuring a Deconstructive Critique Essay • Explain how the text seems to be unified. • Point out the binary oppositions in the text and seem to accept them. • Acknowledge what the text seems to say about society, culture, gender roles, ethnicities, etc. • Explain the structure of the piece and how it seems to play together. • Explain where these “unified” points, especially binary pairs, fall apart. • Point out where meaning seems to unravel • Explain how the text contradicts its own philosophy • Zero in on ironies present in the text • Emphasize where something that seems coherent and unified is actually ambiguous or vague • Explain the implications of the unraveling of the text • Who benefits from the possibility of different readings? • Who loses because the text can be interpreted differently? • How does the ambiguity/vagueness/irony within the text impact the value of the text? • Make sure to keep the essay formal, but it should also be a delight to read – it should play with language and its meaning. There should be a sort of playfulness in the writing itself. http://home.mesastate.edu/~blaga/deconstruction/deconstructiox.html.

21. References • DiYanni, Robert. Literature Approaches to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. 2nd ed. Boston: McGraw Hill, 2008. Print. • Guerin, Wilfred L., Labor, Earle, Morgan, Lee, Reesman, Jeanne C., Willingham, John R. A Handbook of Critical Approaches to Literature. 5th ed. NY: Oxford U P, 2005. Print. • Lagal, Barry. Reading With an Eye on the Structurality of Structure: An Introduction to Poststructuralists and Deconstructionists. http://home.mesastate.edu/~blaga/deconstruction/deconstructiox.html.