Literary Criticism

What is Literary Criticism?

• The term criticism derives from the Greek term “Kritikos,” which was
used in the 4th century B. C. It means “ a judge of literature.”
• Literary criticism is the analysis, interpretation, and evaluation of
literature, to understand its various elements, uncovering meanings,
and exploring its cultural, historical, and social contexts. Literary
critics engage in a systematic examination of literary works, seeking to
discern patterns, themes, and underlying structures, as well as to
evaluate the artistic and intellectual merits of the text.
 What is Literary Criticism?
• It is a research method, a type of textual research, that literary critics
employ to interpret texts and debate interpretations
• a genre of discourse employed by literary critics to share the results of
their interpretive efforts.
• a research method, a type of textual research, that literary critics employ
to interpret texts and debate interpretations
• It is a genre of discourse employed by literary critics used to share the
results of their interpretive efforts.
Most Famous Literary Critics
 Robert Frost
Robert Frost was born in San Francisco, California, in 1874.
Frost published more than 30 collections of poetry, including
New Hampshire (1924), Collected Poems (1931), A Further
Range (1937), and A Witness Tree (1943), all winners of the
Pulitzer Prize. His other honors included the Congressional
Gold Medal and the Bollingen Prize. Frost served as the
Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 1958-1959,
and was invited to read at the inauguration of President
John F. Kennedy in 1961. He taught at Amherst College,
the University of Michigan, Middlebury College,
Harvard University, Columbia University, and Yale
University, among other places.
Thomas Stearns Eliot
T.S. Eliot is by far the most influential critic of
our time. Unlike contemporary English critics
like I.A. Richards, F.R. Levis and William
Empson he has not compiled independent books
rather his ideas are spread over in his astray
essays. He doesn`t claim to have pioneered any
critical school although the modern New Critics
owe their allegiance to him for his invaluable
contributions. Eliot was fed up with the existing
critical scenario .
 Thomas Stearns Eliot
In his essay Function of Criticism Eliot has compared modern
criticism to a “Sunday park full of contending and contentious
orators”. He was the most condescending of all critics and had
readily accepted his faults whenever it was brought to his notice.

He called modern critics idolatrous and unyielding who are not ready to
accept their faults.
-(Srivastava, 2017)
 Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe first came to the attention of the
literary world as a magazine editor and critic. He
wrote nearly one thousand essays, reviews, articles,
columns, and critical notices that appeared in
magazines, newspapers, and annuals. Poe was
among the first to propose setting standards by
which to judge literary works, and created his own
vision of what constituted good literature by
studying writers that ranged from Plato and
Aristotle to Milton and Coleridge.
 Edgar Allan Poe
His influential theory of “unity of effect” states that the author of a
short story should construct a tale to fit one overall purpose or
effect.
Poe believed his role as a critic included exposing poor writing
and demanding that American writers meet higher standards. His
critical reviews often included a detailed technical examination of
the work at hand, and his observations ranged from pointing out
grammatical errors to exposing illogical reasoning.
 Edward Said
Edward Said (b. 1935–d. 2003) was an immensely
influential literary and cultural critic and one of the
world’s foremost public intellectuals. He is a founding
figure of postcolonial studies owing to the
extraordinary influence of his germinal critical study
Orientalism (1978). Orientalism remains one of the
most enduringly significant critical studies of the
second half of the 20th century. Orientalism
transformed the meaning of that term such that it no
longer refers to a disinterested field of scholarship but
an expression of power relations, a way of positioning
the East as inferior to the West.
Bienvenido L. Lumbera
Dr. Lumbera’s literary work encompasses multiple
genres, from poetry to stage plays and librettos. His
love for these different genres stems from his
childhood. Born in Lipa, Batangas, on April 11, 1932, to
Timoteo and Carmen Lumbera.

He earned numerous awards and accolades throughout the

years, including the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism,
Literature, and Creative Communication Arts, the National
Book Awards for Literary History/Literary Criticism, the Carlos
Palanca Memorial Award for Literature, and more.
 Horace
• Horace is a stern critic of others’ work. His judgements
of older literature are much more detailed.
• In the Ars Poetica he remarks that ‘neither men nor
gods nor booksellers can tolerate the existence of
mediocre poets.’ (372-3) He evidently thought that there
were far too many people writing too much (Satires
1.4.141-2, and esp. Epistles 2.1.108ff.), and the hexameter
poems are studded with caustic references to inferior
writers.[1] He is particularly harsh on mere imitators, of
himself or others (Epistles 1.19); though respect for
tradition is vital, imitation alone is not enough.
 Plato
• Plato, Aristotle, and Horace are foundational
figures in literary criticism, each contributing
unique theories and insights that have influenced
the field significantly.

• Plato was the first ancient philosopher who had

given a systematic shape to criticism. Plato’s
ideas are expressed in several books, chief among
them being the Dialogues, Ion, Crito and The
Republic.
 Plato
• Theory of Forms: Plato believed in a higher realm of ideal Forms, with
art being an imitation of these Forms. He argued that poetry and drama
are imitations of reality, and thus can mislead people away from the
truth.
• Critique of Poetry: In works like "The Republic," Plato criticized poetry
for its emotional appeal, arguing that it could corrupt the soul and
promote falsehoods. He favored philosophical discourse over poetic
expression, seeing poets as mere imitators rather than creators of truth.
• Moral and Ethical Dimension: Plato’s concern with the moral impact of
literature led him to advocate for censorship in his ideal state, suggesting
that only works that promote virtue should be allowed.
 Harold Bloom
1. A New Yorker Harold Bloom was born in 1930 and has
analyzed everyone from Wordsworth to Shakespeare, even
writing a literary appreciation of the Bible and naming
Jonah as his favorite book. According to Bloom, Jesus was a
“major literary character.” He has written over 40 books,
half of which are works of literary criticism. He joined the
Yale English Department in 1955 and is still a
professor of the subject, also teaching
at New York University at the
impressive age of 88.
 Michiko Kakutani
Michiko Kakutani is the Queen of Mean in literary
criticism. The Japanese American was formerly the
chief book critic at the New York Times and even won a
Pulitzer Prize for Criticism in 1998. She has been known
to write reviews in the voice of characters such as Elle
Woods from Legally Blonde or Brian Griffin from
Family Guy before retiring in 2017. In 2006 Kakutani
called Jonathan Franzen’s memoir The Discomfort
Zone “an odious self-portrait of the artist as a young
jackass: petulant, pompous, obsessive, selfish and
overwhelmingly self-absorbed”.
 Andrew Lang
1. A Scottish critic Andrew Lang is a folklore and fairy
tales great author, born in Selkirk in 1844, he was
obsessed with mythology and oral history long before
he began studying at St Andrews, Glasgow and Oxford
Universities. He’s best remembered for publishing a
collection of stories for children between 1889 and 1913,
known as the Langs’ Fairy Books. A self-branded
“psycho-folklorist”, Lang was particularly fascinated
with the journeys behind well-known stories,
analyzing how one tale could appear to have
origins all over the world.
 Eric Griffiths
Eric Griffiths is an English professor known as “Wreckless
Eric”, the Liverpool-born critic was famous for his sharp
tongue and quick wit, which would shine through in his
analysis of others. He became so popular when is lecture in
Cambridge University was published in student newspaper
Varsity and featured it in its entertainments listings.Griffiths
would interpret texts word by word, once notably describing
the word “divina” of the Divina Comedia to mean “fabulous
poem, darling, loved it loved it loved it”. He was able to
demonstrate how a “Kafkaesque” mood, often applied to any
situation with a hint of sinister bureaucracy, could be
produced by small words like “if” and “but” in Franz Kafka’s
sentence structures.
 James Wood
James Wood gained a fearsome reputation for reviewing books as the
chief literary critic at the Guardian before going on to join the New
Yorker in 2007. Financial Times called him “the best literary critic of
his generation” the year after. Always true to his opinion, Wood
advocates an aesthetic approach to literature; even if it makes for a
particularly blunt review. In 2015, he argued that Nobel Prize
winner Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel Never Let Me Go contained passages
“that appeared to have been entered in a competition called The
Ten Most Boring Fictional Scenes”. Wood believes that the
most important literary style is realism which is always
“at the bottom” of his analysis.
 Tzcetan Todorov
A Bulgarian-French critic Tzcetan Todorov originated the concept of
the fantastic, a subgenre of fiction characterised by ambiguous
supernatural forces which cause the reader to hesitate when
questioning reality. For example, in Edgar Allan Poe's The Black Cat,
the murderer is unsure whether he is being stalked by an animal or
something sinister from beyond the grave. Todorov stated that
readers of the fantastic would most frequently find themselves in two
situations: Where supernatural forces are later revealed to have a
rational explanation (the uncanny), or a straight up confirmation
of a supernatural presence (the marvellous).
The Key Concept of
Literary Criticism
 Key Concept
In literary criticism, key concepts such as text,
context, authorship, and readership play pivotal roles in
shaping the interpretation and understanding of literary
works. These concepts are interrelated and often
examined in conjunction to provide a comprehensive
analysis of the literature.
 Key Concept
The "text" refers to the written or spoken words that
constitute a literary work. It encompasses the actual content,
structure, and linguistic elements of a piece of literature.
Focus in Criticism: Formalist
critics emphasize the intrinsic
qualities of the text itself,
analyzing its language, style,
structure, and literary devices.
They believe that the meaning
of a work is inherent in its form.
 Key Concept
"Context" refers to the external factors that surround and
influence the creation and reception of a literary work. This
includes the historical, cultural, social, and political conditions
prevalent during the time of production.
Focus in Criticism: Contextual analysis
involves examining how historical
events, cultural movements, and
societal norms impact the creation and
reception of a text. It helps to uncover
hidden meanings and understand the
motivations of the author.
 Key Concept
Authorship refers to the identity of the person or persons
responsible for creating a literary work. It encompasses the author's
background, experiences, intentions, and the
historical circumstances that shaped their writing.
Focus in Criticism: Critics may explore the author's
biography, examine the author's intent, and
consider how the author's personal experiences and
beliefs influence the text. However, debates around
the "death of the author" argue that the text should
be studied independently of the author's intentions.
 Key Concept
Readership refers to the audience or readers of a literary work. It
encompasses the diverse ways in which different readers interpret and
respond to the text.
Focus in Criticism: Reader-response
critics emphasize the active role of
readers in constructing meaning. The
interpretation of a text is seen as a
dynamic process influenced by the
reader's experiences, cultural
background, and individual perspective.
This concept challenges the idea of a
single, fixed interpretation.
1.
Interconnections:
2.
Text and Context: Understanding a Authorship and Readership: Reader-
text often requires considering the response critics may argue that the
historical and cultural context in author's intent is less important than
which it was produced. Context can the diverse ways in which readers
shape the meaning of words, engage with and interpret a text. The
symbols, and themes within a reception of a work is influenced by
literary work. the reader's unique perspective.

These key concepts collectively contribute to the multifaceted nature

of literary criticism, encouraging scholars and readers to explore the
intricate relationships between the words on the page, the historical and
cultural surroundings, the author's identity, and the varied responses of
readers.
Functions of Literary Criticism
Functions of Literary Criticism
• Interpretation: Literary criticism helps in interpreting
literary texts, providing deeper insights into the meanings,
themes, and symbols within the works.

• Evaluation: Critics assess the quality and artistic merit of

literary works, offering judgments on their value,
relevance, and contribution to literature.

• Analysis: Literary criticism involves analyzing the

structure, style, and language of texts, understanding how
these elements contribute to the overall meaning and
impact of the work.
Functions of Literary Criticism
• Contextualization: Critics place literary works within their
historical, cultural, and social contexts, helping readers
understand the influences and motivations behind the texts.

• Comparison: Critics compare different works of literature,

identifying similarities, differences, and trends across
various genres, time periods, or cultural contexts.

• Exploration of Themes: Literary criticism explores recurring

themes in literature, examining how these themes are
portrayed, developed, and varied across different works.
Functions of Literary Criticism
• Understanding Authorial Intent: Critics attempt to discern
the intentions of authors, considering how an author's life,
beliefs, and experiences shape their literary creations.

• Reader Response: Literary criticism explores how readers

respond to and interpret texts, recognizing the subjective
nature of reading experiences.

• Social and Political Commentary: Critics analyze literature

as a reflection of societal issues, ideologies, and political
climates, uncovering hidden or implicit commentary within
the texts.
Functions of Literary Criticism
• Influence and Reception: Literary criticism studies how
literary works influence subsequent literature, art, and
culture, as well as how they are received and appreciated by
different audiences over time.

• Cultural Significance: Critics assess the cultural significance of

literary works, considering their impact on shaping cultural
identities, beliefs, and values.

• Promotion of Literary Appreciation: Literary criticism helps

cultivate an appreciation for literature, encouraging readers to
engage critically with texts and fostering a love for reading.
Historical Development
of Literary Criticism
 • The historical development of literary criticism is a rich and complex
journey that spans centuries. It has evolved alongside changes in
intellectual thought, cultural movements, and literary trends. Below is a
broad overview of key periods and developments in the history of
literary criticism:

Ancient Greece and Rome (Classical Period):

• Aristotle's "Poetics" (4th century BCE): Aristotle's work is one of the
earliest systematic attempts to analyze literature. He outlines principles
for drama, discussing elements like plot, character, and catharsis.
• Horace's "Ars Poetica" (1st century BCE): Horace's treatise provides
guidelines for poetry, emphasizing the importance of unity, clarity, and
decorum.
Middle Ages:
• Scholasticism (5th–15th
centuries): Literary analysis
during this period was often
intertwined with religious and
philosophical thought. Scholars
like Thomas Aquinas applied
Aristotelian principles to
theological works.
 Renaissance:

• Humanism (14th–17th centuries):

Scholars like Petrarch and Erasmus
revived interest in classical literature.
Humanist critics focused on recovering
and interpreting classical texts.

• Neoclassicism (17th–18th centuries):

Critics like John Dryden and Samuel
Johnson advocated for adherence to
classical rules, emphasizing order,
reason, and didacticism in literature.
 Romanticism:

Romantic Criticism (late 18th–

early 19th centuries): Romantic
writers like William
Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor
Coleridge emphasized
individual expression, emotion,
and nature. Critics reacted
against neoclassical ideals,
celebrating subjectivity and
imagination.
19th Century: Victorian Criticism
(19th century): Critics
such as Matthew
Arnold sought to
reconcile the
intellectual and moral
aspects of literature.
Arnold, in particular,
emphasized the role of
literature in achieving
cultural and social
harmony.
Formalism and New Criticism (early
20th Century:
to mid-20th century): Critics like T.S.
Eliot, Cleanth Brooks, and I.A.
Richards focused on the close
reading of texts, emphasizing form
and structure over historical and
biographical context.

Psychoanalytic Criticism (mid-20th

century): Freudian and later
Lacanian psychoanalytic theories
influenced critics like Jacques Lacan
and Harold Bloom, who explored the
psychological dimensions of
literature.
Structuralism and Poststructuralism 20th Century:
(mid to late 20th century):
Structuralists like Roland Barthes and
poststructuralists like Jacques Derrida
examined language, signs, and
structures in literature, challenging
traditional notions of meaning and
authorship.

Feminist Criticism (late 20th century):

Feminist scholars like Simone de
Beauvoir and later theorists, such as
Judith Butler, examined gender roles
and representations in literature.
 Contemporary Period (Late 20th Century Onward):

• Cultural Studies and Postcolonial Criticism: Scholars like Edward Said

and Homi Bhabha explored the cultural and colonial dimensions of
literature, addressing issues of identity, power, and representation.

• New Historicism and Cultural Materialism: Critics like Stephen

Greenblatt and Raymond Williams emphasized the intersection of
literature with historical and cultural contexts.

• Ecocriticism, Queer Theory, and Intersectionality: Emerging critical

approaches examine literature through the lenses of environmental
concerns, LGBTQ+ perspectives, and the intersectionality of social
identities.
Literary Theory
VS
Literary Criticism
VS
VS