Literary Theory

What do New Critics do?

-*read a text as many times in order to answer the guiding questions* and then *trying to find connections* between the many structures EX: how setting affects character development, how imager and metaphor are used to describe the conflict, how the antagonist drives the plot

Second wave of feminism

-1960s-1990s -Sexuality -reproductive rights -equality at the workplace -domestic violence -sexual violence

Origin of the term archetype

-Carl Jung (german psychologist) came up with the term -thought most people fell into certain categories -english teachers applied this to characters in literature

Equity vs. Equality

-Equality ensures that every individual gets the same amount of resources regardless of the differences between them -equity considers that certain individuals need something at a particular time

Guiding questions for a feminist reading

-What stereotypes of women are present? Are female characters oversimplified? Weak? Foolish? Naïve? -Do the characters play major or minor roles in the action of the work? Are they supportive or independent? Powerless or strong? Subservient or in control? -If the female characters have any power, what kind is it? Political? Economic? Social? Psychological? -How do the male characters treat the female characters? -How do the male characters talk about the female characters? -How do the female characters act around the male characters? -How do the female characters act around each other? -Are there any issues or themes present in the work that touch upon a feminist issue? -Overall, do you believe that the female characters are believable? Are the male characters believable?

core beliefs of feminist literary theorists

-Women are oppressed by the patriarchy economically, politically, socially, and psychologically -In every domain where patriarchy reigns woman is other: she is marginalized, defined only by her difference from male norms and values -While biology determines our sex (male or female), culture determines our gender (masculine or feminine) -All feminist activity, including feminist theory and literary criticism, has as its ultimate goal to change the world by prompting gender equality -Gender issues play a part in every aspect of human production and experience, including the production and experience of literature, whether we are consciously aware of these issues or not

Class conflict

-a capitalist society will inevitably experience conflict between its social classes -the owners and the workers will have different ideas about the division of wealth -This constant conflict (dialectical materialism) is what instigates change -the bourgeoisie present their political, economic, and social structures as the only reasonable ones -the proletariat are prevented from wanting to overthrow their oppressors (indoctrinated from birth to have pride in their station) -*the only real social division is class: divisions of race, ethnicity, gender and religion are artificial, devised by the bourgeoisie to distract the proletariat from realizing their unity and rebelling against their oppressors*

Economic power

-a society is shaped by its forces of production: those who own the means of production dictate what type of society it is -2 main classes of society: bourgeoisie and proletariat -capitalism is flawed in that it creates commodification: display of material objects is the most common way of showing one's wealth

Origins of formalism (new criticism)? (date, country, etc.)

-backbone of academic literary theory from 1930-1970 -originated in Russia by academics as a response to Marxism; developed further in America by academics and writers in the 1930s (John Crow Ransom, T.S. Elliot) -rooted in modernism

Origin of marxism

-based on the philosophy of Karl Marx (German philosopher and economist)

Valid interpretation?

-because each reader will interact with the text differently, the text may have more than one valid interpretation

The mountain

-center of the universe from which all things can be seen -climbing mountain: spiritual or emotional journey

Baggage

-changes the way you relate to the text -individuals bring their own thoughts, moods and experiences (baggage) to whatever text they are reading and get out of it whatever they happen to, depending on their experiences and ideas -our life experiences and the communities we belong to greatly influence our reading of a text

Boats

-characters brave sea and return to spiritual, emotional or material rebirth

what is feminist literary theory?

-concerned with the ways in which literature (and other cultural productions) reinforce or undermine the economic, political, social, and psychological oppression of women -looks at how aspects of our culture are inherently patriarchal (male dominated) and exposes the misogyny in male writing about women -concerned with less obvious forms of marginalization such as the exclusion of women writers from the traditional literary canon

The forest/wilderness

-dangerous -wild/uncontrolled -characters lead solitary life -where sinners stray from the path of righteousness/lose control (Christian) -precious resource (modern and native) -way to reconnect with nature (modern)

What does studying a work from multiple critical perspectives not involve?

-doesn't require you agree with any of the perspectives -doesn't require that you blend or merge two or more interpretations into a single interpretation

How did literary theories develop?

-emerged as ways to explain people's different views and responses to literature -rather than insisting that one view is bets or correct, literary theory attempts to find value in all views that are based on a careful study of the literature

The wasteland

-emotionally or physically barren place or time in character's journey (cleansed of fear and doubt) -emerge from wasteland stronger and refocused (or insane)

The inn

-fear of the unknown

Beliefs of New Critics

-feel *literary texts have their own type of knowledge* and to understand that knowledge, *readers must explore the relationships and connections between a work's many structures* -by examining the structures together, New Critics argue that one can uncover the "intended meaning(s)" of a text -believe in a "canon" of literature: certain books are superior to others based on their composition (tend to derive from white, male authors)

What does reader response focus on

-focuses on the activity of reading a work of literature -the interaction between the reader and the text *creates meaning* -focuses on how meaning is created among readers and how these experiences can change

The river

-focuses on the importance of life -journey down a river is a metaphor for life's journey/character's journey pulling or pushing through changes -metaphor for the passage of time of the sates of a human life -crossing a river may be seen as a passing over or a decision that cannot be taken back

The castle/gothic mansion

-gloomy, run-down -family secrets -equality

The island

-isolation

Emphasis on dreams

-it is in dreams that a person's subconscious desires are revealed -what a person can't express or do because of social rules will be expressed and accomplished in dreams where their are no social rules -most of the time, people are not even aware what they secretly desire until their subconscious goes unchecked in sleep

The small town

-judgement -conformity -symbolizes intolerance or ignorance

How to read a work from a Marxist perspective

-must understand that Marxism asserts that literature is a reflection of culture and that culture can be influenced by literature -Marxists believed that literature can instigate revolution

The id

-no sense of conscience -everyone's inner child: children (before taught social skills) operate entirely through the id: cry in public, perform bodily functions with no shame, *demand immediate gratifications of their needs and desires* (need immediate satisfaction or will act out) -id=*innate* (born with it)

What do reader response critics do?

-not only respond to a text but analyze their response or the responses of others

Benefits of studying a work from more than one critical perspective

-one of the views will likely affirm your perspective and speak to what you see in the literature you are studying -studying from a different view from yours helps you understand those who hold that view -studying work from more than one view gives you a deeper understanding of the author's work and a better appreciation for the richness of it

Proletariat

-operate the means of production and are controlled by the bourgeoisie

The garden

-place of earthly delights -symbolize love, fertility and the female body (Greece and Rome) -eternal and forbidden paradise (Garden of eden) -a place of harmony for people to find balance (japan) -place where people must "tend" an orderly place of tranquility where a person retires to (modern)

Essential questions for a marxist reading

-powerful and powerless people in the text: who receives the most attention? -why do the powerful have power and the powerless do not -class conflict and struggle -alienation or fragmentation of a character: whom, powerful or powerless -do the powerful suppress the powerless: how? news? media? religion? literature? -the setting and the distribution of wealth -what does the society value? possessions for usefulness or social value? -is the text a product of the society in which it was created? how? -consistency in the ideologies or inner conflict -any system oppression that you have accepted?: what and why do you accept it

The pasture/field

-predictable and calm

What does studying a work from multiple critical perspectives involve?

-putting your own view on hold and entertaining the other view

The underworld

-rebirth after symbolic death -alternative=passage through maze or labyrinth symbolizing complex journey through the human mind

Materialism vs. Spirituality

-social values reflect material goals, not abstract ideals (goals/ideals) -the material world is the only non-subjective element in a society: money and material possessions are the same by every measure within a society whereas spirituality is completely subjective -the quality of a person's life is not destroyed by spiritual failure but by material failure

Main areas of study/points of criticism for first view

-strong Oedipal connotations in Freudian theory -emphasis on the meaning of dreams

*Guiding questions for new criticism

-structure or organization of the work: beginning, middle and end and how this structure is related to the plot -relationship of each part of the work to the work as a whole -narrator: who, how are they revealed to the readers, how can we understand this figure -major and minor characters: what do they represent and the relationships between them -setting: time and place, setting's relationship with what is known about the characters and their actions, is the setting symbolic? -language used the author to describe, narrate, explain or create the world of the literary work: images, similes, metaphors, symbols and function of these and the meanings they convey

Ego

-struggles to achieve a balance between the id and the superego: takes the desires of the id, filters them through the superego, and devises an action that satisfies both -realizes that the id must be satisfied but that there are certain socially acceptable ways to achieve satisfaction (acknowledge emotion productivity) -Freudian theory asserts that psychological problems are the result of imbalances between the id (angry), superego (obsessive and anxious) and ego (mental health is balanced)

The tower

-symbol of human pride and folly -fall or are overthrown -towers in gardens=protection of maidenhood or virginity

Core Principals of New Criticism theorists

-text is the only authority and meaning is created by the interplay of different structures within a text -putside influences (social and historical contexts) are far less important -as one re-reads a work (close reading), one begins to see connections and to grasp the way large and small elements of a work relate to each other -objective rather than subjective interpretation of the literary work -limited valid interpretations of the text

Art, literature and ideologies

-the bourgeoisie use art and literature to impose their value system on the proletariat: the arts can make the current system seem attractive and logical, thus lulling the workers into an acceptance of it -works of art and literature are enjoyable so the audience is unaware of being manipulated -the bourgeoisie control most artistic output because, whether through patronage or sponsorship, they are the entity that funds the arts and entertainment -EX: bourgeoisie materially support the writers and painters: own the means of production as well as serving as primary consumers: artist must be careful no to offend bourgeoisie values (anything offensive will not be published or sold) -any artist who wishes to criticize the bourgeoisie must do it in a subtle way (satire, irony, etc.)

Oedipal connotations

-the son's desire for his mother -the father's envy of the son and rivalry for the mother's attention -the daughter's desire for her father -the mother's envy of the daughter and rivalry for the father's attention all operate on a subconscious (not aware) level to avoid violating serious social mores

The sea

-the source of life -evil and dangerous (lost at sea, bad waves) -subconscious human mind -heaven or infinity where all souls pour into (rivers feed into sear)

The superego

-the storage of all socially imposed behaviour and sense of guilt -superego is *learned* (not innate): humans develop superego by having parent scold them and other members of society teach them -how one is socialized (by punishment and shame) will have lifelong impact on the functioning of his or her subconscious

What did Marx call on the proletariat

-to reject the social structure of the bourgeoisie and form their own values (rules would keep them subservient forever) -to escape the oppression, b/c the proletariat could never defeat the bourgeoisie on its own terms, the proletariats have to establish new terms

*Essential questions for psychoanalytic reading

-traits of the main character, how the author reveals those traits -what is learnt about the character through the narrator, the way the other characters relater to him or her -what do you infer about the character from his/her thoughts, actions and speech -discrepancies btwn authors portrayal of character, how other characters react to him/her and reader's inferences -is the main character a dynamic character, how, why -how does the character view him/herself -discrepancies btwn character's view of self and other characters reactions, author's portrayal and reader inference -how do characters view each other -discrepancy btwn character's personal opinion of self and how others think about them -types of relationships -images used in conjugation with the character: symbolism -dreams and inner monologues and what is revealed about character through dreams -inner conflicts btwn characters and how the conflicts are revealed, dealt with, resolved -uncharacteristic actions performed by the characters and the meaning of them

What is included in the second view of psychoanalytic readings

-what is known about the author's personality is used to explain and interpret a literary work -literary work is used to establish and understanding of the mind of the author -studying the litter work of an author is a means of knowing the author as a person -an artist may put his or her repressed desires on the page in the for of actions performed by characters

Essential questions for new historicism

-what language/characters/events reflect the current events of the author's day? -words in the text that have changed their meaning from the time of the writing -how are such events interpreted and presented? -does the presentation support or condemn the event? both? -how does the text function with other historical/cultural texts from the same time period -how does the work consider traditionally marginalized populations?

4 Main areas of study in Marxism

1. Economic power 2. Materialism vs. spirituality 3. Class conflict 4. Art, literature and ideologies

Archetypal characters

1. Hero 2. Young person from the provinces/orphan 3. Initiates 4. Mentors 5. Loyal companions/sidekicks 6. Earth mother 7. Librarian/professor 8. Fool/free spirit 9. Swashbuckler/adventurer 10. Warrior/protector 11. Rebel 12. Seductress 13. Tyrant 14. Devil 15. Traitor 16. Evil genius 17. Sadist 18. Creature/predator 19. Matriarch/patriarch 20. Star-crossed lovers 21. Evil figure with good heart 22. Damsel in distress 23. Cause fighter/terrorist 24. Tragic artist/outcast 25. Uncommitted lover 36. Best friend 37. Trapped spouse 38. Hag/witches/shaman 39. Prophet/reporter

Archetypal plots

1. Quest 2. Task 3. Journey 4. Fall 5. Battle of good vs. evil 6. Wound that never heals 7. Magic weapon 8. Boy-meets-girl 9. Loss of innocence 10. Rite of passage/ritual 11. Initiation

3 parts to the subconscious

1. The id: the basic desire 2. The superego: the opposite of the id (development of shame) 3. The ego: reality

Archetypal settings

1. The river 2. The garden 3. The forest/wilderness 4. The sea 5. Boats 6. The island 7. The mountain 8. The wasteland 9. The pasture/field 10. The tower 11. The castle/gothic mansion 12. The inn 13. The small town 14. The underworld

Core beliefs of reader response theorists

1. The role of the reader can't be omitted from our understanding of literature 2. Readers do not passively consume the meaning presented to them by an objective literary text: instead, they make the meaning they find in literature

Instead of 1. What does it mean? 2. Identify the key elements of the plot. 3. List the major and minor characters 4. What is the author's main message 5. What is the target audience

1. What does it mean to me? 2. Why does this storyline resonate with me? What other types of readers would it resonate with? 3. Which characters do I connect with? What factors cause me to connect with them? 4. Who is the author writing this for? What details do they include to elicit a response?

Other things to consider when analyzing a text using formalism

1. What happens in the text? -major plot event -conflict(s) -climax -setting 2. Language -symbols -literary devices 3. Ideas -topics -themes 4. Characters -major/minor -characterization -development 5. Structure -narration -syntax

First wave of feminism

1700s-early 1900s -right to vote (suffragettes) -right to divorce -child custody -property rights

Third wave of feminism

1990's to present -inclusive of marginalized women -intersectional feminism -gay rights, issues of gender -expanding the role of femininity and masculinity -equal pay for equal work -issues of home/work balanc

Karl Marx and his beliefs

German philosopher and economist -argued that whoever controlled the means of production (factories) in a society controlled the society -believed that the means of production (EX: basis of power in society) should be placed in the hands of those who actually operated them

Commodification

a desire for possessions, not for their innate usefulness but for their social value -one way that the bourgeoisie keep the proletariat oppressed: whenever the proletariat manages to acquire some sort of status symbol, the bourgeoisie concocts a new one (thus, the proletariate continues to struggle, never able to catch up)

What is literar/critical theory?

address ways of looking at literature beyond the typical plot-theme-character-setting studies

Study symbolysim of archetypal plots

archet

Bourgeoisie

control the means of production and wealth -since the bourgeoisie own the means of production (and therefore, control the money), they can manipulate politics, government, education, art and media

Psychoanalytic or Freudian theory

encompasses two contradictory critical theories

What is formalism?

explores the formal elements and structures in literature: genre, character, plot, structure, conflict, symbols, themes, etc.

Second psychoanalytic view

focuses on the author of the text -essential relationship existing between author of work and the work itself: in order to understand a work, one must fully understand the author's life and values -always something of the author in the work: may be a character, character trait, theme or motif -often, authors will satirize characters they dislike and be overly sympathetic to those they do like -this author's *bias* often has an effect on the reader, which is *exactly what the author wants*: when reading, people are extremely vulnerable to the author's chosen point of view (the only way they hear the story is through the author's narrator)

First psychoanalytic view

focuses on the text itself with no regard to outside influences -reading and interpreter are limited to the work itself -one will understand the work by examining conflicts, characters, dream sequences and symbols -will further understand that a character's outward behaviour might conflict with inner desires or reflect as yet-undiscovered inner desires

What are archetypes

fundamental building blocks of storytelling -certain characters, plots, and settings shown up over and over in stories from all over the world and in all time periods -have special symbolic meanings -represent universal symbols of bigger ideas

Reader response vs. formalism

reader response is all about you (the reader) whereas formalism is all about the text -in reader response the features of the work (narrator, plot, characters, structure) is less important than the connection between a reader's experience and the text

Egocentrism

refers to anything that regards the self of the individual as the centre of all things

queer theory

social theory about gender and sexual identity; emphasizes the importance of difference and rejects ideas of innate identities or restrictive categories -literature is embedded with homophobic fears and anxieties

What type of reading does Reader response offer?

subjective and egocentric

objective vs. subjective reading of the text

subjective: pertains to the individual (reader) -subjective reading is one which the emphasis is placed on the attitudes, moods and opinions of the reader objective: pertains to an object (the text) separate from the individual (reader) -objective reading is uninfluenced by emotions or personal prejudices

New historicism

the belief that no text is written in a vacuum: all texts are influenced by their historical context

What is involved in new historicism

the reader is asked to investigate the author's background; the political and social climate in which the book was written and its reception by its contemporaries

Cultural relativism

the theory that all cultures are equal when it comes to morals, judgements, laws and beliefs -what is "right" and "wrong" are completely relative to the individual in that cultural identity

intersectional feminism

the understanding of how women's overlapping identities — including race, class, ethnicity, religion and sexual orientation — impact the way they experience oppression and discrimination.

What is meant by critical perspective

the view you bring to the literature you read

What is the aim of new historicism

to place the text in a larger context and use it as a microcosm of its age

Read and memorize archetypal characters

ugh

Review note to a sixth grade self reader response

ugh