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An Introduction to Literary Criticism and Theory

Before we begin our examination and study of criticism, it is important that we define what it means.although this criterion is not an essential characteristic of a

classical literature.And on what basis?" Well, criticism provides the bases and criteria according to which critics can judge and evaluate a work of art. The main concern of a literary critic should not be restricted to the evaluation of the literary worth of a work of literature. He should be equipped with the weapon to defend a certain interpretation or understanding of the literary text in question. The main task of a literary critic is to provide an explanation and reach a critical understanding of what a literary text means in terms of its aesthetic, as well as political, social, and cultural content. connotations and suggestions. Literary criticism is concerned with more than the evaluation or discussion of the value of a literary work. It rather attempts to provide an understanding that would be considered reasonable and logical by other critics because it is based on acknowledged literary theories. This interpretation or

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understanding relies on the intended meaning of the writer of the literary text as well as its meaning in the light of the society that produced it taking into consideration the cultural, political and ideological conditions that inspired the work. Traditional literary criticism does not focus on a certain aspect of (or a particular approach to) a literary text in exactly the same way a literary theory does. Literary theory usually offers certain, systematic approaches to literary works that necessarily guide the critic through definite steps to reach an expected interpretation. At the beginning of his critical assessment, a researcher has to limit him/herself

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to a certain "literary theory" and define the major outline of this theory and also the concepts he/she finds relevant to his/her analysis and interpretation.We use the words "classical literature" to refer to the great literary works which flourished where there were prominent ancient civilizations, e.g. the literary works that emerged in ancient Rome or Greece or other parts of the world. The previous term includes all sorts of writing, e.g. poetry, pastoral, play, etc. To study the nature and characteristics of these works that shaped life at certain eras and whose effect on contemporary life and study of literature can still be detected, we go back to the works of the

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prominent writers who marked that period. Homer, Ovid and Sophocles are prominent names whose great works are considered the masterpieces of that era. To asses these works we need to first get ourselves acquainted with the literary theory that was used to evaluate their works, so we begin by reading Aristotle, the first critic and then use his criteria and standards to investigate Oedipus Rex the masterpiece of Sophocles, his countryperson. It will be a good exercise, though, to apply old theories to present works or any works you know and make a comparison. Even if Aristotle wrote only about drama and poetry, you still could apply his standards to a movie or a TV series and find out the interesting outcomes. Notice that the two words "classic" and "classical", similar as they sound, do not mean the same thing."Literary criticism" is usually defined as the act of studying, analyzing and interpreting literature.Examples of these theories are Psychoanalysis.

An Introduction to Literary Criticism and Theory

Before we begin our examination and study of criticism, it is important that we define what it means. To do this, we will look at the meaning of some important related terms and identify some of the key differences between traditional "literary criticism" and "literary theory." Criticism offers the frameworks or outlines that help students and researchers in the field of literature to understand works of art, poems, novels and plays. You look at a work of art and read good or bad things about it and wonder: "How do those people decide whether it is good or bad?", "Why should they deem one work inferior to another? And on what basis?" Well, criticism provides the bases and criteria according to which critics can judge and evaluate a work of art.

"Literary criticism" is usually defined as the act of studying, analyzing and interpreting literature. The main concern of a literary critic should not be restricted to the evaluation of the literary worth of a work of literature. He should be equipped with the weapon to defend a certain interpretation or understanding of the literary text in question. The main task of a literary critic is to provide an explanation and reach a critical understanding of what a literary text means in terms of its aesthetic, as well as political, social, and cultural content. connotations and suggestions. Literary criticism is concerned with more than the evaluation or discussion of the value of a literary work. It rather attempts to provide an understanding that would be considered reasonable and logical by other critics because it is based on acknowledged literary theories. This interpretation or

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understanding relies on the intended meaning of the writer of the literary text as well as its meaning in the light of the society that produced it taking into consideration the cultural, political and ideological conditions that inspired the work.

"Literary theory," refers to "a particular form of literary criticism in which particular academic, scientific, or philosophical approaches are followed in a systematic fashion while analyzing literary texts. Traditional literary criticism does not focus on a certain aspect of (or a particular approach to) a literary text in exactly the same way a literary theory does. Literary theory usually offers certain, systematic approaches to literary works that necessarily guide the critic through definite steps to reach an expected interpretation. At the beginning of his critical assessment, a researcher has to limit him/herself

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to a certain "literary theory" and define the major outline of this theory and also the concepts he/she finds relevant to his/her analysis and interpretation. Nowadays there are many theories that belong to disciplines or systems of knowledge outside the realm of literature but are nevertheless applicable to and very convenient for the understanding and interpretation of literary texts. Examples of these theories are Psychoanalysis. Ecocriticism, Power relations, etc. For example, a

psychoanalytic literary theorist or a researcher who

choose to interpret a literary text applying the

psychoanalytic approach will read a lot in the

psychological theories of Sigmund Freud or Carl Jung or

new revisions of their theories like the theories of object
understanding of a novel or play such as Wuthering Heights or Great Expectations.

A literary theorist might apply, e.g. Sigmund Freud's analysis of the feelings of guilt to interpret Pip's behavior towards his family. He might use Jung's notions about the stages of development to explain the relationship between Heathcliff and Catherine. A literary analysis might also be established around the trauma theory to comment upon the conditions and behaviors of the characters that face violent emotional shocks during critical phases of their lives. It might also be very useful to comment upon the psychology of literary characters whose countries undergo wars or huge political or social changes.

Literary theorists often apply disciplines that are not directly related to literature to literary texts and

this helps them discover the real message/s included in the literary work. Traditional criticism might therefore fail to decipher such messages since a traditional literary critic does not equip himself with theories and disciplines outside the literary realm.

This book starts from the beginning of literary criticism. Literary criticism starts with Aristotle, the great. Greek philosopher who started the examination of literary works with the purpose of extracting rules that prevail in most works and use them to device a theory. His theory was used for a long time as a reference to judge and evaluate works of art. This theory was extracted from literary texts only unlike the practices of modern literary criticism which subjects works of art to disciplines that are completely foreign to the genre or at least that is how they appear at first glance.

When Aristotle thought about a theory of literature, he did not try to deduce its pillars from any abstract theory of aesthetics. On the contrary he investigated the literary material itself by studying and analyzing Greek literature. Modern literature seeks the concepts of theories that are not directly related to literature and analyses literary texts according to the concepts they provide. When you analyze a literary text. say a play, according to Aristotle's Poetics, this gives you an understanding that is completely different from analyzing it according to modern literary theory. Take Othello, e.g. If you give it a critical analysis relying on the Poetics, you will find yourself concerned with the three unities, Othello as a tragic hero, etc. If, on the other hand you assess the play applying a psychoanalytic approach or the concepts of African Literature you might
relations and feminist psychoanalysis to reach a critical dive deeper both into the characters and the world of the play. Some critics even claim that Othello has an inferiority complex because of his black color and refer his jealousy to his oriental nature.

After Aristotle the book moves to another iconic figure that still forcefully imposes his greatness in the world of literature and criticism. William Shakespeare is said to be the greatest dramatist ever. His works still live and prosper because they address issues that are of general nature and still apply to our modern life. The variety and complexity of his characters never lose their glamour and a lot of their sayings are still repeated in our everyday exchanges. The book introduces a summery and explanation of Samuel Jonson's "The Preface to Shakespeare," followed by a short account of how far Shakespeare's tragedies follow the Aristotelian code.

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There are also short essays discussing miscellaneous topics like tragic heroines followed by very interesting extracts from great Shakespearean tragedies like Hamlet.

Macbeth, King Lear, Romeo and Juliet and Richard II.

There is also an interesting part that comments on a basic feature of Shakespeare which is his love for using puns.

Some critics, however, claim that there is no

significant difference between literary criticism and

literary theory and that the latter is simply a continuation

or a development of the former. Others disagree and state

that literary theory is a far more developed system of

criticism that widens the scope of intellectual

involvement with literary texts and reveal the real value

of literary works.

It is remarkable, though that at the beginning of their studies, students prefer literary criticism to critical

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theory finding it much easier. Literary theory requires students to read and thoroughly understand concepts that belong to disciplines other than their primary field. They also have to use the specialized vocabulary relevant to the theory they apply and have the necessary time and patience to get used to that specialized language. Relating the concepts of the selected theory to the text gets students involved in complicated arguments that requires them to consider the text from various perspectives.

It is true that literary theory can be challenging to master but it is equally true that it gives both the readers and conductors of literary research deeper insights into and broader understandings of literary texts that would not be attained without making use of the interpretive, more comprehensible apparatus of literary theory.

The book starts with a summary (By Dr. Nabila Ali Marzouk) of Aristotle's Poetics which is meant to get you acquainted with the basics of literary criticism as laid by the father of the genre. I tried my best to render the language as modern and simple as possible while also keeping some of the Greek terms as they appear in the original Poetics. The reason I did that is first, to preserve some of the ancient atmosphere and second, get you to know the meanings of these words which still pop up in books of literary criticism. I also tried to provide examples to explain some points that could otherwise sound ambiguous. I interfered a little with the arrangement of the chapters when it was found more convenient to bring the information about the same

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thing closer together. That was supposed to make it easier for you to get the whole idea of a certain concept and also to study. This happens, e.g. while summarizing Chapters 16-18. The chapter goes back to information that was stated earlier, namely about anagnorisis and plot. It was therefore found more convenient to insert this information in the previous places with their colleagues of the same category. You will notice that some words are used synonymously although you do not think of them as such, e.g. drama or tragedy and poetry, also poet and playwright. The reason this is done is that literary expression started with drama and drama meant/still means performance.

A dramatic text should be thought of in terms of performance. It is meant to be acted out on the stage not simply written like a novel or a short story. Drama is the

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first literary genre known to man and when Aristotle wrote his Poetics he was totally unaware that other genres would follow. Drama and plays were written in the form of poetry and that should explain the mixing of terms (poetry, drama, poet and playwright). A playwright was therefore necessarily a poet and a play was also poetry.

Finally I hope you make good use of this work that was primarily intended to make Aristotle comprehensible and at least a bit acceptable to you in spite of the huge temporal and geographical distance that separates him from your generation. Classical Literature

To start from the beginning, we begin by getting introduced to the old that we know, i.e. by reading about classical literature. Why should we do this? Simply because what is old does not die; it lives Into the present and the future and explains both of them to us. An obvious example of this is the several prefixes we use that indicate the revival of something that was considered a piece of the past. Words or divisions like "renaissance" or "neoclassicism" signify that people go back to adopting and admiring ideas, theories and views that were conceived by their ancestors.

We use the words "classical literature" to refer to the great literary works which flourished where there were prominent ancient civilizations, e.g. the literary works that emerged in ancient Rome or Greece or other parts of the world. The previous term includes all sorts of writing, e.g. poetry, pastoral, play, etc. To study the nature and characteristics of these works that shaped life at certain eras and whose effect on contemporary life and study of literature can still be detected, we go back to the works of the

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prominent writers who marked that period. Homer, Ovid and Sophocles are prominent names whose great works are considered the masterpieces of that era. To asses these works we need to first get ourselves acquainted with the literary theory that was used to evaluate their works, so we begin by reading Aristotle, the first critic and then use his criteria and standards to investigate Oedipus Rex the masterpiece of Sophocles, his countryperson. It will be a good exercise, though, to apply old theories to present works or any works you know and make a comparison. Even if Aristotle wrote only about drama and poetry, you still could apply his standards to a movie or a TV series and find out the interesting outcomes.

Notice that the two words "classic" and "classical", similar as they sound, do not mean the same thing. The first word "classic" is used to describe a work of literature that is judged as great and a masterpiece, ie. of an exceptionally high quality and displays very high standards. This distinction depends on strict Judgment that stands valid for a long period of time. Classical, on

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the other hand, refers to literature that was written a long time ago. It refers to ancient works.

Although "classical literature" refers to the literature of ancient Rome and Greece, the term is actually used to describe any literature, written in any language provided that it is written during

an era that is marked by the evident enduring quality and assured

superiority of the works produced by its contemporary writers. So,

In ancient Greece this term refers to the period of time from about

500 to 320 BC while in Rome a similar period extended from

about 70 BC to 70 CE and is called the "Golden Age of Rome". In

France, the word "classical" is bequeathed on the second half of

the 17th century, while in England, it describes the literature

produced during the period from 1660 to1714. The works

produced and the critical standards that prevailed in both eras

emulated those of the Classical periods in Greek and Latin.

although this criterion is not an essential characteristic of a

classical literature.