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Literary Theories: A Sampling of Critical Lenses

(Excerpted and abridged from: file:///D:/ELA%20Materials/Literary%20Criticism%20literary%20theories.pdf)

 

Literary theories were developed as a means to understand the various ways people read texts. The proponents of each theory believe their theory is the theory, but most of us interpret texts according to the "rules" of several different theories at a time. All literary theories are lenses through which we can see texts. There is nothing to say that one is better than another or that you should read according to any of them, but it is sometimes fun to "decide" to read a text with one in mind because you often end up with a whole new perspective on your reading.

 

What follows is a summary of some of the most common schools of literary theory. These descriptions are extremely cursory, and none of them fully explains what the theory is all about.

 

Archetypal Criticism: In criticism, "archetype" signifies narrative designs, character types, or images that are said to be identifiable in a wide variety of works of literature, as well as in myths, dreams, and even ritualized modes of social behavior. The archetypal similarities within these diverse phenomena are held to reflect a set of universal, primitive, and elemental patterns, whose effective embodiment in a literary work evokes a profound response from the reader. The deathrebirth theme is often said to be the archetype of archetypes. Other archetypal themes are the journey underground, the heavenly ascent, the search for the father, the Paradise-Hades image, the Promethean rebel-hero, the scapegoat, the earth goddess, and the fatal woman.

 

Feminist Criticism: A feminist critic sees cultural and economic disabilities in a "patriarchal" society that have hindered or prevented women from realizing their creative possibilities and women's cultural identification as a merely negative object, or "Other," to man as the defining and dominating "Subject." There are several assumptions and concepts held in common by most feminist critics.

 

1. Our civilization is pervasively patriarchal.

 

2. The concepts of "gender" are largely, if not entirely, cultural constructs, effected by the omnipresent patriarchal biases of our civilization.

 

3. This patriarchal ideology also pervades those writings that have been considered great literature. Such works lack autonomous female role models, are implicitly addressed to male readers, and leave the woman reader an alien outsider or else solicit her to identify against herself by assuming male values and ways of perceiving, feeling, and acting.

 

This is somewhat like Marxist criticism, but instead of focusing on the relationships between the classes it focuses on the relationships between the genders. Under this theory you would examine the patterns of thought, behavior, values, enfranchisement, and power in relations between the sexes. For example, "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been" can be seen as the story of the malicious dominance men have over women both physically and psychologically. Connie is the female victim of the role in society that she perceives herself playing-the coy young lass whose life depends on her looks.

 

Marxist Criticism: A Marxist critic grounds theory and practice on the economic and cultural theory of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, especially on the following claims:

 

1. The evolving history of humanity, its institutions and its ways of thinking are determined by the changing mode of its "material production"-that is, of its basic economic organization.

 

2. Historical changes in the fundamental mode of production effect essential changes both in the constitution and power relations of social classes, which carry on a conflict for economic, political, and social advantage.

 

3. Human consciousness in any era is constituted by an ideology-that is, a set of concepts, beliefs, values, and ways of thinking and feeling through which human beings perceive, and by which they explain, what they take to be reality. A Marxist critic typically undertakes to "explain" the literature in any era by revealing the economic, class, and ideological determinants of the way an author writes, and to examine the relation of the text to the social reality of that time and place.

 

This school of critical theory focuses on power and money in works of literature. Who has the power/money? Who does not? What happens as a result? For example, it could be said that 'The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is about the upper class attempting to maintain their power and influence over the lower class by chasing Ichabod, a lower-class citizen with aspirations toward the upper class, out of town. This would explain some of the numerous descriptions of land, wealth, and hearty living through Ichabod's eyes.

 

Historical Criticism: Using this theory requires that you apply to a text specific historical information about the time during which an author wrote. History, in this case, refers to the social, political, economic, cultural, and/or intellectual climate of the time. For example, William Faulkner wrote many of his novels and stories during and after World War II, which helps to explain the feelings of darkness, defeat, and struggle that pervade much of his work.

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Masculinist Criticism: Using this theory requires that you critically assess how men and male identity are depicted in literature. With this approach you would analyze men and manhood from a variety of perspectives;

 

1. An analysis of the internal characteristics of male characters. Their struggles, their shortcomings, etc.

 

2. An analysis of how a given character interacts with others; consider how that occurs among men and among women.

 

3. One might examine how male identity and attributes are potentially under attack as perhaps a reflection of changing social norms or shifting paradigms.

 

4. While Feminist criticism assumes the pervasive existence of patriarchy, Masculinist criticism views patriarchy and aspects of male identity as potentially under attack (not to say that this is necessarily a negative attack in every situation) or waning.   

 

5. The concepts of "gender" are largely, if not entirely, cultural constructs, effected by the many biases of our civilization.

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One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

Possible Essay Topics

 

You will write a 7-10 page essay that must offer citations from the novel and in many cases, background research as well. You will use the same structure and conventions that were taught to you about literary essays when writing this essay, though there is a major chance that this essay will far exceed five paragraphs.

 

Archetypal Criticism Topics

-McMurphy as a martyr

-McMurphy as a Christ figure

-McMurphy as a character undergoing an evolution

-Etc.

 

Feminist Criticism Topics

-Nurse Ratched as feminism and womanhood under attack

-Nurse Ratched as a classic example of a woman shunning her feminine characteristics in order to keep power in a male dominated world

-Nurse Ratched is misunderstood and vilified, which is emblematic of the harmful patriarchy that continues to exist

-Nurse Ratched as a symbol of motherhood and a caregiver for society’s rejects

-Etc.

 

Marxist Criticism Topics

-The patients are the proletariat and Nurse Ratched is the bourgeoisie engaged in the inevitable Marxist clash between those with power and those without. In other words, the clash between McMurphy and Ratched is really class warfare.

-Etc.

 

Historical Criticism Topics

-McMurphy and Nurse Ratched’s conflict occurred due to events that were happening at the time the novel took place. Think about the emergence of feminism, men who had returned from war traumatized, cultural and political revolutions, etc.

-Etc.

 

Masculinist Criticism Topics

-McMurphy and Nurse Ratched’s conflict is emblematic of patriarchy itself being under attack

-The patients are emblematic of men with traditional traits who no longer have a place in a changing society.

-Etc.

 

Generic Topic

-For this topic you can create any topic you like without sticking to any of the above perspectives