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Literary Approaches

1. Anthropological: Tends to focus on aspects of everyday life in various cultures (i.e. folklore, ritual,

celebrations, and traditions). You might ask, !hat is the everyday social function of this te"t# $o%

has it been transmitted (orally&%ritten)# 'oes it reect folk culture#

. Archetypal: *elates to +sychoanalytical riticism in some %ays (see belo%). 'eveloped by arl -ung

this approach accepts the idea of the unconscious mind. $o%ever, unlike igmund /reud and other

critics, -ungians argue that part of the unconscious is shared by all people. /rom this perspective

the term collective unconscious developed, a term representing the memories of human productsand activities (found in myths, symbols, rituals, literatures) and reproduced as archetypes.

Archetypes are 0gures or patterns recurring in %orks of the imagination, and can be divided into

three categories. Archetypal characters include (but are not limited to): the hero, the villain, the

outcast, the femme fatale, and the starcrossed lovers. Archetypal situations include (but are not

limited to): the 2uest, the 3ournal, death and rebirth, and the task. Archetypal symbols and

associations include polarities: light&dark, %ater&desert, and height&depth, spring&%inter.

4t is important to note t%o things. /irst, %orks may contain multiple archetypes. econd, not

everything is an archetype. A balance bet%een these t%o e"tremes can be very di5cult to achieve.

6ooking for recurring patterns %ithin a piece or %ithin a collection of related stories can be useful in

using this approach.

7. 8iographical: *elates the author9s life and thoughts to her %orks. As these tend to reect the period

in %hich she lived, biographical criticism may be an important aspect of the (e%) $istorical

approach (see belo%). The biographical approach allo%s one to better understand elements %ithin a

%ork, as %ell as to relate %orks to authorial intention and audience. You might ask, $o% does the

te"t reect the author9s life# 4s this te"t an e"tension of the author9s position on issues in the

author9s life#

8iographical criticism has t%o %eaknesses that should be avoided. /irst, avoid e2uating the %ork9s

content %ith the author9s life (or the character %ith the author); they are not necessarily the same.

econd, avoid lessthancredible sources of information, particularly %orks that tend to be highly

speculative or controversial unless veri0ed by several sources. (ome of the recent biographies on

 Thomas -e. e% riticism: ?nlike biographical and historical approaches, a e% ritic approach contends that

literature need have little or no connection %ith the author9s intention, life, or social&historical

situation. @verything needed to analye the %ork is contained %ithin the te"t. e% ritics also tend

to e"amine the physical 2ualities of the te"t in a scienti0c matter that e"amines language and

literary conventions (e.g. rhyme, meter, alliteration, plot, point of vie%, etc.). 4t is similar, though

not identical, to tructuralism in its emphasis on the te"t itself (see belo%).

B. (e%) $istoricism: Cay approach a te"t from numerous perspectives, but all perspectives tend to

reect a concern %ith the period in %hich a te"t is produced and&or read (including contemporary

%ork). o history can be truly ob3ective or comprehensive because history is constantly %ritten

and re%ritten; ho%ever, studying the historical conte"t of a %ork, particularly in contrast %ith that

in %hich it is read, can illuminate our biases and hopefully enable us to understand the te"t (and

the culture, conte"t, ourselves) better.

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(sometimes also kno%n as Jueer tudies) might ask, $o% is gender constructed or deconstructed

in this te"t# 4s the vie% of the te"t gendered or se"ist#

1>. A Ireen ritic might ask, Hf %hat priority is conservation in this te"t# !hat is the relationship

bet%een humankind and ature#

1B. tructuralism: 6ike e% riticism, tructuralism concentrates on elements %ithin %orks of literature

%ithout focusing on historical, social, and biographical inuences. tructuralism, ho%ever, is

grounded in linguistics and developed by /erdinand de ausseure. ausseure9s %ork argues that

language is a complete, selfcontained system and should be studied as such. ausseure alsoclaimed that language is a system of signs. !hen applied to literature, this form of criticism is

generally kno%n as emiotics (see above).

http:&&%%%.cla.purdue.edu&blackmon&engl7BGk&critical.html

1D. Coral & +hilosophical Approach: Coral & philosophical critics believe that the larger purpose of

literature is to teach morality and to probe philosophical issues. +ractitioners include Catthe%

Arnold (%orks must have Khigh seriousnessL), +lato (literature must e"hibit moralism and

utilitarianism), and $orace (literature should be Kdelightful and instructiveL).

1E. /ormalist riticism: This approach regards literature as Ka uni2ue form of human kno%ledge that

needs to be e"amined on its o%n terms.L All the elements necessary for understanding the %ork

are contained %ithin the %ork itself. Hf particular interest to the formalist critic are the elements of

formMstyle, structure, tone, imagery, etc.Mthat are found %ithin the te"t. A primary goal for

formalist critics is to determine ho% such elements %ork together %ith the te"tNs content to shape

its e

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