8/7/2019 The Role of Literary Criticism

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The Role of Literary Criticism

Literary criticism is chiefly concerned with meaning and analysis. The literary critic enables readers to

see things in a text that otherwise might go unnoticed. Most critics do not overlook the pleasure readers

receive from reading literature; rather, they feel that good criticism extends it.W. H. Auden, a poet and critic himself, suggested that criticism is most useful when it calls our

attention to things worth attending to. What is the function of a critic? According to Auden, a critic

should:

1. Introduce me to authors or works of which I was hitherto unaware;2. Convince me that I have undervalued an author or a work because I had not read them

carefully enough;3. Show me relations between works of different ages and cultures which I could never have

seen for myself because I do not know enough and never shall;

4. Give a reading of a work which increases my understanding of it;5. Throw light upon the process of artistic making;

6. Throw light upon the relation of art to life, science, economics, ethics, religion, etc.

The Dyer's Hand (New York, 1963, pp. 8 9)Why study literary criticism?

For students of literature, the study of literary criticism can facilitate in three specific ways:

* To help resolve a difficulty in the reading;

* To help choose the better of two conflicting readings;

* To enable readers to form judgments about literature.

What are the Critical Standards?

How do critics evaluate a literary work? Often, by the same standards we use to evaluate the value of

something say a movie! Personal taste, ethics and aesthetic qualities often influence how a criticapproaches and assesses a work.

1. Personal TasteThis is one approach to evaluating a work of literature, but there are obvious limitations to this

approach. There must be external standards by which a work can be evaluated, as most other things are

evaluated by independent criteria.

2. Ethics

This approach evaluates literature in terms of its moral effect on the reader. In his Preface toShakespeare Samuel Johnson wrote, It is always a writer's duty to make the world better. Hence,

Johnson would argue that a good work of literature deserves the reader's attention when it reminds us of

our moral responsibilities and encourages us to do better.

3. Aesthetic QualitiesThis aesthetic study of literature concentrates on the beautiful that is what delights the senses - rather

than on the moral, social, or practical levels of literature.

Assignment Evaluating a Literary Work

Read one of the following works and evaluate the work using the three critical standards. Using thereport card template, record and explain your evaluation. Submit your evaluation to your teacher.

The Passionate Shepherd to his Love Walter Raleigh

The Nymphs Reply to the Shepherd Christopher MarloweDevouring Time William Shakespeare