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Lesson 3 - Literary Approaches

The document outlines several literary and critical approaches to analyzing literature: 1. The cultural approach considers literature as a reflection of a nation's culture and traditions. 2. The formalistic approach analyzes literary elements like structure, language and imagery independently of other factors. 3. The historical approach views literature as both a reflection and product of the times and circumstances in which it was written. 4. Additional approaches discussed include psychological, sociological, biographical, feminist, reader-response, deconstructionist, and mythological criticism. Each focuses on a different lens like an author's life, gender impacts, the reader's role, or underlying myths.

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1K views20 pages

Lesson 3 - Literary Approaches

The document outlines several literary and critical approaches to analyzing literature: 1. The cultural approach considers literature as a reflection of a nation's culture and traditions. 2. The formalistic approach analyzes literary elements like structure, language and imagery independently of other factors. 3. The historical approach views literature as both a reflection and product of the times and circumstances in which it was written. 4. Additional approaches discussed include psychological, sociological, biographical, feminist, reader-response, deconstructionist, and mythological criticism. Each focuses on a different lens like an author's life, gender impacts, the reader's role, or underlying myths.

Uploaded by

Leane Mae
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Literary

Approaches
Cultural Approach

 Considers literature as one of the principal manifestation and


vehicles of a nation’s or race’s culture and tradition.

 It includes the entire complex of what goes under “culture” -


the technological, the artistic, the sociological, the ideological
aspects, and considers the literary piece in the total culture
milieu in which it was born.
 This approach in one of the richest way to arrive at the culture
of the people and one of the most pleasurable ways of
appreciating the literature of the people. It goes by the dictum
“culture teaching through literature”.
FORMALISTIC / LITERARY APPROACH
 Also called “PURE” or “LITERARY” approach

 The selection is read and viewed intrinsically, or for itself;


independent of author, age, or any other extrinsic factor.

 This approach is close to the “art for art’s sake” dictum

 The study of the selection is more is more or less based on the so


– called literary elements which is more or less boil down to the
literal level, the affective values, the ideational values, technical
values, and total effects.
 The literal level (subject matter)
 The affective values (emotional, mood, atmosphere, tone
attitudes, empathy)
 The ideational values (themes, visions, universal truths,
character)
 Technical Values (plot, structure, scene, language, point of view,
imagery, figure, metrics, etc.)
 Total Effect (the interrelation of the foregoing elements)
MORAL AND HUMANISTIC APPROACH

 The nature of man is CENTRAL to literature. The reader


or teacher or critic more or less “requires” that the piece
present MAN AS ESSENTIALY RATIONAL, that is
endowed with intellect and free will; or that the piece
does not misinterpret the true nature of man
 In these times of course the TRUE NATURE OF MAN is hotly
contested, making literature all the more challenging.

 This approach is close to the “MORALITY” of literature, to


the questions of ethical goodness and badness
HISTORICAL APPROACH
 Sees literature as both a reflection and product of the times
and circumstances in which it is written. Man as a member
of a particular society or nation at a particular time, is
central to the approach and whenever a teacher gives
historical or biographical backgrounds in introducing a
selection, or arranges a literature course in chronological
order, he is hewing close to this approach.
IMPRESSIONISTIC APPROACH

 Literature is viewed to elucidate “reacting- response” which is


considered as something very personal, relative and fruitful.
Unconditioned by explanations and often taking the impact of
the piece as a whole, it seeks to see how the piece has
communicated.
PSYCHOLOGICAL APPROACH

 Set in dizzying motion, principally, by FREUD, perhaps beyond


his wildest expectations, it considers literature as the
EXPRESSION OF PERSONALITY of “Inner Drives” of neurosis. It
includes the psychology of the author, of the character, and
even the psychology of creation.

 It has resulted in an almost exhausting and exhaustive


“psychological analysis” of the characters of symbols and
images, of recurrent themes, etc.
SOCIOLOGICAL APPROACH
 Literature is viewed as the expression of man within a given
social situation which is reduced to discussions on
economic, in which men are somewhat simplistically divided
into haves and haves not, thus passing into the “proletarian
approach” hitch tends to underscore the conflict between
the two classes. The sociological approach stresses on social
“relevance”, social “commitment,” contemporaneity, and it
deems communication with the reader important.
Conclusion
Cultural
– an approach in knowing the culture of the people and
one of the pleasurable ways of appreciating the
literature of the people.
Formalistic
– based on the literary elements
Moral / Humanistic
– close to the morality of literature , to questions of
ethical goodness and badness.
Historical
– sees literature as both a reflection and a product of the
times and circumstances in which it is written.
Impressionistic Approach
- seek to capture a feeling or experience rather than to
depict accurate depiction and perfection.
Psychological
– considers literature as the expression of “personality”, of
“inner drive” of neurosis.
Sociological
- analyzes both how the social functions in literature and how
literature works in society.
Critical Approaches
BIOGRAPHICAL CRITICISM

 It views literature as a reflection of an author’s life and time


or of the characters’ life and times

 It is necessary to know about the author and the political,


economical, and sociological context of his times in order to
truly understand his works.
FEMINISM CRITICISM

 Literature may be interpreted as a battle of the sexes or a


reaction or result of oppressive patriarchy.

 Concerned with the impact of gender on writing and reading.

 Usually begins with a critique of patriarchal culture.

 Concerned with the place of female writers. Concerned with


the roles of female characters within works.
READER-RESPONSE CRITICISM
 Literature may be judged according to how the reader
perceives it instead of what the author intends. The text itself
has no meaning until it is read by a reader. The reader creates
the meaning.

 Analyzes the reader's role in the production of meaning


makes someone's reading a function of personal identity.

 Recognizes that different people view works differently and


that people's interpretations change over time.
DECONSTRUCTIONIST CRITICISM
 Texts must be read many times to be able to get the real
meaning of a text.
 The texts can have multiple meaning .
 Readers can have their own interpretation.
 Real meaning conceals in the texts.
 Texts can be reinterpreted many times.
 Decoding of texts can be a difficult task to do.
MYTHOLOGICAL CRITICISM

Mythological critics explore the universal patterns


underlying a literary work. This type of criticism draws on the
insights of anthropology, history, psychology, and comparative
religion to explore how a text uses myths and symbols drawn
from different cultures and epochs. A central concept in
mythological criticism is the archetype, a symbol, character,
situation, or image that evokes a deep universal response
Thank You

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