LITERARY ELEMENTS, GENRES, AND APPROACHES TO THE

STUDY OF LITERATURE

1. Identify the literary elements and genres used in a literary text;

2. Give examples of literatures for each approach; and
3. Analyze how different approaches enhance the text’s meaning and enrich the reader’s
understanding.

Welcome back learners! We are about to discover what kind of literature that we are enjoying
and how can we analyze it through the different lenses of literature. In this way, we can easily connect
the literatures in our lives. Come on, let's get started!

ACTIVITY NO. 1 Nursery Rhyme Analysis. Before we talk about the

complexity of studying literatures, let us know the
difference between reading and reading
comprehension by this famous nursery rhyme.

Jack and Jill

Jack and Jill went up the hill

To fetch a pail of water
Jack fell down and broke his crown
And Jill came tumbling after
Jack got up, and home did trot
As fast as he could caper
To old Dame Dob, who patched his nob
With vinegar and brown paper

I believe that you sing while reading with this one, but do we know what really happens in this
literature? On that note, reading comprehension comes. Let us try to see the real meaning of this
cheerful nursery rhyme by clicking the link. https://www.sporcle.com/blog/2020/01/what-is-the-story-
behind-jack-and-jill/
 Answer the questions briefly.

1. How do we know what kind of literature are we enjoying?

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2. What makes literature interesting?

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The poem Jack and Jill reminds us that we are enjoying literature yet we lack of criticism to see
the purpose of the said literature. In this lesson, we are going to learn how to look into the deeper
meaning of the literatures that we are enjoying. So, let us bring it on

Literary Elements | by: English Units

What is literary element?

About literatures or story a part of something

A literary element is a part of a story.

Literary Genres | by: English Units
What is literary genre?

About literatures type or category

A literary element is a type or category of literature.

Literary Approaches| by: Salirick Andres & Tim Nance
What is literary approach?

About literatures ideas or actions intended with

A literary approach is idea or action intended with the work of literature. The ideas
or actions are the bases of literary criticism. “Literary criticism is a way of looking at the
literature. It is all about perspective” (Tim Nance, 2015). Hence, we use specific approach
to read, analyze, evaluate, interpret, and judge a specific literary piece (Andres).
As stated by Tim Nance (2015) that literary criticism helps to enrich the literature
and helps you to appreciate it more. For an instance, if you go into an art museum; and
you look around at all the paintings; and you do not know what any of them are or what
any of them about or anything like that. You will probably get bored quickly. They might
look pretty but you will lose interest after a while; but if you know something about art,
and you know something about how these pieces or artwork were accomplished, there is
a lot more to see. Moreover, when you read the content of a poem, novel, or any literature,
you tend to appreciate it; but it could be meaningful when you can understand the beauty
of its craftsmanship, the historical context and a lot of other issues, you can appreciate it
much more richly and deeply.
According to Steven Lynn (2010), literature is like travelling. Literary criticism is like
hiring a tour guide. It shows you where to go and what to see. Literary
approaches/theories are like travel agencies. It suits your interest in a tour.
Megan Hall (2016) illustrates literary approaches/theories as pair of lenses. It is
like a filter in viewing the different aspects of the literary piece.
The image below, courtesy of Skylar Hamilton Burris, maps the various approaches to
literary criticism in relation to the literary piece that is going to be criticized.
Let us find it more by giving what is ask.
1. Formalist Criticism
•Founder/Proponent: ___________________________________
•Definition:__________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
•How to analyze literary text using this
approach:___________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
•Example Literature/s (Title)____________________________________
2. Historical/Biographical Criticism
•Founder/Proponent: ___________________________________
•Definition:__________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
•How to analyze literary text using this
approach:___________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
•Example Literature/s (Title)____________________________________

3. Psychological Criticism
•Founder/Proponent: ___________________________________
•Definition:__________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
•How to analyze literary text using this
approach:___________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
•Example Literature/s (Title)____________________________________

4. Feminist Criticism
•Founder/Proponent: ___________________________________
•Definition:__________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
•How to analyze literary text using this
approach:___________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
 •Example Literature/s (Title)____________________________________

5. Marxist Criticism
•Founder/Proponent: ___________________________________
•Definition:__________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
•How to analyze literary text using this
approach:___________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
•Example Literature/s (Title)____________________________________

6. Reader-response Criticism
•Founder/Proponent: ___________________________________
•Definition:__________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
•How to analyze literary text using this
approach:___________________________________________________
_______________________________________________.
•Example Literature/s (Title)____________________________________

This lesson teaches us the differences and uniqueness of our

individualities. That only means our life story might be different in
every aspect of living but we are all equal, the same, and alike. We
always experience tensions but at the end there is always a way out,
resolution, and a happy ending. So, keep on pushing through in
living and let it flow. Let others criticize us, but they can never
destroy us because they do not see what we are seeing in this life.

POWERLINK: https://youtu.be/oarGRayak5o