The important implication is that we dont get to decide what is. It is designed for students at the undergraduate level or for others needing a broad synthesis of the long history of literary theory. Download the adaptable word resource subscribers only download the free pdf resource free members and subscribers see other resources. An introduction provides an accessible overview of major figures and movements in literary theory and criticism from antiquity to the twentyfirst century. Theory designates works that have effects beyond their original field, that succeed in challenging and reorienting thinking in fields other than those to which they apparently belong. In this case, anything can be literature, and anything can stop being literature. History of literary theory and criticism plato, republic, book x phaedrus aristotle, poetics horace, the art of poetry longinus, on the sublime plotinus, on the intellectual beauty dante alighieri, letter to can grande della. Hillis miller, the preeminent american deconstructionist, has explained in an essay entitled stevens rock and criticism as cure 1976, deconstruction. Alongside consistently lucid and perceptive accounts of different theorists, movements, concepts and arguments, there is an admirable focus on avant. The rise of literary theory 15 timeline 57 the scope of literary theory 63 critical theory 65 cultural studies 72 deconstruction 79 ethnic studies 86 feminist theory 94 gender and sexuality 102 marxist theory 108 narrative theory 115 new criticism 122 new historicism 129 postcolonial studies 5 postmodernism 144 poststructuralism 154. But there is a technical difference between the two. Theory and history of literature university of minnesota press. John kenny, centre for the study of human settlement and historical change, national university of ireland, galway a readers guide to contemporary literary theory fifth edition selden, widdowson, brooker cover image.
By making available english translations of essential. We have tried to avoid simply giving potted summaries of isms. This book, then, is an introduction to both literary theory and a history of theory. Can anyone recommend introductory material on literary theory. However, literary scholarship since the 19th century often includesin addition to, or even instead of literary theory in the strict senseconsiderations of intellectual history, moral philosophy, social prophecy, and other interdisciplinary themes which are of. Theory is a pugnacious critique of commonsense notions culler. Mar 22, 2016 formalist critics, such as the new critics, assume that a work of literature is a freestanding, selfcontained object whose meaning can be found in the complex network of relations between its parts allusions, images, rhythms, sounds, etc.
I dont know much about literary theories, but stylistics books based on a particular linguistic schooltheory are very useful in analyzing literary texts, such as 1. A brief history of literary theory xenos christian. Its contents were based on their shared understandings of. The professor then situates the emergence of literary theory in the history of modern criticism and, through an analysis of major thinkers such as marx, nietzsche, and freud, provides antecedents.
In the first lecture we discussed the reasons why literary theory in the twentieth century is shadowed by skepticism, but as we were talking about that we actually introduced another issue that isnt quite the same as skepticismnamely,determinism. While i do let the textbook guide my selections to some extent, i also add pdf. Literary theory and criticism stony brook university. Home anthropology literary criticism and theory in the twentieth century.
Literary theory and schools of criticism introduction. Here you have access to the tables of contents, abstracts of all articles and full text access to selected articles from the printed journal. Overview of literary critical theory brilliant thumbnail sketch of the main lit. Theory is analytical and speculative an attempt to work out what is involved in what we call sex or language or writing or meaning or the subject. Literary theory is an unavoidable part of studying literature and criticism. The only actual treatises on poetics after aristotle that might be relevant. Literary theory and schools of criticism introduction a very basic way of thinking about literary theory is that these ideas act as different lenses critics use to view and talk about art, literature, and even culture. The literary theory toolkit offers an excellent introduction to literary theory, but it is much more than this. A readers guide to contemporary literary theory 5th edition. Instead we present brief essays on a range of key critical. Rapaport gives us an extraordinary toolbag for in his own phrase rummaging in. This website is the outcome of the project undertaken at department of english, maharaja krishnakumarsinhji bhavnagar university bhavnagar gujarat. A very short introduction is an exemplary work in this genre. In the course of intellectual history, we said, first you encounter concern about the distance between the perceiver and the perceived, a.
The penguin dictionary of literary terms and literary theory. The terms literary theory and critical theory refer to essentially the same fields of study. First, i want to make clear that literary theory is distinct from literary criticism, the latter being the. Books and texts for the course primary texts each student should own a copy of the following, which can be bought from blackwells booksellers, 53 south bridge, edinburgh. Until recently, the history of literary theory from plato to the present has been a traditional or canonical course in english departments in the united states. Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a pdf of a single chapter of a title in oxford handbooks online for personal use. Literary theory is simply the term used for a particular way of reading and viewing texts or looking at a text from a particular pointofview or reading a text from different perspectives you do not need to feel intimidated or worried about using literary theory its pretty easy. I dont know much about literary theories, but stylistics books based on a particular linguistic school theory are very useful in analyzing literary texts, such as 1. The journal is devoted to research in literary theory. These different lenses allow critics to consider works of art based on certain assumptions within that school of theory. The history of this worthy discipline in the last one hundred and vfty years unmistakably describes the path of a steady decline.
The econtent uploaded on this website is on literary theory and criticism. Literary theory internet encyclopedia of philosophy. It follows from this definition that the copytext is. Author herman rapaport provides a lucid overview of the field of literary study and presents readers with the intellectual tools necessary to construct an effective. It may be understood as a base text provided in an extant document that editorial labor transforms into an edited text. Literary theory does not mean making hypotheses or guesses about literature. Introduction to literary theory linkedin slideshare.
A brief history of literary theory xenos christian fellowship. Oct 15, 2015 literary theory is simply the term used for a particular way of reading and viewing texts or looking at a text from a particular pointofview or reading a text from different perspectives you do not need to feel intimidated or worried about using literary theory its pretty easy all literary theorists. The literary theory toolkit offers readers a rich compendium of key terms, concepts, and arguments necessary for the study of literature in a criticaltheoretical context. Overview of literary critical theory teachit english. What is the difference between literary theory and criticism. Everyone has wondered such things as whether or not life is a predetermined ride or if free will guides all decisions. The two met at the university of iowa in the late 1930s, and by 1940 had begun writing the book.
Perhaps something is literary because the text is the kind of writing we like to read. A very short introduction jonathan culler has always been about the best person around at explaining literary theory without oversimplifying it or treating it with polemical bias. Literary theory if theory is defined by its practical effects, as what changes peoples views, makes them think differently about their objects of study and their activities of studying them, what. The blackwell guide to literary theory is designed to facilitate this process by offering students and instructors basic information on the major theories, practitioners, and their texts. In the sciences, theories are systems for understanding how an aspect of the world works. Literary criticism refers to the evaluation of a work. A very short introduction by jonathan culler on reading literature.
Jan 07, 2018 twentiethcentury literary criticism and theory has comprised a broad range of tendencies and movements. Books and texts for the course university of edinburgh. It also includes a history of literary theory from the late nineteenth century to. The change that has taken place in literary theory is not novel to this discipline alone, nor is it to be explained by any one phenomenon. A copytext is a material base as well as a heuristic foun dation for certain types of scholarly critical editions. Literary criticism, on the other hand, is the practical application of those theories or methods to particular works of literaturethe actual use of a method to better understand a texts meaning. Deconstruction involves the close reading of texts in order to demonstrate that any given text has irreconcilably contradictory meanings, rather than being a unified, logical whole. Click on document a history of literary criticism and theory from plato to the present m a r a r habib. Theory and history of literature 198198 is a landmark event in twentiethcentury critical thought.
Deconstructionists, by contrast, see works in terms of their undecidability. 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. But theory especially when it takes the form of isms can often be intimidating or else, frankly, boring. First, i want to make clear that literary theory is distinct from literary criticism, the. They both address ways of looking at literature beyond the typical plotthemecharactersetting studies. Can anyone recommend introductory material on literary. Jonathan culler s ultimate aim, as his title suggests, is to make his readers aware of the literary i. Literary criticism and theory in the twentieth century by nasrullah mambrol on january 7, 2018 5. In the field of english studies and most academic disciplines, theory refers to the. Many of the terms are out of date, selfexplanatory, andor very rarely used in literary studies today. This project was sponsored by mhrd, new delhi under nmeict sakshat initiatives for econtent development. Twentiethcentury literary criticism and theory has comprised a broad range of tendencies and movements.
Intended to stimulate research and encourage interdisciplinary dialogue, as well as to introduce prominent european theorists to the american academy, this book series is internationally renowned for its foundational literary scholarship. Jonathan cullers ultimate aim, as his title suggests, is to make his readers aware of the literary i. Fry engages with the major themes and strands in twentiethcentury literary theory, among them the hermeneutic circle, new criticism, structuralism, linguistics and literature, freud and fiction, jacques lacans theories, the postmodern psyche, the political unconscious, new historicism, the classical feminist tradition, african american. Theory and history of literature university of minnesota. The relationship between theory and philosophy, the question of what literature is and does, and what constitutes an introduction are interrogated. Theory of literature is a book on literary scholarship by rene wellek, of the structuralist prague school, and austin warren, a selfdescribed old new critic. Theory is a critique of common sense, of concepts taken as natural. The change that has taken place in literary theory is not novel to this discipline alone, nor is. The nature of literary theory before moving on to describe some of the strategies for using this book, i would like to discuss the nature of theory in general and the problems associated with literary theory in particular. Theory is interdisciplinary discourse with effects outside an original discipline.
Literary history as a challenge to literary theory hans robert jauss fcd in our time literary history has increasingly fallen into disrepute, and not at all without reason. Missing several really key termsconcepts dont really recall what they were off the top of my head, but basically any time ive actually needed to. Contents foreword, by richard macksey vii preface xiii acknowledgments xvii the johns hopkins guide to literary theory and criticism. Rehabilitating literary theory shown at work, smoothly puri. Introduction to hayden white, university of california at. An introduction, terry eagleton english literature.
Literary criticism and literary theory are phrases that have been used interchangeably. What is the difference between literary theory and. Some little while after revising the second edition in 1989, raman prematurely and tragically died of a brain tumour. What are the relationships between literary theory and. Jlt takes an interdisciplinary approach and is open to a broad variety of theories and methods. Literary theory has undergone drastic changes in the past century and this paper is an attempt to understand some of the influences that have altered the critical landscape. Norton paperback students should obtain the full set. Literary theory in a strict sense is the systematic study of the nature of literature and of the methods for analyzing literature. Jlt articles corresponds to the printed version of jlt, which is published in two issues per year. Literary theory delves so deeply into the discovery of human nature that it not only describes various cultural effects, but also the effects on the notion of self. We could borrow the title the canon and its discontents for this class. Leavis, surviving in our own day in scholars such as frank.