Literary Criticism : ' Not Just A Pretty Face '
Dr. Catherine Cox
History of Literary Criticism
2 December 2014
Not Just a Pretty Face
METHOD
Despite how the word may sound, deconstruction means to deconstruct, not to destroy. Deconstruction is always simultaneously affirming and undoing. Deconstruction refers to a technique for reading and analyzing texts developed by Jacques Derrida, Paul de Man, and others; this, in turn, is connected to a set of philosophical theories about language and meaning. As a result of the popularity of this technique and theory, the word “deconstruct” is often used as a synonym for criticizing or demonstrating the incongruity of a position. It is a way to interpret literary, religious, and legal texts as well as philosophical ones, and was adopted by French feminist theorists as a way to make clearer the deep male bias that was embedded in European literature and traditions.
In order to deconstruct a text, one must take it apart along the structural “fault lines” (IEP) created by ambiguities that are fundamental in one or more of its key themes in order to reveal the contradictions that make the text possible. For example, Derrida, in “Plato’s Pharmacy,” deconstructs Socrates’ criticism of written word. He contends that it suffers not only from inconsistencies internally because of Socrates analogy between memory and writing, but also because his ideas come to us only through his written word. Many deconstructive arguments center on the analysis of its oppositions. The person…
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Literary Criticism : ' The Hunger Games '
1460 Words | 6 PagesYvette Escobedo 26 May 2016 English 102 #0304 Literary Criticism Research Paper Word Count: Survival through Gender Is it wrong for women to be strong and independent or is that a job for men? Not every female character is vulnerable and needs saving by a strong male character. Females containing strong and brave traits are not very welcomed in many different stories and are usually seen as a rebel. In today’s modern day literature, there are more novels with strong female characters, but are…
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Marxist Literary Criticism Essay
470 Words | 2 PagesWhile literary critics do attempt to elaborate or develop ideas articulated by Karl Marx, it is important and necessary to make a distinction between Marx's specific socio-economic and political agenda and the body of literary theory which emerged years later. Marxist literary criticism proceeds from the fundamental philosophical assumption that "consciousness can never be anything else than conscious existence...Life is not determined by consciousness, but consciousness by life" (Marx 568-9)…
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Archetypal Literary Criticism Essay
1614 Words | 7 PagesIn Literary Criticism, there is an idea that believes that Archetypes make up literature’s meaning. The concept of Archetypes in literature has been the subject of extensive examination in Literary Criticism. “Criticism can be broken down into two broad categories: evaluative and interpretive” (Gardner 1287). The criticism is based on Literary Theory, which is composed of ideas that help interpret, and analyze literature. Everything in literature has a meaning, and many different people came…
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The Contribution of Marxism in Literary Criticism
3206 Words | 13 PagesTHE CONTRIBUTION OF MARXISM TO THE STUDY OF LITERARY CRITICISM It is evident that Marxism has made great contribution in the study and criticism of Literature, there is need to explain a little bit on Marxism before we discuss its contribution. Marxism is a social and political theory based on the works of Karl Marx and his followers, associated with the socialist and communist movements, these works mainly are Manifesto of the Communist Party and the German Ideology. It should be understood…
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A Marxist And Feminist Literary Criticism
1243 Words | 5 PagesA Marxist and Feminist Literary Criticism Being a single woman with a family to support in the 1930’s was not an easy job. Especially when society had so many chips stacked against them. Tillie Olsen’s “I stand Here Ironing” is a short story that addresses feminine social disorders and inequalities as well as economic disadvantages that people of lower circumstances have to overcome to survive. In the short story it is basically an autobiography of Tillie Olsen’s life told by the narrator (Emily’s…
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The Literary Criticism Of Great Expectations
1113 Words | 5 PagesThe literary criticism “Patterns of Communication in Great Expectations” is an effective literary criticism, it proves there is evidently more communication between characters in the novel than most critics let onto. Ruth M. Vande Kieft, who is the author of this piece, suggests that the majority of the characters in Dickens novels have a substantial amount of communication among themselves. But, the dialogue in the novel depicted is not what we typically observe in the majority Victorian novels…
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The Dubliners: Not Just Another Pretty Face
1464 Words | 6 Pagesrealization of how chauvinistic he has been. In The Dead, Joyce wants to break the gender barrier of a male dominated culture by using Gabriel and his interaction with Lily, Miss. Ivors and Gretta as a way of showing us that these women are not just a pretty face, but intelligent, thought provoking women capable of deeper thoughts and feelings. In the beginning paragraphs of The Dead, The Morkan sisters are impatiently awaiting the arrival of their most beloved nephew, Gabriel, and his wife Gretta. When…
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Literary Criticism Of Feminist Criticism
1145 Words | 5 PagesTask 2 - Literary Criticism A. Summary of Literary Criticism: Feminist criticism is a literary criticism that is grounded upon the feminist theory, or by the politics of feminism. This analysis can be applied through feminist principles and gender equality to critique the language and structure of literature. Basic methods of feminist criticism include identifying with female characters and reevaluating the world in which literary works are read. B. Answers to bulleted questions: • How is the relationship…
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Essay about Psychoanalytic Literary Criticism
2493 Words | 10 PagesAbsolutely, most critics have adapted psychoanalytic literary criticism theory based upon the works of psychoanalysis by famous psychologists Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, and Jacques Lacan to literary works. 'Psychoanalytic literary criticism does not constitute a unified field....However, all variants endorse, at least to a certain degree, the idea that literature...is fundamentally entwined with the psyche' (wiki).The three literary works which will be analyzed in this essay are…
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Literary Theories And Literary Criticism
1318 Words | 6 PagesLiterary theories and literary criticism New Historicism 1. • It is a literary theory based on the criticism of Stephen Greenblatt and philosophy Michel Foucault. • It states that literature should be studied and interpreted in context with the author’s history as well as the history of the critic. • Acknowledges that the author’s literature is influenced by his/her situations or surroundings. • The critic’s response is also influenced by his/her surroundings, beliefs, values and prejudices. • Shows…
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