Literary Theory.docx

Literary Theory.docx

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LiteraryTheory

LiteraryTheory

“Literarytheory”isthebodyofideasandmethodsweuseinthepracticalreadingofliterature.Byliterarytheorywerefernottothemeaningofaworkofliteraturebuttothetheoriesthatrevealwhatliteraturecanmean.Literarytheoryisadescriptionoftheunderlyingprinciples,onemightsaythetools,bywhichweattempttounderstandliterature.Allliteraryinterpretationdrawsonabasisintheorybutcanserveasajustificationforverydifferentkindsofcriticalactivity.Itisliterarytheorythatformulatestherelationshipbetweenauthorandwork;literarytheorydevelopsthesignificanceofrace,class,andgenderforliterarystudy,bothfromthestandpointofthebiographyoftheauthorandananalysisoftheirthematicpresencewithintexts.Literarytheoryoffersvaryingapproachesforunderstandingtheroleofhistoricalcontextininterpretationaswellastherelevanceoflinguisticandunconsciouselementsofthetext.Literarytheoriststracethehistoryandevolutionofthedifferentgenres—narrative,dramatic,lyric—inadditiontothemorerecentemergenceofthenovelandtheshortstory,whilealsoinvestigatingtheimportanceofformalelementsofliterarystructure.Lastly,literarytheoryinrecentyearshassoughttoexplainthedegreetowhichthetextismoretheproductofaculturethananindividualauthorandinturnhowthosetextshelptocreatetheculture.

TableofContents

1.WhatIsLiteraryTheory?

2.TraditionalLiteraryCriticism

3.FormalismandNewCriticism

4.MarxismandCriticalTheory

5.StructuralismandPoststructuralism

6.NewHistoricismandCulturalMaterialism

7.EthnicStudiesandPostcolonialCriticism

8.GenderStudiesandQueerTheory

9.CulturalStudies

10.ReferencesandFurtherReading

1.GeneralWorksonTheory

2.LiteraryandCulturalTheory

1.WhatIsLiteraryTheory?

“Literarytheory,”sometimesdesignated“criticaltheory,”or“theory,”andnowundergoingatransformationinto“culturaltheory”withinthedisciplineofliterarystudies,canbeunderstoodasthesetofconceptsandintellectualassumptionsonwhichreststheworkofexplainingorinterpretingliterarytexts.Literarytheoryreferstoanyprinciplesderivedfrominternalanalysisofliterarytextsorfromknowledgeexternaltothetextthatcanbeappliedinmultipleinterpretivesituations.Allcriticalpracticeregardingliteraturedependsonanunderlyingstructureofideasinatleasttwoways:

theoryprovidesarationaleforwhatconstitutesthesubjectmatterofcriticism—”theliterary”—andthespecificaimsofcriticalpractice—theactofinterpretationitself.Forexample,tospeakofthe“unity”of OedipustheKingexplicitlyinvokesAristotle’stheoreticalstatementsonpoetics.Toargue,asdoesChinuaAchebe,thatJosephConrad’s TheHeartofDarkness failstograntfullhumanitytotheAfricansitdepictsisaperspectiveinformedbyapostcolonialliterarytheorythatpresupposesahistoryofexploitationandracism.CriticsthatexplaintheclimacticdrowningofEdnaPontellierin TheAwakening asasuicidegenerallycalluponasupportingarchitectureoffeministandgendertheory.Thestructureofideasthatenablescriticismofaliteraryworkmayormaynotbeacknowledgedbythecritic,andthestatusofliterarytheorywithintheacademicdisciplineofliterarystudiescontinuestoevolve.

LiterarytheoryandtheformalpracticeofliteraryinterpretationrunsaparallelbutlesswellknowncoursewiththehistoryofphilosophyandisevidentinthehistoricalrecordatleastasfarbackasPlato.TheCratylus containsaPlato’smeditationontherelationshipofwordsandthethingstowhichtheyrefer.Plato’sskepticismaboutsignification,i.e.,thatwordsbearnoetymologicalrelationshiptotheirmeaningsbutarearbitrarily“imposed,”becomesacentralconcerninthetwentiethcenturytoboth“Structuralism”and“Poststructuralism.”However,apersistentbeliefin“reference,”thenotionthatwordsandimagesrefertoanobjectivereality,hasprovidedepistemological（thatis,havingtodowiththeoriesofknowledge）supportfortheoriesofliteraryrepresentationthroughoutmostofWesternhistory.Untilthenineteenthcentury,Art,inShakespeare’sphrase,held“amirroruptonature”andfaithfullyrecordedanobjectivelyrealworldindependentoftheobserver.

ModernliterarytheorygraduallyemergesinEuropeduringthenineteenthcentury.Inoneoftheearliestdevelopmentsofliterarytheory,German“highercriticism”subjectedbiblicaltextstoaradicalhistoricizingthatbrokewithtraditionalscripturalinterpretation.“Higher,”or“sourcecriticism,”analyzedbiblicaltalesinlightofcomparablenarrativesfromothercultures,anapproachthatanticipatedsomeofthemethodandspiritoftwentiethcenturytheory,particularly“Structuralism”and“NewHistoricism.”InFrance,theeminentliterarycriticCharlesAugustin SaintBeuvemaintainedthataworkofliteraturecouldbeexplainedentirelyintermsofbiography,whilenovelistMarcelProustdevotedhislifetorefutingSaintBeuveinamassivenarrativeinwhichhecontendedthatthedetailsofthelifeoftheartistareutterlytransformedintheworkofart.（ThisdisputewastakenupanewbytheFrenchtheoristRolandBarthesinhisfamousdeclarationofthe“DeathoftheAuthor.”See“Structuralism”and“Poststructuralism.”）PerhapsthegreatestnineteenthcenturyinfluenceonliterarytheorycamefromthedeepepistemologicalsuspicionofFriedrichNietzsche:

thatfactsarenotfactsuntiltheyhavebeeninterpreted.Nietzsche’scritiqueofknowledgehashadaprofoundimpactonliterarystudiesandhelpedusherinaneraofintenseliterarytheorizingthathasyettopass.

Attentiontotheetymologyoftheterm“theory,”fromtheGreek“theoria,”alertsustothepartialnatureoftheoreticalapproachestoliterature.“Theoria”indicatesavieworperspectiveoftheGreekstage.Thisispreciselywhatliterarytheoryoffers,thoughspecifictheoriesoftenclaimtopresentacompletesystemforunderstandingliterature.Thecurrentstateoftheoryissuchthattherearemanyoverlappingareasofinfluence,andolderschoolsoftheory,thoughnolongerenjoyingtheirpreviouseminence,continuetoexertaninfluenceonthewhole.Theoncewidely-heldconviction（animplicittheory）thatliteratureisarepositoryofallthatismeaningfulandennoblinginthehumanexperience,aviewchampionedbytheLeavisSchoolinBritain,maynolongerbeacknowledgedbynamebutremainsanessentialjustificationforthecurrentstructureofAmericanuniversitiesandliberalartscurricula.Themomentof“Deconstruction”mayhavepassed,butitsemphasisontheindeterminacyofsigns（thatweareunabletoestablishexclusivelywhatawordmeanswhenusedinagivensituation）andthusoftexts,remainssignificant.Manycriticsmaynotembracethelabel“feminist,”butthepremisethatgenderisasocialconstruct,oneoftheoreticalfeminismsdistinguishinginsights,isnowaxiomaticinanumberoftheoreticalperspectives.

Whileliterarytheoryhasalwaysimpliedordirectlyexpressedaconceptionoftheworldoutsidethetext,inthetwentiethcenturythreemovements—”Marxisttheory”oftheFrankfurtSchool,“Feminism,”and“Postmodernism”—haveopenedthefieldofliterarystudiesintoabroaderareaofinquiry.MarxistapproachestoliteraturerequireanunderstandingoftheprimaryeconomicandsocialbasesofculturesinceMarxistaesthetictheoryseestheworkofartasaproduct,directlyorindirectly,ofthebasestructureofsociety.Feministthoughtandpracticeanalyzestheproductionofliteratureandliteraryrepresentationwithintheframeworkthatincludesallsocialandculturalformationsastheypertaintotheroleofwomeninhistory.Postmodernthoughtconsistsofbothaestheticandepistemologicalstrands.Postmodernisminarthasincludedamovetowardnon-referential,non-linear,abstractforms;aheighteneddegreeofself-referentiality;andthecollapseofcategoriesandconventionsthathadtraditionallygovernedart.Postmodernthoughthasledtotheseriousquestioningoftheso-calledmetanarrativesofhistory,science,philosophy,andeconomicandsexualreproduction.Underpostmodernity,allknowledgecomestobeseenas“constructed”withinhistoricalself-containedsystemsofunderstanding.Marxist,feminist,andpostmodernthoughthavebroughtabouttheincorporationofallhumandiscourses（thatis,interlockingfieldsoflanguageandknowledge）asasubjectmatterforanalysisbytheliterarytheorist.Usingthevariouspoststructuralistandpostmoderntheoriesthatoftendrawondisciplinesotherthantheliterary—linguistic,anthropological,psychoanalytic,andphilosophical—fortheirprimaryinsights,literarytheoryhasbecomeaninterdisciplinarybodyofculturaltheory.Takingasitspremisethathumansocietiesandknowledgeconsistoftextsinoneformoranother,culturaltheory（forbetterorworse）isnowappliedtothevarietiesoftexts,ambitiouslyundertakingtobecomethepreeminentmodelofinquiryintothehumancondition.

Literarytheoryisasiteoftheories:

sometheories,like“QueerTheory,”are“in;”otherliterarytheories,like“Deconstruction,”are“out”butcontinuetoexertaninfluenceonthefield.“Traditionalliterarycriticism,”“NewCriticism,”and“Structuralism”arealikeinthattheyheldtotheviewthatthestudyofliteraturehasanobjectivebodyofknowledgeunderitsscrutiny.Theotherschoolsofliterarytheory,tovaryingdegrees,embraceapostmodernviewoflanguageandrealitythatcallsintoseriousquestiontheobjectivereferentofliterarystudies.Thefollowingcategoriesarecertainlynotexhaustive,noraretheymutuallyexclusive,b