Literary criticism involves interpreting, analyzing, classifying, and making judgments about literary works. It is usually presented in the form of critical essays or in-depth book reviews. A literary critic does more than just evaluate the quality of a work - they interpret the meaning and make arguments about a text from social, political, and cultural perspectives. Studying a work from different critical perspectives gives readers a deeper understanding and allows them to appreciate the complexity and richness of the text.

1. I N T R O D U C T I O N
LITERARY
CRITICISM
Sherilyn E. Nuesca, PhD
Instructress

2. The Term "Criticism"
UNDERSTANDING
The term criticism is often understood to be the
act of finding fault; censure; disapproval
The act of criticizing, especially adversely
CONTEXT AS SUBJECT
The act of interpreting, analyzing and making
jjudgments of individual and comparative worth
of works of art as literature
A critical comment, review, article, essay, etc
expressing such analysis and judgment
The art, principles, or methods of a critic or critics
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3. A Critic Etymology
UNDERSTANDING
Critic is "one who passes judgment" (1580s)
From the Greek word kritikos "able to make
judgments"
One who judges merits of books, plays, etc.
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4. Definition and Use
UNDERSTANDING
"Literary criticism" is the name given to works
written by experts who critique --analyze--an
author's work.
WHAT IT DOES
It does NOT mean "to criticize" as in complain or
disapprove
It asks what literature is, what it does, and whatit
is worth.(Encyclopedia Britannica)
CONTEXT AS SUBJECT
referred to as a "secondary source"
HOW IT IS DONE
It is the study, discussion, evaluation and
interpretation of literature. (wikipedia)
It is the evaluation of literary works.that include
the classification by genre, analysis of structure,
and judgment of value (Beckson & Ganz)
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5. What is literary criticism?
UNDERSTANDING
It is the interpretation, analysis, classification and
ultimately the judgement of literary works
It is usually in the form of a critical essay, but in-
depth book reviews can sometimes be
considered literary criticism.
ICONTEXT AS SUBJECT
The act of interpreting, analyzing and making
judgments of individual and comparative worth
of works of art as literature
A critical comment, review, article, essay, etc
expressing such analysis and judgment
The art, principles, or methods of a critic or critics
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6. A LITERARY CRITIC
Is not someone who merely
evaluates the worth or quality of a
piece of literature but, rather, is
someone who argues on behalf of
an interpretation or understanding
of the particular meaning/s of
literary texts.
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7. A LITERARY CRITIC
The critic tries to explain and makes
an attempt to a critical
understanding of what the literary
texts mean in terms of their
aesthetic, social, political, and
cultural statements and suggestions
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8. Literary Criticism is like
wearing different reading
glasses.
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LC helps readers understand a text
in relation to the author, culture, and
the other texts.

9. Why do we need to analyze
everything?
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Talking about experiences enhances
our enjoyment of them
Talking about experiences involves
the search for meaning which
increases our understanding
Socrates: "The life which is
unexamines is not worth living."

10. how the text
manipulates the
reader
LITERARY CRITICISM
HELPS US UNDERSTAND
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what is written
its context:
social,
political
historical
its structure relationship
between authors
readers
texts

11. Watch the "Try" video by Pink
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• Watch did you think while you were watching the video?
2. What stood out to you?Tell me three things.
3. What scene did you think was the most important?
Why?

12. WHAT IS
LITERARY OR
CRITICAL
THEORY?
MEANING
The terms "literary theory" and "critical theory" refer to
essentially the same fields of study.
• They both address ways of looking at literature
beyond the typical plot-theme-character-setting
studies.
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13. WHAT IS LITERARY OR
CRITICAL THEORY?
Just as a PERSPECTIVE, it is a way of looking at
something.
A CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE is a way of
criticizing or analyzing literature.
Your CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE is the view you
bring to the literature you read.
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14. How and why did literary develop?
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We all know that different people will experience the
same event differently. It follows, then, that different
people will approach the same literary text differently.
Literary theories emerged as ways to explain different
on a careful study of the literature.
It is a way to explain people’s views and responses to
literature. Rather than insisting that one view is the best
or correct view, literary theory attempts to find value in
all views that are based
One person may be offended by a character’s actions,
while another finds them comic.
•One reader is energized by a story’s political
implications, while another is awed by the same story’s
philosophical bent.

15. WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF STUDYING A WORK
FROM MORE THAN ONE CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE?
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•One of the views is likely to affirm your
perspective and speak to what you see in the
literature you are studying.
•Studying a view different from yours—not to
disagree with it, but to understand it—helps
you understand those who hold that view.
v
•Studying a work from more than one view
gives you a deeper understanding of the
author’s work and a better appreciation for
the richness of it.
v

16. THE ACT OF LITERARY CRITICISM
ULTIMATELY ENHANCES THE
ENJOYMENT OF OUR READING OF
THE LITERARY WORK.
A DEEPER INSIGHT

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18. ASBURY COLLEGE INC |

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What does this literary work mean?
• Different approaches or lenses help us to discover rich and deeper
meaning
• Each lens has its strengths and weaknesses
• Each lens is valuable
• Try to become a pluralist rather than an inflexible supporter of one

20. Anne stevenson
"I dislike literary jargon and never use it. Criticism has only
one function and that is to help readers and read and
understand literature. It is not a science, it is an aid to art."
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22. THANK YOU
ENJOY BEING IN THE WORLD OF
LITERATURE!
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