1. Literary Critical Theory schools of thought, concepts, key terms, and process

2. Feminist/Gender Criticism Society defines what it means to be a a man or woman, masculine or feminine—these definitions can shape and sometimes limit people’s identities, opportunities, etc. Women are NOT “better” or “worse” than men—their experiences and interpretations are different and equally valuable Women have different ways of speaking and writing than men do—they use different symbols, metaphors, etc. Men are also affected by gender stereotypes. Focus/Key Ideas

3. Feminist/Gender Criticism Terms matriarchy/matriarchal patriarchy/patriarchal stereotype gender role outsider/insider masculine or feminine discourse

4. Feminist/Gender Criticism Focus on the roles of men and women Pay attention to who has power and voice Look for characters who try to defy stereotypes or who represent them Look for the author’s attitudes about gender— are there assumptions that shape the story? Look for diction or other elements that indicate masculine or feminine discourse and how that shapes the story Process

5. Questions to Ask How are women portrayed and what does it say about patriarchy? (in other words does it reinforce or undermine this ideology?) How does the work seem to define femininity or masculinity? Does the “sisterhood” attempt to resist patriarchy at all?

6. Feminist/Gender Criticism Patriarchal structure is seen as Tom holds a double standard between him and his wife Daisy: fidelity. Pessimistic outlook of the “New Woman” of that time period in the three main females: Daisy-adulteress / $ hungry, Myrtle- adulteress / $ hungry, Jordan Baker- socialite / cheater. Example: The Great Gatsby

7. Marxist Criticism Similar to feminist criticism Points out that social, political, and ideological forces affect people: characters, authors, readers People don’t notice that they are part of a socioeconomic system, and they do not question or challenge it—it shapes their perceptions of everything in life. Exposes inequalities in power and access caused by social and economic class Focus/Key Ideas

8. Marxist Criticism Terms Class Class struggle Proletariat (lower)/bourgeois (middle) /capitalist (upper) Ideology and superstructure Materialism/Consumerism “The American Dream”: “survival of the fittest”

9. Marxist Criticism Identify the socioeconomic class of characters (and the author) Look for struggles between characters of different classes, or of characters trying to move between classes Look for assumptions about class and power made by the author or characters. Challenge the assumptions! Look for good guys/bad guys—who is oppressing whom? Process

10. Questions to Ask Does the work reinforce capitalist, imperialist, or classist values? How might it be seen as a critique of one of these? Are there any ideological conflicts? How might the work reflect the socioeconomic conditions of the time period in which it was written? Any critique of organized religion? (How might this function to keep a character from realizing socioeconomic oppression?)

11. Marxist Criticism The novel chronicles the 1920s post WWI economic boom and the quest for the Am. Dream—especially in Gatsby The characters seem willing to do just about anything to ensure socioeconomic security / material gain. Debilitating effects of capitalist ideology even on those who are its most successful products. Example:The Great Gatsby

12. Psychological / Psychoanalytical Criticism Focus/Key Ideas Heavily influenced by Freudian theory Reading a literary work is a way of experiencing human behavior in great detail Examines the internal mental states (and the unconscious), desires, fears, and motivations of characters Focuses heavily on the role of the family Analyzes dream sequences Conflict surrounding death and sexuality are common topics of discussion.

13. Psychological / Psychoanalytical Criticism Terms Conscious/ Unconscious/Preconscious (unconscious at moment but not fully repressed) Id (instinct) /ego (realistic balance) /superego (morals & perfection) Child development: Oedipal complex / Electra complex Stages of development: see both Freud and Lacan— self-awareness and dependency

14. Psychological / Psychoanalytical Criticism Process Try to explain characters’ actions, motivations and attitudes Pay attention to symbols and dreams Look for what is unsaid—subtle clues to unconscious motivations or feelings Research! the particular complex or stage you think you see

15. Questions to Ask What unconscious motives are operating the characters? Any Oedipal dynamics? What does it reveal? How can any of the narratives be explained in terms of psychoanalytic concepts? Any dream symbols? Any concepts from Lacan? (imaginary, mirror, symbolic order or objet petit a)

16. Psychological / Psychoanalytical Criticism Example: The Great Gatsby Fear of intimacy prevalent in almost all of the characters: dysfunctional love Tom and Daisy’s low self-esteem Gatsby’s childhood w/ impoverished parents and abusive father was traumatic and these repressed emotions lead to an unconscious, lifelong goal for “success” / nourishment that his parents never gave him

17. Reader-Response Criticism Focus/Key Ideas A piece of literature is an interaction between the reader and the text, like a piece of sheet music to be performed by a musician The reader constructs the meaning of the text as he/she reads The reader brings his/her own unique insights to the text, and the text is influenced by the reader’s individual values and expectations This does NOT mean that ALL interpretations are correct—they still need to be plausible

18. Reader-Response Criticism Terms Expectations and anticipations Assumptions (Stanley Fish “poem”) Jacobs-Rosenbaum Levin Thorne Hayes Ohman (?) Actual reader/ideal reader Gaps Process Ambiguity Constraints of the text

19. Reader-Response Criticism Process Consider your expectations before reading. How does who you are affect your reading of the text—your social class, world experience, age, gender, etc.? Pay attention to thought process as you read—what did you notice right away? What questions did you have? Why did you have them? Look for “gaps”—things the text doesn’t tell us—and how you were able to fill them in. Did your ideas and perceptions change as you read? What adjustments did you make in your understanding?

20. Questions to Ask How does the interaction of text and reader create meaning? How does an analysis of what the text does differ from what it “says”? What does your analysis suggest about how the text was created by your psychological or ideological projections? How is a particular kind of reading experience an important theme in the text?

21. Reader-Response Criticism Example: The Great Gatsby Our perception of Gatsby creates an indeterminacy that invites us to project our own beliefs and desires onto the protagonist. We tend to “root for” a bootlegging, adulterating, pathological liar As the story develops, understanding of the character becomes more complex—flaws and weaknesses emerge that make the reader doubt the purity of motives. Reader might feel impatient or frustrated –lose empathy.

22. Focus/Key Ideas Deconstructionism Assumes texts do NOT have fixed meanings “Assumes that language is unstable and ambiguous…” (Jacques Derrida and see i.e. ->) And therefore “that a literary text is usually self- contradictory” Focuses on what the texts reveal the “authors were unaware of or thought they kept safely out of sight” Deconstruction is NOT destruction—simply picking apart Deconstructionists often have radical re-readings of classic texts

23. Deconstructing Language Louis Tyson chap 8 “Time flies like an arrow”=time passes quickly? Time flies like an arrow. Verb Obj. Adv. Clause -- Get out your stopwatch and time the speed of flies as you’d time an arrow’s flight. Time flies like an arrow. Noun VerbObj --Time flies are fond of arrows (or at least one particular arrow).

24. Deconstruction Key Terms Binary opposition –Black/white –Good/evil –Male/female –Emotional/logical Hierarchy – each binary opposition is a mini hierarchy; one concept is usually portrayed as superior, even if only slightly Subtext / Multiple narratives Subversion: What is underlying waiting to overthrow a theme, character, etc.?

25. Deconstructionism Process Use close reading techniques to show what the author tried to keep hidden/wasn’t aware of in text (subtext) Look for the underlying binary opposition(s) in a text Decide which element in the opposition(s) the author finds superior (hierarchy) Use close reading techniques (looking at language, syntax, etc.) to show how the text does NOT really support these hierarchies

26. Questions to Ask How can we use the various conflicting interpretations a text produces or find the various ways in which the text doesn’t answer the questions it seems to answer? What ideology does the text seem to promote (main theme), and how does conflicting evidence in the text show the limitations of this ideology? **Binary oppositions

27. Deconstructionism Example: The Great Gatsby Binary Oppositions: Rich v. Poor, Male v. Female, West v. East, Innocence v. Decadence, Past v. Present Fitzgerald attempts to condemn the 1920s capitalist world, but does he? (Quite the ambivalence) –Gatsby seems like a Romantic hero AND corrupt at the same time –“Past” really worth repeating?—life w/ Daisy but also poor and oppressed. –Nick is supposed to be “innocent,” but yet thrives (at times) in the decadence

28. Archetypal/Mythological Criticism Humans have similar ways looking at the world: archetypes. –Images, characters, symbols, and story patterns that all humans recognize. Responses to archetypes deep and unconscious Archetypes represent universal experiences: hopes, fears, expectations and values Focus/Key Ideas

29. Archetypal/Mythological Criticism Archetypal story patterns –Hero/ quest –initiation/coming of age –metamorphosis –the underworld –birth/death/rebirth –seasons Terms/Concepts

30. Archetypal/Mythological Criticism Archetypal characters: –hero –innocent youth –damsel in distress –scapegoat –trickster –wise old man/woman –father figure/earth mother Terms/Concepts

31. Archetypal images and symbols Sun, moon Sunset, sunrise Water, sea Circles Snakes, monsters Caves Fire Paradise Archetypal/Mythological Criticism Terms/Concepts

32. Archetypal/Mythological Criticism look for underlying patterns that reveal universal meanings look at characters, images, and symbols RESEARCHRESEARCH the archetypes that you think applies to your story Process

33. Archetypal/Mythological Criticism Hamlet archetypal coming of age story. Loses his parents, must take on an adult role. Struggles with the responsibility. Qualities of trickster character. Wordplay, hiding body—he is the only character who knows the truth but is treated like a fool. Example