1. Literary Criticism The evaluation, analysis, description, or interpretation of literary works

2. The Critical Lens Imagine looking at the same landscape through different camera lenses. How would that landscape change if you used a telephoto lens or a wide angle lens or a colored or black and white filter? The different schools of literary criticism are like using different lenses to view the same text.

3. Purposes of Literary Criticism: To help us resolve a question, problem, or difficulty in the reading To help us decide which is the better of two conflicting readings To enable us to form judgments about literature

4. Schools of Literary Criticism Psychological AKA Freudian Gender AKA Feminist Mythological AKA Archetypal AKA Jungian Sociological AKA Marxist, Historical, New Historicism, or Cultural Studies

5. Psychological Criticism Applies modern psychological principles (Sigmund Freud and Jacques Lacan) to literature Explores how language and symbols reflect the unconscious desires and fears of the human psyche

6. Mythological/Archetypal: Carl Jung’s theory of the “Collective Unconscious” Archetypes – repeated patterns that reoccur in the literature of every age Universal symbols/archetypes The hero, the quest Joseph Campbell, George Lucas, Star Wars Carl Jung’s theory of the “collective unconscious” Archetypes – repeated patterns that reoccur in the literature of every age The Hero, The Quest – Joseph Campbell, George Lucas, Star Wars Emotional Response, Expectations

7. Common Symbols/Archetypes: Archetypal Women – the Good Mother, The Terrible Mother, Earth Mother, Soul Mate Water – creation, birth-death-resurrection, purification, redemption, fertility, growth Garden – paradise (Eden), innocence, fertility Red – blood, sacrifice, passion, disorder Green - growth, fertility Black – chaos, death, evil Serpent – evil, sensuality, mystery, wisdom, destruction

8. Gender Criticism: Feminist Approach – Elaine Showalter Impact of gender on writing and reading Male fears portrayed through female characters Gender determines everything OR Gender determines nothing Critique of patriarchal society

9. Sociological Criticism: Our biggest umbrella! Views works of literature or art as the products of historical forces that can be analyzed by looking at conditions Marxism – The clash between the dominant and repressed classes. Marx’s theory of economics ultimately determining the course of history and social structures

10. Sociological Criticism: Stephen Greenblatt – New Historicism – Historical – Breaks down distinctions between literature and historical context Cultural Studies – Views dominant social, political, and moral movements of the time of publication or when the reader reads it

11. What’s the first step? THE TOPIC PROPOSAL The purpose of the topic proposal is to get clearance from your instructor that your topic will meet the requirements of the assignment. Choose one of the 6 major literary works you have read this year. Then, explain how you will analyze it using one of the four schools of literary criticism.

12. Teachers’ Websites! Utilize the examples and directions posted to your teachers’ websites to guide you through the research process.

13. Remember to use APA FORMAT