TASK NO.

1
As you read about literary criticism you ought to recall what literary theory is and how
the two concepts are related to one another.
1. Refer to reading material No.1 and have a nice time reading about what literary criticism
is – definition, concept, types.
2. Proceed to reading materials No.2 and No.3 where the discussions focus on the
differences between literary theory and literary criticism. You might find similarities and
differences, but these materials should confirm what initial thoughts you have about the
said concepts.
3. Take note of sample variables used in determining the relationship between literary
theory and literary criticism.
4. Four your output No. 1 you are to present in a matrix the similarities and differences you
have noted about literary theory and literary criticism.
At the horizontal axis writhe the two concepts being compared; at the vertical axis, write
the bases you will use in the comparison and contrast. Your output should be in this
format:
Bases of comparison Literary Theory Literary Criticism

1.

2.

3.

4.

Add spaces if necessary

Reading Material No. 1

What is Literary Criticism?

Definition and Concept
Retrieved from: https://www.writeawriting.com/academic-writing/literary-
criticism/
For understanding literary criticism, we first need to drive home the concept of
literature which is best not defined on the basis of whether it can be
imaginative or fictional.
However, it can be described in terms of the way it makes use of languages in
different ways. With respect to this theory, literature falls under the category of
writing that represents a sophisticated violence conducted on a simple speech
according to Roman Jakobson, a Russian critic. Hence, literary
criticism or literary analysis can be defined as, An informed analysis and
evaluation of a piece of literature”.
OR
“A written study, evaluation and interpretation of a work of literature”.
The literary criticism is a concept, formed on the basis of critical analysis and
primarily estimates the value and merit of literary works for the presence or
quality of certain parameters of literary characteristics.

Types of Literary Criticism

Literacy criticism includes various techniques of literature analysis which are

widely used for critical essay writing and drafting analysis for texts and
materials against specific merits of evaluation.

Objective Analysis

An objective analysis makes uses the technique of independently

investigating a particular subject matter with reference to the existing facts,
figures, events and background information. An objective analysis can also be
referred to as statistical interpolation, objective mapping, or systematic
probing into a subject and is completely devoid of personal feelings and
viewpoint.

Traditional Criticism

The traditional criticism approach examines you examine how the author’s

life, his/her biographical information, contemporary times and effect of his life
circumstances on his inspiration and their reflection in his  works. This
technique is commonly used in in general surveys of English literature. It
includes a general analysis of the writers as opposed to a detailed analysis of
their individual works.

New Criticism

The new criticism approach is mostly used in poetry analysis and evaluates
elements like diction, imagery, stanza structure, verse form, meanings,
particularly and complexities of meaning. This form of critical analysis refrains
from analyzing the biographical and historical context of a poem.
Sociological Criticism

The sociological criticism approach deals with the direct analysis of society

with reference to societal problems, conflicts and  contemporary issues. Areas
of analysis typically include events, happenings, cultural trends and effects of
modernism.

Rhetorical Criticism

The rhetorical criticism approach  makes use of the technique of persuasion

and aims to understand the conveyance of the content of poetry and other
works of art. It evaluates the angle of approach, presentation of arguments,
evidence and attitude.

Stylistic Criticism

The stylistic critical technique evaluates the manner of presentation for any

work and focuses on the minor details like diction, vocabulary, tone and
various style elements.

Metaphorical Criticism

A metaphorical critical analysis makes use of the use, nature, purpose and

evaluation of metaphors used in any work. The analysis probes into the
meaning and illustration along with the message conveyed of the
metaphorical stance being used.

Structuralist Criticism

The structural critical analysis studies symmetry, trends and patterns  for a

particular society or for a societal comparative analysis. of various societies.
underlying patterns of symmetry which are held to be common to all societies.
Corroboration is drawn from sociology and anthropology, and the study
techniques categorize and evaluate the work in larger context rather than
assessing its quality alone.

Biographical Criticism

A biographical critical analysis evaluates a  with a poem in terms of the

reflection of the writer’s psychology, or as biographical data piece. This kind of
analysis focuses on the interrelationship of a particular work in context of
understanding the influences, inspiration and circumstances of the writer.
Marxist Criticism

In case of the Marxist critical analysis, poetry is analyzed on the basis of its
political correctness  and calls for mention of support for workers against
capitalist exploitation and perils of free market perils.

Historical Criticism

Historical criticism analyzes poem works in their historical context  and

evaluates the use of  allusions, words, phrases and diction along with
conventions and expectations at the time of the written works produced.

Psychological (Freudian) Criticism

Psychological critical analysis examine texts an works for the portrayal of 

sexual imagery and against other Freudian concepts; struggles of the
superego, the Oedipus complex, repressed contents of consciousness, etc.
The purpose of Freudian analysis  is to highlight the existence of psychic
conflicts rather than looking for aesthetical merits.

Mythological (Archetypal) Criticism

Mythological criticism evaluates content for instinctual and inmost emotions

in human nature which are influenced by certain events, happenings and
character situations. The analysis is based on communal beliefs since
mythology is strongly derived from religious beliefs, anthropology, and cultural
history.

Moralist Criticism

The moral critical approach examines poetry and art works against standard
ethical and civil criteria; humanistic, societal impact, tolerance, equality, social
justice and sensitivity. This approach adheres to the humanistic and civil
element in poems, dramas and other art work and evaluates the impact and
influence of works of literature in a stringent moral context.

Feminist Criticism

Feminist critical analysis is concerned with the politics of women’s

authorship, representation of the women’s condition within literature. Origin of
feminine criticism is originally derived from the classic works of 19th Century
women authors like George Eliot and Margaret Fuller. Based on the feminist
theory, the feminist critical evaluation analyzes elements like stereotypes
of women, images of women in literature, literary mistreatment of women,
place of women in patriarchal societies and challenges faced by women in the
modern era.

Reading Material No. 2

Difference between literary criticism and literary

theory
Written by Alok Mishra for English Literature Education
Retrieved from: https://englishliterature.education/theory/difference-between-literary-
criticism-and-literary-theory/

Main differences between literary criticism and literary theory:

1. Let’s begin with the basic distinction. Literary criticism denotes action and a
literary theory denotes abstract, an idea, a set of rules.
2. Literary theory deals with the ways to distinguish literary texts from each
other and establish categories, classifications and schools of thoughts that
are apparently visible in literary texts. Literary criticism, on the other hand, is
a practical study of a literary text that may be initiated on the basis of any
particular literary theory or independently, that deals with analyzing,
interpreting, extensively studying within certain boundaries and criteria.
3. The act of literary criticism generally concerns with comparison, analysis, and
evaluation of literary texts. A literary theory takes one step ahead and it may
be the result of extensively literary criticism. For instance, the literary theory
with the name of Structuralism must have been the result of an extensive act
of literary criticism with an intent to establish a theory that certain elements
in many literary works are like a pattern – set of characters, ideas for plots,
themes etc.

Anything else that I write here will only be the act of saying the same thing in many
different ways. The basic difference is in the nature of these two – criticism is an
action and theory is, basically, a systematic set of certain ideas. However, there are
other things that one should be aware of when we talk about literary theory and
criticism. I will highlight them in the sections below.
The Beautiful Paradox: A literary theory should ideally dictate the terms for an
attempt of literary criticism. However, how can the literary theory be established
without an act of literary criticism? Think about it.

A Question: Is every act of literary criticism guided by a literary theory? Try to find
the answer to this question.

We have literary criticism and we have literary theory too. However, there are many
books on the subject ‘Critical Theory’ as well. So, what is this new thing? What is a
critical theory? Can you find a suitable definition for critical theory? Is it same as a
literary theory? Is it a mixture of theory and criticism?

Well, for now, this is what it is and I will have to end this article here. I will be back
with more articles in this ongoing series on Literary Theory and Literary Criticism
and I hope this series will be helpful to those who are concerned. All the best!

Difference Between Literary Criticism and Literary Theory

Definition
Literary Criticism is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature.
Literary Theory is the different frameworks used to evaluate and interpret a
particular work.

Theoretical vs Practical
Literary Criticism is the practical application of literary theory.
Literary Theory is a combination of the nature and function of literature and the
relation of text to its author, reader, and society.

Reading Material No. 3

Relationship between Literary Theory & Literary Criticism: 

Retrieved from: https://englishliterature.education/theory/what-is-literary-theory-an-

introduction/

To be frank, it is too naive a question to ask if someone really falls for it. What is the
relationship between literary theory and literary criticism? Look at the names
themselves. Both theory and criticism have literary as the prefix. Therefore, it is
natural that there must be something common between them in the context of
their concern with literature. A work of literature or a literary text becomes the
playground where a literary critic comes up with a literary theory after an extensive
analysis of the given text. Once the theory is established and becomes popular,
other concerned people with literature learn about that particular literary theory
and subsequently use that theory when they study any literary text in the direction
specified in that particular theory. So, in short, the literary text is the basis of this
relationship at the outset. This may have become an elaborated background but it
was necessary for the beginners to understand the connection in the context of
origins of literary theory and literary criticism.

Now, to cut things short and to establish the relationship at a logical level, between
literary theory and literary criticism, a very simple idea can drive the cause to its
conclusion. Any particular literary theory is the foundation for an act of literary
criticism in a particular direction or context or purview. 

Though this was the shortcut to establish this relationship which was necessary
because many students have asked me about it, I will be writing an entirely
different article on this subject. That will be advanced in connotations and
meanings and will be useful for those who want to dive to the depths of this
wonderful relationship.

Differences between Literary Theory and Literary Criticism:

Once again, this question is too naive if someone asks what are the differences
between literary theory and literary criticism. Why do I say so? This is too easy to
comprehend. One is a set of ideas or rules that become guiding principles for an
act that is called literary criticism. So, the basic and the fundamental difference
between literary theory and criticism is that one is theoretical and another is
practical. Literary theory is the theoretical part and literary criticism is the practical
part of the same larger idea that concerns with the analysis of a literary text.

Like I shared above, I will also be writing an entirely different piece on this subject. I
will write it very soon and I will share the link here so that the curious readers who
want to go into further details of differences between literary theory and literary
criticism can enjoy that article. Right now, we will get into other interesting details
related to our major topic.
Going into the depths of literary theory and literary criticism:

While this is not very wise to get into the depths of the idea called literary theory and criticism
for the beginners and ‘early days’ students of English literature, I will give all of you a 360° view
of some of the important, also absurd, contributions, interesting facts and complicated ideas
related to literary theory. Let’s begin this happening journey:

1. The Ambiguity: Applications of literary theories are possible before and

after the production of a literary work. Does this idea sound weird? Well, if
you consider Aristotle as a literary critic or a literary theorist, you will have to
accept that the theories created by him about an ideal tragedy helped many
dramatists in Elizabethan age in writing the best-known tragedies. If you
consider Longinus and Horace as literary theorists, you will have to admit
that their theories in terms of poetry helped many poets in various ages of
English literature in producing the poetry of the best possible degree. So, it’s
about when any particular theory was propagated and when a literary critic
or a writer accesses it and brings into the application. Today, we use theories
established by the structuralist school, Deconstructionists, Eco-Critical
theorists and many others mainly to analyze the text. However, just suppose
someone studying any of these theories and modelling a literary work on any
of these theories, isn’t that artist using literary theory? He is!
2. Literary theory is not only about literature: Yes, get it right now! The
domain of literary theory is broad and it does not concern only with
literature and literary works. It concerns with human evolution, psychology,
philosophy, sociology and language and many other elements (with wide
ramifications of this term – elements). The obvious reason is that literature
itself is not limited to written works by authors. Literature is an ever-
expanding idea and if not ever-expanding, literary theory is also an
occasionally expanding idea. Therefore, when you begin studying literary
theories, you should be open to facing many ideas that will take you in
various directions in terms of academic subjects.
3. Science vs Arts or Intellect vs Emotions: Once you begin digging deeper,
you will realize that many literary theories have their foundations in the
hardcore scientific notions. However, the problem does not lie there. The
problem starts when a literary critic implies that all the aesthetic beauty in a
poem by John Keats MUST be subdued because he isn’t saying anything new
as he is using the same words which have already been repeated more than
billion times… won’t you find yourself in a bemused situation? Well, then you
realize that anything other than practical criticism method – reading the text
 closely and not going beyond the paper – is the only best method applicable
when analyzing literary texts.

As we have had our time with some of the weird ventures into the world of literary
theory and criticism, let’s get to the next stage and we will learn the basics of the
popular literary theories.