MODULE

IN
LITERARY
CRITICISM
Learning Content:
Definition of Literature and Literary Criticism
Origin of Literary Criticism What is Literature?
Importance of Literary Criticism
 Literature comes from the Latin word Litera which
means letter.
  Literature is any printed matter in a book, magazine and
pamphlet.
 Any printed materials provided they are related to the
ideas and feelings of people giving factual or
imaginary.
 Any written work that is undying (timeless, lasting,
prominent)
 Story of life, story of man’s culture.
The etymology of the word Criticism
The term criticism originates from the Greek term kritikos,
which was used in the 4th century B.C. it, means “a judge of
literature”.
In the 2nd century A.D.its place was taken by the term criticus,
aimed at the interpretation of texts and words and improvement
of the works of writers in Greek or Latin.
What is Literary Criticism?
 Horace- 65-8 BC “The best writings teach and delight”
 Longinus- 1st Century A.D. First comparative critic
 Dante Aligheiri- language (vernacular)
 Sir Philip Sidney- Eclectic in Criticism
Evaluation of literary works involves two kinds of judgment:
1. Assessment of quality and value
2. Assessment of cultural, social, and moral values they
display.
Importance of Literary Criticism
1. Appreciation towards a certain literary piece.
2. Understanding from fiction
3. Stimulate emotional responses.

 Literary Criticism is the study, evaluation and

interpretation of literature.
 interpretation, analysis, classification and ultimately the
judgment of literary works.
 Evaluation of literary works Activity 1
 As what literature is, what does, and what it is worth?
Origin of Literary Criticism Answer the following questions:
1. Why is that literature is important?
Greeks- 5th Century inaugurated the formal study of literary criticism.
Plato- 427-347 BC morality (rationality)
Aristotle- 384-322 BC structure (Objectives)
 - In its strict sense, criticism means judgement

2. Evaluation
. - When a critic attempts to judge the value of a work
of art or literature, he can be said to have evaluated
2. What do you think are the ways how we can preserve the work.
literary works?
3. Interpretation

- If judgement be the real end of criticism,

interpretation may be employed as a means to that
end.
- The chief function of criticism is to enlighten and
stimulate by the proper interpretation of the works
of literature.

Activity 2 The Nature of Criticism

- Criticism and Creation to some people
criticism seems to be secondary, sponging and
Create a timeline chart that shows the origin of literary criticism. inferior to creation.
Learning Content:

- Literary Criticism and Scientific Accuracy a

 Functions and Nature of Literary Criticism debatable question: is literary criticism an art or an
 Periods of Literary Criticism exact science?
 Literary Criticism ang Literary Theory

Periods of Literary Criticism

The Function of CRITICISM  Classical Period
1. Judgement  Middle Ages
  Renaissance The various theories of lit criticism are categorized into four
 Neo-classical Age major classes:
 Romantic Age
 Victorian Age/Realism/Naturalism 1. Mimetic Theory of Arts
 20th Century - sees a work of literature as if it is reflecting the universe
 Post-Modern Criticism like a mirror.
- It regards literature as imitating or reflecting life, and
Literary Criticism VS Literary Theory
therefore emphasizes on the truth and accuracy of its
representation.
Literary Criticism Literary Theory - That is why it is said that it is realism in general sense.
(mimetic means imitation and the word is first used by
Aristotle in 4th century B.C, where he states that
tragedy is the imitation of an action).
The practice of interpreting
The study of principles 2. Pragmatic Theory of Arts
and writing about literature
which inform how critics
as the latter, in turn strives to - It sees literature as designed to achieve its effects on the
makes sense of literary
make sense of the world. audience (instructions, aesthetics, joy etc), and judge it
works.
according to the successful achievement of this
assumed aim.
- Pragmatic theories emphasize on the reader’s relation
to the work. The work is treated as something that is
constructed to achieve certain effects on the audience.

Learning Content: - Effects may be for the aesthetic pleasure, instruction or

 Various Theories of Literary Criticism
 Types of Literary Criticism
any kind of emotion.
3. Expressive Theory
- Expressive theories center on the artist.
- It examines text as an expression of the writer’s
feelings, imagination and personality.
 - It tends to judge the work by its sincerity or the extent
to which it has successfully revealed the author’s
state of mind.
4. Objective Theory
- focus more on the text without the influences of the
writer or the reader.
- to them there is no correspondence between the
universe and the work, and we cannot know the true
nature of either the audience or the author.
Types of Literary Criticism
A broad division can be made between the types of literary
criticism:
1. Practical criticism
2. Theoretical criticism
3. Descriptive criticism
4. Prescriptive criticism
These Four types can be grouped in to two classes:
1. Practical and Theoretical criticism
2. Descriptive and Prescriptive criticism
Practical and Theoretical Criticism
 Practical criticism focuses on the examination of
individual text.
 theoretical criticism discusses the nature of literature,
and the relation between literature, critics and society.
Descriptive and Prescriptive Criticism
 Descriptive criticism tends to explain the piece of
literature as it is, in its original form.
 prescriptive criticism argues on how it ought to be.
Learning Content:
The Literary Critic
Qualities of a Good Critic
What is a Literary Critic?
 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.
 The task of a literary critic is to explain and attempt to
reach a critical understanding of what literary texts
means in term of their aesthetic, as well as social,
political, and cultural statements and suggestions.
 A literary critic does more than simply discuss or
evaluate the importance of a literary text.
 A literary critic seeks to reach a logical and reasonable
understanding of not only what a text’s authors
intends for it to mean but, also, what different cultures
and ideologies render it capable of meaning.
Qualities of a Good Critic
Hume believed that agreement among ideal critics on
aesthetic issues constituted the true standard of taste and
beauty. The ideal critic possessed five attributes: strong sense,
united to delicate sentiment, improved by practice,
perfected by comparison, and cleared of all prejudice.
1. A good critic must have superior sensibility.
2. He must also have wide erudition.
3. A good critic must be entirely impersonal and
objective.
4. He must try to discipline his personal prejudices and
whims.
5. A critic must also have a highly developed sense of
tradition.
6. An ideal critic must have knowledge of technical details
of a poem, its genesis, setting, etc.
7. Remi de Gourmont
8. A critic’s task is “to convert personal impressions into
the appearance of an abstract and universal idea”

References:
 https://www.slideshare.net/edenmaeselim/
introduction- to-literary-criticism
 https://www.slideshare.net/solankipintu/nature-
and- function-of-criticism
 https://www.slideshare.net/KetanPandya2/nature-
and- function-of-literary-criticism