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Study Guide in ELS 110 – LANGUAGE OF LITERARY TEXTS Module No: 4

STUDY GUIDE FOR MODULE NO. 4

THE CONTEMPORARY CRITICAL APPROACHES

MODULE OVERVIEW

This module is mainly a survey of contemporary critical approaches to literature. The contemporary critical
scene is bustling with activity. Structuralists, feminists, Marxists, deconstructionists, post-colonial critics,
reception-theory advocates, and critics of other shades are jostling for space.

Literary criticism, according to many, has never been more alive than it is now. In universities, there is a great
deal of theorizing going on. Critics from all over the world are writing literary criticism that is notable for its
unique observations, incisiveness, and enthusiasm for the subject matter. They are writing not only about
literature, but also about other types of debate that literary critics have previously ignored. Furthermore, there
isn't just one dominant method, but many, each of which is important in its own right.

Also, for those who are fully immersed in the art of criticism, contemporary literary criticism is challenging and
they all developed in the West. It's a very philosophical book. It's dense with jargon. In reality, contemporary
commentators are constantly chastised for using difficult language and terminology. Many people avoid
reading them because they deem the critics' writing to be "obscure" or "incomprehensible." It's not just a case
of a challenging prose form, though. These critics are often difficult to understand because their theories are
so complicated. Understanding these concepts necessitates an understanding of their philosophical
foundations. Despite the difficulties, there are certainly a few things you can learn from this.

MODULE LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of the lesson, the students should be able to:

• Discuss the different contemporary critical approaches;
• Differentiate structuralism and formalism; Marxism and feminism;
• Explain how post-structuralism undermines the authority of texts; and
• Appreciate literary works by employing these approaches.

LEARNING CONTENTS (Structuralism and Post-Structuralism)

STRUCTURALISM

֎ An approach to anthropology and other social sciences and to literature that interprets and analyses
its material in terms of oppositions, contrasts, and hierarchical structures, especially as they might
reflect universal mental characteristics or organizing principles.
֎ In its broadest sense, a science that seeks to understand how systems work. It accepts the belief that
things cannot be understood individually. Instead, they have to be seen as part of a larger structure to
which they belong. Structuralists are not so much interested in the operations (or aesthetics or
meaning) of a single entity as they are in trying to describe the underlying (and not necessarily visible)
principles by which it exists. Assuming that the individual characteristics that can be noted on the
surface are rooted in some general organization, structuralists collect observable information about an
item or practice in order to discover the laws that govern it (Dobie, 2012)
֎ In linguistics, it is an approach to linguistics that analyses and describes the structure of language,
as distinguished from its comparative and historical aspects (https://www.thefreedictionary.com/Structuralist+view).
֎ Is a mode of knowledge of nature and human life that is interested in relationships rather than
individual objects or, alternatively, where objects are defined by the set of relationships of which they
are part and not by the qualities possessed by them taken in isolation (https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-
sciences/structuralism).
֎ Emerged as a trend in the 1950s, it challenged New Criticism and rejected existentialism and its
notion of radical human freedom; it focused instead on how human behavior is determined by cultural,
social and psychological structures. In a broader sense, is a way of perceiving the world in terms of

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structures. First seen in the work of the anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss and the literary
critic Roland Barthes, the essence of Structuralism is the belief that “things cannot be understood in
isolation, they have to be seen in the context of larger structures they are part of”, The contexts of
larger structures do not exist by themselves, but are formed by our way of perceiving the world. In
structuralist criticism, consequently, there is a constant movement away from the interpretation of the
individual literary work towards understanding the larger structures which contain them
(https://literariness.org/2016/03/20/structuralism/).
֎ Structuralists believe that the underlying structures which organize rules and units into meaningful
systems are generated by the human mind itself and not by sense perception. Structuralism tries to
reduce the complexity of human experiences to certain underlying structures which are universal, an
idea which has its roots in the classicists like Aristotle who identified simple structures as forming the
basis of life. A structure can be defined as any conceptual system that has three properties:
“wholeness” (the system should function as a whole), “transformation” (system should not be static),
and “self-regulation (the basic structure should not be changed) (https://literariness.org/2016/03/20/structuralism/).
֎ The roots of Structuralism in literary study may be traced to the work of the Swiss linguist Ferdinand
de Saussure which is now known as structural linguistics, literature is best studied in terms of its
underlying structures rather than in characteristics of individual texts.
֎ According to structuralist, writers construct their narratives using a pattern. These patterns are found
in different types of narrative and the patterns stay the same although specific texts are exhibit
variations in details (Tolentino, 1997).
֎ Like the formalists, the structuralists believe that the literary text is an autonomous whole, a
self-sufficient system. To understand the work is to understand how the system works. The
structuralists are also like the formalists in their insistence on purely textual analysis – they do not
see any point in relating literature to life or to anything that is extrinsic to the text. This position
may be understood in terms of the structuralist concept of language as a system of signs.
֎ According to Saussure, words are not symbols which refer to things in life. Rather, words are signs
which consist of a signifier (a written mark or a sound that is spoken) and a signified (an idea or
concept that comes to mind when the word is written or spoken).
֎ This structuralist concept of language has great implication on the interpretation of literary works.
֎ If words do not signify things or reality, then, by extension, literature (which is expressed in words)
does not also represent reality. What it represents is that reality as ordered by the structure of
language and also by the structure of the text. This would partly explain the structuralist position that
literary analysis does not have to concern itself with the work's connection to life or reality. In
structuralism, only the system or structure of signs is important.
֎ Structuralism influenced the critical approaches that came after it, but in itself, it failed become a
dominant and lasting mode of literary analysis. After a while, critics became tired of the exclusive
attention that it gave to structures. They also questioned the manner which one derives the structures
of texts.

POSTSTRUCTURALISM

֎ Attributed to the writings of the French philosopher Jacques Derrida who formulated new and very
complex notions of how language and texts operate.
֎ From the point of view of structuralism, language does not point to things or to reality but only to a
conception of those things or that reality. Hence, there is no one-to-one correspondence between the
word and the thing to which it allegedly refers. Language is therefore an imperfect medium. This is the
structuralist idea that the poststructuralists have extended. They claim that if language is an imperfect
vehicle for truth, all forms of discourse (anything expressed in language) must be imperfect and
ultimately false.
֎ Thus, the aim of the poststructuralist critic is to undermine the authority of texts. This partly
explains why the poststructuralist method is often called by the name of deconstruction.
֎ What do we mean by the authority of texts? When an author writes a piece of text, he tries to impose
order on his material. He seeks completeness.
֎ Thus, the completed text presents itself as something that is coherent and complete. On this rests its
authority. However, the deconstructionists would say that such claims have no basis in fact. And they
try to prove this by deconstructing the text. In general, when you deconstruct something, you take it
apart. This is also the process involved in literary deconstruction. The deconstructionist literally shreds
the text to pieces. This means that every element in the work is examined meticulously, almost
painstakingly. The language used is subjected to close scrutiny.
֎ In New Criticism, the stress is on how the text finally holds together and makes sense,

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poststructuralism emphasizes the way in which a text becomes problematic and confused.

֎ This approach “rejects the traditional assumption that language can accurately represent reality.”
Deconstructionist critics regard language as a fundamentally unstable medium—the words “tree” or
“dog,” for instance, undoubtedly conjure up different mental images for different people—and
therefore, because literature is made up of words, literature possesses no fixed, single meaning.
According to critic Paul de Man, deconstructionists insist on “the impossibility of making the actual
expression coincide with what has to be expressed, of making the actual signs coincide with what is
signified.”
֎ As a result, deconstructionist critics tend to emphasize not what is being said but how language is
used in a text. The methods of this approach tend to resemble those of formalist criticism, but
whereas formalists’ primary goal is to locate unity within a text, “how the diverse elements of a text
cohere into meaning,” deconstructionists try to show how the text “deconstructs,” “how it can be
broken down ... into mutually irreconcilable positions.” Other goals of deconstructionists include (1)
challenging the notion of authors’ “ownership” of texts they create (and their ability to control the
meaning of their texts) and (2) focusing on how language is used to achieve power, as when they try
to understand how some interpretations of a literary work come to be regarded as “truth.”
(http://home.olemiss.edu/~egjbp/spring97/litcrit.html).
֎ Deconstruction, then, may be useful in dealing with texts that we find disagreeable. Through a
deconstructive reading, the authority of such texts can be undermined.

LEARNING CONTENTS (Marxist Criticism, Feminist Criticism, and Reader-Response Criticism )

MARXIST CRITICISM

 Fully developed during the contemporary period and may be traced to Karl Marx who proposed a
revolutionary way of looking at history and human society.
 Marxist criticism is not merely a 'sociology of literature', concerned with how novels get published
and whether they mention the working class. Its aim is to explain the literary work more fully; and
this means a sensitive attention to its forms, styles and, meanings. But it also means grasping
those forms, styles and meanings as the product of a particular history.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marxist_literary_criticism#:~:text=Marxism%20was%20introduced%20by%20Karl%20Marx.&text=
Marxist%20criticism%20is%20not%20merely,forms%2C%20styles%20and%2C%20meanings.
 According to Marxists, and to other scholars in fact, literature reflects those social institutions out of
which it emerges and is itself a social institution with a particular ideological function. Literature
reflects class struggle and materialism: think how often the quest for wealth traditionally defines
characters. Marxists generally view literature "not as works created in accordance with timeless
artistic criteria, but as 'products' of the economic and ideological determinants specific to that era".
Literature reflects an author's own class or analysis of class relations, however piercing or shallow
that analysis may be.
 The Marxist critic simply is a careful reader or viewer who keeps in mind issues of power and money,
and any of the following kinds of questions:
1. What role does class play in the work; what is the author's analysis of class relations?
2. How do characters overcome oppression?
3. In what ways does the work serve as propaganda for the status quo; or does it try to undermine it?
4. What does the work say about oppression; or are social conflicts ignored or blamed elsewhere?
5. Does the work propose some form of utopian vision as a solution to the problems encountered in the
work? (https://public.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/marxist.crit.html)
 Attempts to clarify the relationship of literary works to social reality.
 Its major objective is not simply to arrive at an interpretation of literary texts, but to define the political
dimensions of literary works. The Marxists assume that a writer’s political perspectives are embedded
in his/ her work.

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 Marxist critics do not accept the formalist idea that a literary work is self-sufficient and can have a
meaning on its own. They claim that literature does not exist in a vacuum. It is a product of society
and it exists within society. Therefore, the literary work has a definite relationship with that society.
 Marxist literary criticism, therefore, situates the study of literature in the context of social issues. It
raises questions about the relevance of literary works to the struggle of people for a better life
(Tolentino, 1997).

FEMINIST CRITICISM

 A feminist critic approaches literary texts with a keen eye for details or aspects of the work which
exhibit or suggest patriarchal views.
 Feminist literary criticism is literary criticism informed by feminist theory, or more broadly, by the
politics of feminism. It uses the principles and ideology of feminism to critique the language of
literature. This school of thought seeks to analyze and describe the ways in which literature portrays
the narrative of male domination by exploring the economic, social, political, and psychological forces
embedded within literature (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminist_literary_criticism)
 In analyzing a novel, for example, the feminist critic could look at the women characters and the
role that they play in the novel. Are they marginal, i.e., insignificant, characters? If these women
characters are allowed to influence the course of events in the story, what is the nature of that
influence? Are they portrayed sympathetically? Or are they treated in a derogatory manner? The
analysis could focus on the views that women characters express. It could also focus on how the
male characters view the women characters in the story (Tolentino, 1997).
 Feminist criticism is applied to literature by examining the characters' portrayals, the text's
language, the author's attitude, and the inter-character relationships. Feminist critics also consider
the author's apparent commentary about society as a whole (https://fairygodboss.com/career-topics/feminist-
criticism).
 This approach examines images of women and concepts of the feminine in myth and literature; uses
the psychological, archetypal, and sociological approaches; often focuses on female characters who
have been neglected in previous criticism. Feminist critics attempt to correct or supplement what they
regard as a predominantly male-dominated critical perspective.
 The objective of such an analysis is to define the position of women in narratives, and to expose
the male biases that are possibly hidden in the text (Tolentino, 1997).
 Feminist criticism is concerned with "the ways in which literature (and other cultural productions)
reinforce or undermine the economic, political, social, and psychological oppression of women". This
school of theory looks at how aspects of our culture are inherently patriarchal (male dominated) and
aims to expose misogyny in writing about women, which can take explicit and implicit forms
(https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/subject_specific_writing/writing_in_literature/literary_theory_and_schools_of_criticism/feminist_critic
ism.html#:~:text=Feminist%20criticism%20is%20concerned%20with,women%22%20(Tyson%2083)
 Gender Criticism: This approach “examines how sexual identity influences the creation and
reception of literary works.” Originally an offshoot of feminist movements, gender criticism today
includes a number of approaches, including the so-called “masculinist” approach recently advocated
by poet Robert Bly. The bulk of gender criticism, however, is feminist and takes as a central precept
that the patriarchal attitudes that have dominated western thought have resulted, consciously or
unconsciously, in literature “full of unexamined ‘male-produced’ assumptions.” Feminist criticism
attempts to correct this imbalance by analyzing and combatting such attitudes—by questioning, for
example, why none of the characters in Shakespeare’s play Othello ever challenge the right of a
husband to murder a wife accused of adultery. Other goals of feminist critics include “analyzing how
sexual identity influences the reader of a text” and “examining how the images of men and women in
imaginative literature reflect or reject the social forces that have historically kept the sexes from
achieving total equality.” (http://home.olemiss.edu/~egjbp/spring97/litcrit.html).

READER-RESPONSE CRITICISM

 The central idea is that a work of literature does not exist as “words on a page”, it has no objective
existence, it only exists when it has entered the mind of a reader. It implies that the reader is the most
crucial factor in the making of texts. It is the reader’s response to the literary text that counts.
 This approach takes as a fundamental tenet that “literature” exists not as an artifact upon a printed
page but as a transaction between the physical text and the mind of a reader. It attempts “to describe
what happens in the reader’s mind while interpreting a text” and reflects that reading, like writing, is a
creative process. According to reader-response critics, literary texts do not “contain” a meaning;

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meanings derive only from the act of individual readings. Hence, two different readers may derive
completely different interpretations of the same literary text; likewise, a reader who re-reads a work
years later may find the work shockingly different. Reader-response criticism, then, emphasizes how
“religious, cultural, and social values affect readings; it also overlaps with gender criticism in exploring
how men and women read the same text with different assumptions.” Though this approach rejects
the notion that a single “correct” reading exists for a literary work, it does not consider all readings
permissible: “Each text creates limits to its possible interpretations.”
(http://home.olemiss.edu/~egjbp/spring97/litcrit.html).
 Studies how a reader makes sense of literary texts. This implies that the reading is determined by
several factors, which are mostly personal:
a. Meanings of words
b. Knowledge about the type of writing
c. Past experiences
d. Emotional state at the moment of reading
e. Familiarity with literary conventions

 What matters ultimately in this approach is not just the subjective responses of readers, but
also the conventions of reading which determine how we respond to literary texts.

LEARNING ACTIVITY

Search and read the literary work of Ruth Elynia S. Mabanglo entitled “Liham ni Pinay Mula sa
Brunei”, then critic the literary text guided by the following questions. You may also discuss your
points anchored on the objectives of feminist criticism.
A. How are women’s lives portrayed in the work?
B. Is the form and content of the work influenced by the writer’s gender?
C. How do male and female characters relate to one another? Are these relationships sources of
conflict? Are these conflicts resolved?
D. Does the work challenge or affirm traditional views of women?
E. How do the images of women in the story reflect patriarchal social forces that have impeded women’s
efforts to achieve full equality with men?
F. What marital expectations are imposed on the characters? What effect do these expectations have?
G. What behavioral expectations are imposed on the characters? What effect do these expectations
have?
H. If a female character were male, how would the story be different (and vice versa)?
I. How does the marital status of a character affect her decisions or happiness?

REFERENCES

Dobie, Ann B. (2009). Theory into Practice: Introduction to Literary Criticism. Boston: Wadsworth CENGAGE
Learning.

Tolentino, Delfin L. (1997). Literary Theory and Critical Practice. University of the Philippines Open University
Systems.

https://www.thefreedictionary.com/Structuralist+view

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/structuralism

https://literariness.org/2016/03/20/structuralism/

https://literariness.org/2016/03/20/structuralism/

http://home.olemiss.edu/~egjbp/spring97/litcrit.html

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marxist_literary_criticism#:~:text=Marxism%20was%20introduced%20by%20Karl%20Marx.&text=Marxist%2
0criticism%20is%20not%20merely,forms%2C%20styles%20and%2C%20meanings

https://public.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/marxist.crit.html

http://home.olemiss.edu/~egjbp/spring97/litcrit.html

Prepared by:

Rizza S. Baldonado, Ed. D.

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