Schools of Literacy Criticism

Archetypal

based on carl jung

Archetypal

the "collective unconcious"

Archetypal

Hero's Journey

Feminist/Gender Criticism

Concerned with the ways in which literature reinforces or undermines the economic, political, social and psychological oppression of woman

Feminist/Gender Criticism

A question asked might be: how are the women's lives portrayed in the work?

Marxist

Grounded in the economic and cultural theories of Karl Marx

Marxist

Focuses on power and money in works of literature

Marxist

Focuses on how the work and lower classes are oppressed in life and literture

Marxist

Maintains a belief that human behavior is driven by material realities rather than ideologies

Marxist

A question asked: Who has the power/money? Who does not?

Marxist

A question asked: Whom does it benefit? Is the work or effort accepted successful/believed, etc.

New/Formalist

Focuses on finding meaning in the form (literary elements and techniques) of a piece

New/Formalist

What we used this when approaching our unit on style analysis

New/Formalist

How does the work use imagery to develop its own symbols?

New/Formalist

How are the parts interconnected?

Psychological

Based on the works of Sigmund FUnd

Psychological

Looks at characters as patients in therapy

Psychological

Deals with a work of literature as an expression of the personality, state of mind, feelings, and desires of its author

Psychological

What behaviors are conscious? Unconcious?

Psychological

What motivates the characters?

New Historical

Stress the relationship of literature to the historical period in which it was produced

New Historical

Believes that we don't/can't look at history objectively, but that our understanding is an interpretation rooted in our historical context

New Historical

How does the work consider traditionally marginalized populations?

New Historical

How can we use the work to "map" the interplay of traditional and subversive ideas circulating in the culture from which the work emerged?

New Historical

How are the events interpreted and presented? How are those interpretations and presentations a product of the cultural norms of the author?

Moral/Intellectual

Concerned with content and values

Moral/Intellectual

Concerned not only with discovering meaning but also with determining whether works of literature are both true and significant

Moral/Intellectual

What view of life does the story present?

Moral/Intellectual

According to the work's view of life, what is mankind's relationship to God? To the Universe?

Moral/Intellectual

How are the actions of the characters rewarded/punished?

Moral/Intellectual

What does the work say about the concept of good and evil?