stupid poop quiz

literary theory

• Theories developed and utilized to better understand a work of literature. This can be done with or without outside research.

literary criticism

• Critical reviews of literary works that are peer reviewed by experts on an author, text, or discipline. Usually written by professors and scholars.

literary lenses

• The “rules” or perspectives applied to a text to better understand it.

text

• In literary theory, analysis, and lenses, a text is the book or short story being analyzed.

formalist analysis

• An analysis that considers fiction a world unto itself. All analysis is based only on the text and the reader’s thoughts, without outside research.

new criticism

• A form of literary criticism that uses formalist analysis to view the text as an independent entity. Meaning is found through close reading rather than outside influences

biographical analysis

• An approach based on the idea that an author’s life can provide insight into the meaning of a literary work.

gender analysis

• Examines how sexual identity influences the creation and reception of literary works. Includes feminist and LGBT analysis.

feminist analysis

• Examines literature through concepts of gender, sexuality, and gender stereotypes, viewing gender as largely socially constructed.

LGBT analysis

• Considers the sexuality of the author, reader, and characters as important to understanding texts.

marxist analysis

• Based on the ideas of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels; focuses on money, class, and power within a text.

• Psychological/Psychoanalytical Analysis

• Views literature as an expression of the author’s mind, personality, feelings, and desires, often using psychological theories.

reader-response analysis

• Focuses on the reader’s reaction to a text and how personal experiences shape interpretation.

• Deconstructionist Analysis

• Rejects the idea that language can perfectly represent reality and argues that language is unstable, making meaning unstable as well.

• Poststructuralist Analysis

• Studies how language structures human culture and perception, emphasizing larger systems that shape thought and meaning.

• Historical Analysis

• Examines literature within its historical context and considers how the time period influences the work and its interpretation.

• Sociological Analysis

• Studies literature in relation to cultural, economic, and political contexts.

• Mythological/Archetypal Analysis

• — Looks at recurring archetypes, symbols, and universal patterns in literature, often connected to Carl Jung’s idea of the collective unconscious.