LITERARY CRITICISM

• Types of Literary Criticism


  • Theoretical criticism
  • Practical criticism or applied criticism
  • Impressionistic criticism
  • Judicial criticism
• Theoretical criticism


  Proposes an explicit theory of literature, in sense of general principles, together with a set of terms, distinctions, and categories, to be applied to identifying and analyzing works of literature, as well as the criteria (The standards, or norms) by which these works and their writers are to be evaluated
• Practical criticism or applied criticism


  Concerns itself with the discussion of particular works and writers; in an applied critique, the theoretical principles controlling the mode of the analysis, interpretation, and evaluation are often left implicit, or brought in only as the occasion demands
• Impressionistic criticism


  Attempts to represent in words the felt qualities of a particular passage or work, and to express the responses (the "impression") that the work directly evokes from the critic
• Judicial criticism


  Attempts not merely to communicate, but to analyze and explain the effects of a work by reference to its subject, organization, techniques, and style, and to base the critic's judgments on specified criteria of literary excellence
• Types of Traditional Critical Theories and Applied Criticism


  • Mimetic criticism
  • Pragmatic criticism
  • Expressive criticism
  • Objective criticism
• Mimetic criticism


  Views the literary work as an imitation, or reflection, or representation of the world and human life, and the primary criterion applied to a work is the "truth" and "adequacy" of its representation to the matter that it represents or should represent
• Pragmatic criticism


  Views the work as something which is constructed to achieve certain effects on the audience (effects such as aesthetic pleasure, instruction, or kinds of emotion), and it tends to judge the value of the work according to its successes in achieving that aim
• Expressive criticism


  Treats a literary work primarily in relation to its author. It defines as an expression, or overflow, or utterance of feelings, or as the product of the poet's imagination operating on his or her perceptions, thoughts, and feelings; it tends to judge the work by its sincerity, or its adequacy to the poet's individual vision or state of mind; and it often seeks in the work evidences of the particular temperament and experiences of the author who, consciously or unconsciously has revealed himself or herself in it
• Objective criticism


  Deals with a work of literature as something which stands free from what is often called an "extrinsic" relationship to the poet, or to the audience, or to the environing world. Instead, it describes the literary product as a self-sufficient (independent) and autonomous object, or else as a world-in-itself, which is to be contemplated as its own end, and to be analysed and judged solely by "intrinsic" criteria such as its complexity, coherence, equilibrium, integrity, and the interrelations of its component elements
• Literary Devices refers to the typical structures used by writers in their works to convey his or her message(s) in a simple manner to his or her readers
• A literary device is any specific aspect of literature, or a particular work, which we can recognize, identify, interpret and/or analyze
• Two Kinds of Literary Devices


  • Literary Elements
  • Literary Techniques
• Literary Elements


  Have an inherent existence in literary piece and are extensively employed by writers to develop a literary piece e.g. plot, setting, narrative structure, characters, mood, theme, moral etc. Writers simply cannot create his desired work without including Literary Elements in a thoroughly professional manner
• Common Literary Elements


  • Plot
  • Setting
  • Protagonist
  • Antagonist
  • Narrator
  • Narrative method
  • Dialogue
  • Conflict
  • Mood
  • Theme
  • Point-of-view
  • Tragic hero/tragic figure
  • Tragic flaw
• Literary Techniques


  Structures usually a words or phrases in literary texts that writers employ to achieve not merely artistic ends but also readers a greater understanding and appreciation of their literary works. Examples are: metaphor, simile, alliteration, hyperbole, allegory etc. In contrast to Literary Elements, Literary Techniques are not unavoidable aspect of literary works. Literary techniques are specific, deliberate constructions of language which an author uses to convey meaning. An author's use of a literary technique usually occurs with a single word or phrase, or a particular group of words or phrases, at one single point in a text. Unlike literary elements, literary techniques are not necessarily present in every text
• Common Literary Techniques

  • Imagery
  • Simile and Metaphor
  • Hyperbole
  • Personification
  • Alliteration
  • Allegory
  • Irony
  • Anthropomorphism
  • Blank verse
  • Creative license
  • Dialogue
  • Dramatic irony
  • Exposition
  • Figurative language
  • Foreshadowing
  • Iambic pentameter
  • Irony (a.k.a. Situational irony)
  • Onomatopoeia
  • Oxymoron
  • Paradox
  • Parallelism
  • Repetition
  • Symbolism
  • Verbal irony
• In general, the literary devices are a collection of universal artistic structures that are so typical of all works of literature frequently employed by the writers to give meanings and a logical framework to their works through language
• • Verbal irony: Where the meaning is intended to be the exact opposite of what the words actually mean.
• • Symbolism: The use of specific objects or images to represent abstract ideas.
• Repetition: Where a specific word, phrase, or structure is repeated several times, to emphasize a particular idea.
• • Parallelism: Use of similar or identical language, structures, events, or ideas in different parts of a text.
• • Paradox: A seemingly self-contradictory statement which can be proven to be true.
• • Oxymoron: A contradiction in terms.
• • Onomatopoeia: Where sounds are spelled out as words; or, when words describing sounds actually sound like the sounds they describe.
• Irony (a.k.a. Situational irony): Where an event occurs which is unexpected, and which is in absurd or mocking opposition to what is expected or appropriate.
• • Iambic pentameter: Poetry written with each line containing ten syllables, in five repetitions of a two-syllable pattern wherein the pronunciation emphasis is on the second syllable.
• • Foreshadowing: Where future events in a story, or perhaps the outcome, are suggested by the author before they happen.
• • Figurative language: Any use of language where the intended meaning differs from the actual literal meaning of the words themselves.
• • Exposition: Where an author interrupts a story in order to explain something, usually to provide important background information.
• • Dramatic irony: Where the audience or reader is aware of something important, of which the characters in the story are not aware.
• Dialogue: Where characters speak to one another; may often be used to substitute for exposition.
• • Creative license: Exaggeration or alteration of objective facts or reality to enhance meaning in a fictional context.
• Blank verse: Non-rhyming poetry, usually written in iambic pentameter.
• Anthropomorphism: Where animals or inanimate objects are portrayed in a story as people, such as by walking, talking, or being given arms, legs and/or facial features.
• Imagery: It is the use of figurative language to create visual representations of actions, objects and ideas in our mind in such a way that they appeal to our physical senses. 
• Simile and Metaphor: Both compare two distinct objects and draws similarity between them. The difference is that Simile uses “as” or “like” and Metaphor does not.
• Hyperbole: It is deliberate exaggeration of actions and ideas for the sake of emphasis. 
• Personification: It gives a thing, an idea or animal human qualities. 
• Alliteration: It refers to the same consonant sounds in words coming together.