Introduction to literary theory powerpoint sample pdf author. Literary theory and schools of criticism introduction. What are some good examples of formalism in literature. A basic approach to reading and understanding literature. Formalism is a school of literary criticism and literary theory having mainly to do with structural. This is the main difference between literary criticism and literary theory. The dialog between socrates and two of his associates shows the participants of this discussion concluding that art must play a limited and very. Literary criticism, the reasoned consideration of literary works and issues. The dialog between socrates and two of his associates shows the participants of this discussion concluding that art. Petersburg later leningrad and led by viktor shklovsky. Formalism, new criticism, structuralism, poststructuralism. Russian formalism was an influential school of literary criticism in russia from the 1910s to the 1930s. Examining formalism in light of more recent developments in literary theory, peter steiner here offers the.
It applies, as a term, to any argumentation about literature, whether or not specific works are analyzed. There are many different kinds of feminist literary theory. It had its heyday in the 1920s and it acquired its name from. The formalist approach regards literature as a very specific unit of human knowledge that has to be examined on its own terms and for its own sake. The formalist approach focuses on the form of the literary text itself. The word formalism is derived from the central belief of the formalists approach. Formalism, also called russian formalism, russian russky formalism, innovative 20thcentury russian school of literary criticism. Formalist literary theory essay sample sample essays. Jan 24, 20 formalism is a literary theory that was spearheaded by two main bodies russian formalists and new critics which focused on understanding the literary text through the text itself. The possibilities of socialpsychological methodology as applied to national specificity of research activity in russia are examined. Literary criticism meaning in the cambridge english. Formalism also known as new criticism a basic approach to reading and understanding literature.
The literary criticism is a concept, formed on the basis of critical analysis and primarily estimates the value and merit of literary works for the presence or quality of certain parameters of literary characteristics. In the field of literary criticism, a formalist approach is one that studies a text as a text and nothing more. What is russian formalism, and what was its effect on. New critics kept art and life separate while russian formalists explored the relation between the two. Some have looked at a story or play from a moral stance, considering how values are represented in a text.
A readers guide to contemporary literary theory fifth edition selden, widdowson, brooker. It is a school of literary criticism that originated in the former russia around 1915. Since ancient times, readers have debated and critiqued literature from a variety of perspectives. Russian formalism the johns hopkins guide to literary. What are the major differences between russian formalism. Literary criticism new criticism and russian formalism. Engl 300 lecture 7 russian formalism open yale courses.
Mainly formalism excludes intellectual, biographical and historical contexts while analyzing a text. A checklist of formalist critical questions here is a list of some questions from a formalist perspective. Formalism is a school of literary criticism and literary theory having mainly to do with structural purposes of a particular text. Russian formalism, which emerged around 1915 and flourished in the 1920s, was associated with the opojaz society for the study of poetic language and with the moscow linguistic society one of the leading figures of which was roman jakobson and. Opoyaz, an acronym for russian words meaning society for the study of poetic language, founded in 1916 at st. An essay by nasrullah mambrol on march 17, 2016 10. Nonetheless, formalism received a counteroffensive in the 1950s. The new critics practised close reading, which looked for nuances in meaning and linguistic effects in texts. Formalism is a method of criticism which examines a literary text or artwork through its aesthetic composition such as form, language, technique and style formalism, 2018. Most importantly, the literary theory known as structuralism developed as an outgrowth of linguistic theories aiming to. Overall, literary criticism, with it all formalistic approaches studies the text just like text, nothing more.
Russian formalism is the european counterpart of the angloamerican new criticism. The new criticism was a formalist movement in literary theory that dominated american literary criticism in the middle decades of the 20th century. The place of literary criticism in the education of preservice english language teachers in efl contexts is rarely discussed in the related literature. Or a written study, evaluation and interpretation of a work of literature. Formalism rejects or sometimes simply brackets notions of culture or societal influence, authorship, and content, and instead focuses on modes, genres, discourse, and forms. Literary criticism 336 eng iirussian formalism dr mohammed fahmy raiayh 2. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of literatures goals and methods. Jan 30, 2018 introduces readers to the modes of literary and cultural study of the previous half century.
Formalism began in russia during the 20th century by a group of linguis. Get an answer for what is russian formalism, and what was its effect on literature. The russian formalists were an eclectic con stellation of figures from a variety of fields, including literary criticism, linguistics, phi. Its principles posed a great shift from the traditional approaches during its time, and so it sparked a movement in the field of literary studies. The attempt of this school was to make the study of literature more scientific in nature. Literary criticism or literary studies is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. A formalist reading of poetry focuses on rhymes, structure, rhythms, and cadences, without seeking its cultural or political context. Literary and theoretical texts for all your formalism needs. Formalism also known as new criticism a basic approach. Examining formalism in light of more recent developments in literary theory, peter steiner here offers the most comprehensive critique of formalism to date. Formalism is a school of literary criticism that originated in the former soviet union during the first world war. Formalist critics an introduction to literary study. Eikhenbaums dependency on core ideas of marxist and darwinian philosophies of struggle and evolution is explained.
Russian formalism, new criticism, neoaristotelianism. A readers guide to contemporary literary theory 5th edition. Apr, 2019 this video is a part of video series where arpita explains frequently asked critical theories in ugc net set jrf exams. Formalism also known as new criticism a basic approach to reading and understanding literature armstrong atlantic state university formalist theory has dominated the american literary scene for most of the twentieth century, and it has. Affective fallacy according to the followers of new criticism, the misconception that arises from judging a poem by the. It applies the philosophies and perspectives of feminism to the literature we read. Formalism in literature refers specifically to unique inquiry style that focuses on some important features of literary texts. Apr 06, 2012 literary criticism, ii, russian formalism 1. Richards and his followers, traditionally the new criticism, has sometimes been labelled formalist. It is a school of literary criticism that originated in. Created using powtoon free sign up at create animated videos and animated presentations for free. The formalist approach, in this sense, is a continuation of aspects of classical rhetoric russian formalism was a twentieth century school, based in eastern europe, with roots in linguistic studies and also. Some theorists examine the language and symbols that are used and how that language and use of.
Moving thru historical creation of each approach starting in 20th c criticism roots in other philosophers aristotle, longinus, etc. It had its heyday in the 1920s and it acquired its name from its emphasis on form rather than on content. These questions can be applicable to the analysis of a short story or a novel. Russian formalism second edition 2005 russian formalism is the name for a group of literary scholars and linguists who between 1916 and 1929, while most were still in their twenties, developed a series of innovative theoretical concepts, claims. Feminist literary criticism helps us look at literature in a different light. In the field of literary criticism, a formalist approach is one that. Russian formalism was a literary movement a school of literary criticism that emerged in former soviet union in early phase of 20 th century. Formalism is a literary theory that was spearheaded by two main bodies russian formalists and new critics which focused on understanding the literary text through the text itself. Formalism formalism is the view that theoretical information about an object, or practical guidance about how to treat it, are to be derived from attention to its form rather than its matter or content. Nov 03, 2016 literary criticism is the study, evaluation and interpretation of literature whereas literary theory is the different frameworks used to evaluate and interpret a particular work. The formalist tradition developed in russian literary criticism in. Formalism, innovative 20thcentury russian school of literary criticism. The field of literary criticism has been moulded by various criticisms like mimetic criticism, pragmatic criticism, expressive criticism, historical criticism, biographical criticism, sociological criticism, psychological criticism and archetypal.
A formalist approach 4 the shift from the moral approach to the scientific one is important. Difference between literary criticism and literary theory. Formalism 347 look for symbolic, or some other, significance for the specific items and animals chosen for the. Formalist literary theory 11 november 2016 formalism is a literary theory that was spearheaded by two main bodies russian formalists and new critics which focused on understanding the literary text through the text itself. The presentation explicates the school of theory and analysis which emerged around 1915 in russia and aimed teo create the science of literature. He begins by distinguishing russian formalism from hermeneutics. It emphasized close reading, particularly of poetry, to discover how a work of literature functioned as a selfcontained, selfreferential aesthetic object.
English core paper methodology of literature en5b03 methodology of literature pdf to download the material click on the above link topics covered russian formalism, new criticism, archetypal criticism, myth criticism, deconstruction, poststructuralism, reader response read more. Here are some articles of faith i could subscribe to. Victor shklovskys 1914 essay on futurist poetry, the resurrection of the word marked the beginning of russian formalism. An informed analysis and evaluation of a piece of literature. This video is a part of video series where arpita explains frequently asked critical theories in ugc net set jrf exams. Literary criticism is the practice of interpreting and writing about literature as the latter,in turn, strives to make sense of the world. Pdf the presentation explicates the school of theory and analysis which emerged around 1915. Introduces readers to the modes of literary and cultural study of the previous half century. Russian formalism, which emerged around 1915 and flourished in the 1920s, was associated with the opojaz society for the study of poetic language and with the moscow linguistic society one of the leading figures of which was roman jakobson and prague. Study flashcards on literary criticism new criticism and russian formalism at. In contemporary discussions of literary theory, the school of criticism of i.
I have never seen the term close reading in discussions russian formalism. Though the two activities are closely related, literary critics are not always, and have not always been, theorists. The essential point for the verification of a hypothesis of. Formalists disagreed about what specific elements make a literary work good or bad. The intense focus on the literary text as such is something that new criticism had in common with russian formalism. New criticism, incorporating formalism, examines the relationships between a texts ideas and its form, between what a text says and the way it says it. Formalist theory has dominated the american literary scene for most of the twentieth century, and it has retained its great influence in many academic quarters.
Arranged by topic rather than chronology, in order to highlight the relationships between earlier and most. A companion to literary theory is a collection of 36 original essays, all by noted scholars in their field, designed to introduce the modes and ideas of contemporary literary and cultural theory. Platos cautions against the risky consequences of poetic inspiration in general in his republic are thus often. Russian formalisms intense interest in the major questions informing the practice of literary criticism i.
1 724 1454 1062 659 473 664 982 970 918 854 337 1243 992 345 504 309 679 960 610 867 1450 1404 947 926 1048 860 527 35 333 1053 455 635 129 151 210 108