Critical Aproaches Final
Melissa Sokolow
Dr. Cahir
Critical Approaches
18 May 2015
Literary theories were developed as a means to understand the various ways people read texts. The supporters of each theory believe their theory is the only theory, but most readers interpret texts according to the rules of several different theories at a time. All literary theories are critical approaches, which allows the reader to interpret texts from a different perspective. If a reader interprets a text with one theory in mind they may end up with a new perspective on their reading. Shakespeare’s play Macbeth can be interpreted in a variety ways depending on the applied literary theory. If a reader applied the Feminist theory, Psychoanalytic/Freudian criticism, and New Historicism theory it would give them an altered interpretation of the play. Feminism in literature is a newer area of study and thought. The basis of the movement, both in literature and society, is that the Western world is fundamentally patriarchal, which means men have created it, ruled it, and the world is viewed through the eyes of men, and judged by men. The social movement of feminism found its approach to literature in the 1960s. Women had already been writing and publishing for centuries, but the 1960s saw the rise of a literary theory. Until then, the works of female writers or work written about females were examined by the same standards as those by male writers and about men. Women were thought to be unintelligent and were generally less formally educated than men; several women accepted that judgment. It was not until the feminist movement was well under way that women began examining old texts to reevaluate their portrayal of women and writing new works to fit the “modern woman.”
The feminist approach is based on finding suggestions of misogyny, negative attitudes about women within pieces of literature and exposing them. Feminists are interested in exposing elements in literature that have been accepted as the
Dr. Cahir
Critical Approaches
18 May 2015
Literary theories were developed as a means to understand the various ways people read texts. The supporters of each theory believe their theory is the only theory, but most readers interpret texts according to the rules of several different theories at a time. All literary theories are critical approaches, which allows the reader to interpret texts from a different perspective. If a reader interprets a text with one theory in mind they may end up with a new perspective on their reading. Shakespeare’s play Macbeth can be interpreted in a variety ways depending on the applied literary theory. If a reader applied the Feminist theory, Psychoanalytic/Freudian criticism, and New Historicism theory it would give them an altered interpretation of the play. Feminism in literature is a newer area of study and thought. The basis of the movement, both in literature and society, is that the Western world is fundamentally patriarchal, which means men have created it, ruled it, and the world is viewed through the eyes of men, and judged by men. The social movement of feminism found its approach to literature in the 1960s. Women had already been writing and publishing for centuries, but the 1960s saw the rise of a literary theory. Until then, the works of female writers or work written about females were examined by the same standards as those by male writers and about men. Women were thought to be unintelligent and were generally less formally educated than men; several women accepted that judgment. It was not until the feminist movement was well under way that women began examining old texts to reevaluate their portrayal of women and writing new works to fit the “modern woman.”
The feminist approach is based on finding suggestions of misogyny, negative attitudes about women within pieces of literature and exposing them. Feminists are interested in exposing elements in literature that have been accepted as the
Cited: Harris, Jonathan Gil. “Freudian Psychoanalysis.” Shakespeare and Literary Theory. New York:Oxford University Press, 2010. 84. Print. Johnson, Ben. Historic UK. History of Scotland/ Duncan- Macbeth. 2015. Shakespeare, William. William C. Carroll, ed. Macbeth. New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 1999. Tyson, Lois. Critical Theory Today: A User-Friendly Guide. New York: Taylor & Francis Group, 2006. .