Page 310 - DENG501_LITERARY_CRITICISM_AND_THEORIES

Literary Criticism and Theories

Notes language, Helene Cixous posits ecriture Feminine (Feminine writing) and Julia Kristeva
posits a Chora, or pre-linguistic signifying system that she labels ‘semiotics’.
• Thus, Feminist literary criticism was influenced by multiple literary theories and criticism
and congregate them into an organic whole so as to expose objective reality. As Elaine
Showalter has observed, “English Feminist Criticism, essentially Marxist, stresses oppression,
French Feminist Criticism, essentially psychoanalytic, stresses represession; American Feminist
Criticism, essentually textual, stresses expressions”.

27.8 Key-Words

1. Essentialism : Refers to ways of conceiving people, cultures, etc. as having certain innate,
natural or universal characteristics. Essentialism is strongly contested in
most contemporary literary theory. The following three statements are all
examples of essentialist thinking:
(i) ‘I have a personality and individuality which is com-letely unaffected
by anything out there in the “real” world, such as language, economics,
education, nationality, etc.’;
(ii) ‘Women are more intelligent, caring and sensitive than men’;
(iii) ‘At bottom, you are either white or black, and that’s all there is to it’.
27.9 Review Questions

1. Discuss the critical importance of Feminist Criticism in wildernesses.
2. What do you mean by Gynocritics?
3. Explain the major works of Showalter.
4. British examine Feminist Criticism in wildernesses.
Answers: Self-Assessment
1. (i)(a) (ii)(b) (iii)(a)

27.10 Further Readings

1. Hutcheon, Linda A poetics of postmodernism, London: Routledge, 1988.
2. Kennedy, X.J., Dana Gioia, Mark Bauerlein, Handbook of Literary Terms:
Literature, Language, Theory, 1st edition, New Delhi: Pearson, 2007.
3. Lodge, David (ed.) Twentieth Century Literary Criticism, London: Longman,
1972.
4. Rice, Philip and Patricia Waugh (eds.) A Modern Literary Theory: A Reader, 3rd
edition, London: Arnold, 1999.
5. Sethuraman, V.S. and Ramaswamy (eds.) The English Critical Tradition, Volume
II, New Delhi, Macmillan, 1977.
6. Seturaman, V.S. (ed.) Contemporary Criticism: An Anthology, New Delhi:
Macmillan, 2008.

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