college american literature. 1. post-colonialism

LITERARY THEORY: A PRIMER

College American Literature

1. Post-Colonialism

1. Post-Colonialism

Typical Questions Asked:

1. Post-Colonialism

Typical Questions Asked:How does the text, explicitly or allegorically,

represent different aspects of colonialism?

1. Post-Colonialism


represent different aspects of colonialism?What person/group does the work identify

with “other” or “stranger”? How are they described and treated?

1. Post-Colonialism


represent different aspects of colonialism?What person/group does the work identify

with “other” or “stranger”? How are they described and treated?

What does the text reveal about the politics or psychology of anti-colonial resistance?

1. Post-Colonialism

Typical Questions Asked (cont’d):What does the text reveal about the

operations of cultural difference in shaping our perceptions of ourselves, others, and the world?○ Examples: ways in which race, religion, class,

gender, sexual orientation, cultural beliefs, and customs combine to form identify

1. Post-Colonialism

Typical Questions Asked (cont’d):How does the text respond to or comment

upon the characters, themes, or assumptions or a canonized (colonialist) work?

1. Post-Colonialism

Facets

1. Post-Colonialism

FacetsPost-colonial critics are concerned

w/literature produced by colonial powers and works produced by those who were colonized.

1. Post-Colonialism

FacetsPost-colonial critics are concerned

w/literature produced by colonial powers and works produced by those who were colonized.

Looks at issues of power, economics, politics, religion, and culture – and how these elements work in relation to colonial hegemony○ Ie – western colonizers controlling the

colonized

1. Post-Colonialism

Facets A critic might be interested in works

looking at a colonialist attitudeEx: how robinson crusoe is shipwrecked and

examinations towards the black man he “colonizes” and names “Friday”.

1. Post-Colonialism

FacetsWhat is the role of western literary canon

and what colonial aspects are expressed?

1. Post-Colonialism

Who’s in charge and why?

1. Post-Colonialism

Who’s in charge and why?Look for issues on slavery, colonialist views

on “taming the savage land/peoples”

1. Post-Colonialism


on “taming the savage land/peoples”○ Ask yourself: how are the people native to a

land CHANGED, REPRESSED, or ELIMINATED in the process of colonization

1. Post-Colonialism


on “taming the savage land/peoples”○ Ask yourself: how are the people native to a

land CHANGED, REPRESSED, or ELIMINATED in the process of colonization

○ Post-colonialism DEMANDS you understand and dissect how the dominating power (the “victor) looks down on, and seeks to change, the repressed people.

1. Post-Colonialism

Caveats:

1. Post-Colonialism

Caveats:While the theory depends upon the idea that

“history is written by the victors”, it does NOT depend upon finding accusations of racism.

1. Post-Colonialism



Think like this: the terms “first/second/third world” are terms constructed by those in power to describe themselves and others. They are, by nature, a reinforcement that the western world is the dominant power

1. Post-Colonialism



Think like this: the terms “first/second/third world” are terms constructed by those in power to describe themselves and others. They are, by nature, a reinforcement that the western world is the dominant power

It is NOT a condemnation of any party, oppresser or oppressed.

2. Reader Response

2. Reader Response

Questions asked:

2. Reader Response

Questions asked:How does the interaction of text and reader

create meaning?

2. Reader Response


create meaning?How do the sounds/shapes of the words as

they appear on the page or are read out loud effect meaning?

2. Reader Response


create meaning?How do the sounds/shapes of the words as

they appear on the page or are read out loud effect meaning?

How do the reader’s life experiences, and understanding of the world, alter or effect the meaning of the text?

2. Reader Response Questions asked:

How does the interaction of text and reader create meaning?

How do the sounds/shapes of the words as they appear on the page or are read out loud effect meaning?

How do the reader’s life experiences, and understanding of the world, alter or effect the meaning of the text?

What does the text SUGGEST about the critics who first interpreted and/or the reading experience produced by that text?

2. Reader Response

Facets:

2. Reader Response

Facets:Reader Response is a criticism that

considers reader reaction to literature is vital to gaining meaning.

2. Reader Response



It can take many different forms, and the criticism can use a variety of different lenses in interpretation.

2. Reader Response



It can take many different forms, and the criticism can use a variety of different lenses in interpretation.

However you look: the reader cannot be omitted from understanding, and readers do NOT passively consume a meaning presented in a text.

2. Reader Response

Caveats:

2. Reader Response

Caveats:“Reader Response” is often misdiagnosed

as a method to dismiss text because they don’t fit with a personal world-view. This…is…inaccurate.

2. Reader Response

Caveats:“Reader Response” is often misdiagnosed

as a method to dismiss text because they don’t fit with a personal world-view. This…is…inaccurate.

RR does not give ammunition to dismiss because you disagree with the text. It, instead, gives you a method to understand WHY your biases may exist, as well as uncovering biases within a text.

3. Feminist

Questions Asked:

3. Feminist

Questions Asked:How is the relationship between men and

women portrayed?

3. Feminist


women portrayed?What are the power relationships between

men and women?

3. Feminist



men and women?How are male/female roles defined; what

constitutes masculinity/femininity?

3. Feminist



men and women?How are male/female roles defined; what

constitutes masculinity/femininity?How do the characters EMBODY or DEFY

these traits?

3. Feminist

Questions Asked:Do characters take on traits from opposite

genders? How? How does this change others’ reactions to them?

3. Feminist



What does this work reveal about the operations (economics, politics, society, psychology) of patriarchy?

3. Feminist



What does this work reveal about the operations (economics, politics, society, psychology) of patriarchy?

What does the work imply about the possibilitties of sisterhood as a mode of resisting patriarchy?

3. Feminist

Questions Asked:What does the work say about women’s

creativity?

3. Feminist


creativity?What does the history of the work’s

reception by the public and by the critics tell us about the operation of patriarchy?

3. Feminist


creativity?What does the history of the work’s

reception by the public and by the critics tell us about the operation of patriarchy?

What role does the work play in terms of women’s literary history and literary tradition?

3. Feminist

Translation:

3. Feminist

Translation:The FUN part of Feminist criticism is that

there are SO MANY ways to understand it. A feminist critic asks a variety of questions about him/herself, the world around us, and the characters in a text, in order to understand how a text supports or defies the patriarchal society.

3. Feminist

Translation:The key point to remember: feminist

criticism assumes that we live in a patriarchy – a system of government/society run by male powers. Either intentionally or unintentionally, our world is built around the idea of feminine ideas being secondary.

3. Feminist

Facets:

3. Feminist

Facets:This criticism is concerned with all of the

ways in which literature/media reinforces or undermines economic, political, social, and psychological oppression of women/feminine traits.

3. Feminist


ways in which literature/media reinforces or undermines economic, political, social, and psychological oppression of women/feminine traits…

How aspects of culture are patriarchal (male-dominated)…

3. Feminist


ways in which literature/media reinforces or undermines economic, political, social, and psychological oppression of women/feminine traits…

How aspects of culture are patriarchal (male-dominated)…

And strives to expose explicit/implicit mysogyny in male writing.

3. Feminist

Facets:“Mysogyny” can translate into many areas.

Example: anti-depressants are marketed to women, while antacids are marketed towards men.

3. Feminist

Facets:“Mysogyny” can translate into many areas.

Example: anti-depressants are marketed to women, while antacids are marketed towards men.○ Both are prescribed to both groups equally,

but clinical trials are often exclusively tested on men.

3. Feminist

Facets:Feminist criticism also looks closely at the

traditional canon – looking at the exclusion/marginalization of women writers.

3. Feminist

Facets:Feminist criticism also looks closely at the

traditional canon – looking at the exclusion/marginalization of women writers.○ Even today, unless the woman is marketed as

a “feminist writer”, there is a huge tendency to under-represent the contributions of female writers.

3. Feminist

Basic Traits:

3. Feminist

Basic Traits:While the lens is broad with a LARGE

variety of uses, these are the basic ideas in common:

3. Feminist

Basic Traits:○ Women, and feminine traits, interests, and

ideals, are oppressed by patriarchy economically, politically, socially, and psychologically; “patriarchal ideology is the primary means by which they are kept so.

3. Feminist

Basic Traits:○ Women, and feminine traits, interests, and

ideals, are oppressed by patriarchy economically, politically, socially, and psychologically; “patriarchal ideology is the primary means by which they are kept so.

○ In every domain where patriarchy is the norm, woman is “other” – marginalized, defined only be differences from male norms and values.

3. Feminist

Basic Traits:○ ALL of western (anglo-euro) civilization is

deeply rooted in patriarchal ideology…for example, in the biblical portrayal Eve is the origin of sin and death in the world.

3. Feminist



○ While biology determines sex (male/female), CULTURE determines gender values/identities (masculine/feminine)

3. Feminist



○ While biology determines sex (male/female), CULTURE determines gender values/identities (masculine/feminine)

○ ALL feminist activity, including theory and criticism, has as its ultimate goal to change the world by prompting gender equality.

3. Feminist

Basic Traits:○ Gender issues play a part in every aspect of

human production and experience, including the production and experience of literature, whether we are consciously aware of these issues or not.

3. Feminist

Caveats:

3. Feminist

Caveats:Feminist Critique does NOT

equate gender-bashing.

3. Feminist


equate gender-bashing.It is, however, multi-faceted, dealing with

three waves of feminism:

3. Feminist


equate gender-bashing.It is, however, multi-faceted, dealing with

three waves of feminism:○ 1st –late 1700’s-early 1900’s – writers like

Mary Wollstonecraft highlight inequalities of rights between the sexes. Activists like Susan B. Anthony and Victoria Woodhull contribute to women’s suffrage.

3. Feminist

Caveats:2nd Wave: early 1960’s-late 1970’s

– building on more equal working conditions during ww2, movements such as NOW, formed in 1966, cohere feminist political activism. This is the GROUNDWORK for feminist theories dovetailed into the American Civil Rights Movement, as well as Feminist theory as a literary criticism.

3. Feminist Caveats:

3rd Wave: Early 1990’s-present – resisting the perceived essentialist (over-generalized, over-simplified) ideologies and a white, heterosexual, middle class focus of previous forms of feminism, 3rd wave works to expand on marginalized populations’ experiences. It becomes much more focuses on a promotion of dialogue, community, and the valorization of the work women perform, as well as cultural contributions.

4. Marxist

4. Marxist

Before we start:

4. Marxist

Before we start:Marxism does NOT equal Communism.

Forget any silly black/white “COMMUNISM IS BAD, MM-KAY?” rhetoric you might have heard. Not only is such a statement WOEFULLY inadequate, but it also references a completely different idea from what we’re looking at here.

4. Marxist

Before we start:Marxist theory does NOT mean “espousing

a political system based on Marxism”. While the ideas we’re looking for in a Marxist lens are based on the ideas presented by Karl Marx, what we are looking at/for is similar to other lenses – dynamics of control and power.

4. Marxist

Questions Asked:

4. Marxist

Questions Asked:What is the social class of the author?

4. Marxist


○ How does the author show his/her values through the text?

4. Marxist


○ How does the author show his/her values through the text?

EXAMPLE: In “The Crucible”, If John Proctor is meant to be the “every man” character we all identify with, how does this show the “working man” and his fate against the ruling class (Puritans)?

4. Marxist

Questions Asked:What is the social class of the author?What values does the text reinforce?

4. Marxist


○ Consider pg. 157 (Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence).

4. Marxist


○ Consider pg. 157 (Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence).Chart the laws Jefferson states Britain has

REFUSED to pass – do these laws benefit business owners, or the common man?

4. Marxist


○ Consider pg. 157 (Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence).Chart the laws Jefferson states Britain has

REFUSED to pass – do these laws benefit business owners, or the common man?

Look at pg. 158 – in what way does Jefferson define a leader?

4. Marxist

Questions Asked:What is the social class of the author?What values does the text reinforce?What values does the text subvert?

4. Marxist

Questions Asked:What is the social class of the author?What values does the text reinforce?What values does the text subvert?

○ Look to Act IV of “The Crucible” – how does Hale’s status as an authority of the ruling class (the bourgeois in Marxist terms) affect those who seek to enforce execution on those accused?

4. Marxist

Questions Asked:What is the social class of the author?What values does the text reinforce?What values does the text subvert?What conflict(s) can be seen between the

values the work champions and those it portrays?

4. Marxist


values the work champions and those it portrays?○ Consider Franklin’s aphorisms (pg. 141) and

discuss the loaded assumptions made on the working class vs. aristocratic class.

4. Marxist Questions Asked:

What is the social class of the author?What values does the text reinforce?What values does the text subvert?What conflict(s) can be seen between the values

the work champions and those it portrays?○ Consider Franklin’s aphorisms (pg. 141) and

discuss the loaded assumptions made on the working class vs. aristocratic class.

○ Consider Franklin’s model day (pg. 143) – in what way does leisure (6-9pm) assume a level of financial comfort?

4. Marxist



What social classes do the characters represent?


What is the social class of the author?What values does the text reinforce?What values does the text subvert?What conflict(s) can be seen between the values

the work champions and those it portrays?What social classes do the characters

represent?○ Discussion: how feasible is the “moral perfection”

ideal that Franklin demonstrates (pg. 140) to the average person?


What is the social class of the author?What values does the text reinforce?What values does the text subvert?What conflict(s) can be seen between the


What social classes do the characters represent?

How do characters from different classes interact or conflict?


What is the social class of the author?What values does the text reinforce?What values does the text subvert?What conflict(s) can be seen between the values the

work champions and those it portrays?What social classes do the characters represent?How do characters from different classes interact or

conflict?○ Paine (pg. 161) argues that tyranny is to “bind us in all

cases whatsoever”. How is his argument a double standard when taken with the idea of slavery at the time?

4. Marxist

Questions Asked:How do different classes clash, and to what

degree does hardship/reward agree with social class?

4. Marxist

Facets:

4. Marxist

Facets:The literary theory is based on Karl Marx,

and influenced by the works of philosophers such as Georg Hegel – this school of thinking concerns itself with:

4. Marxist


and influenced by the works of philosophers such as Georg Hegel – this school of thinking concerns itself with:○ Class differences

4. Marxist



Economic differences

4. Marxist



Economic differences○ The implications/complications of a capitalist

system.

4. Marxist

Facets:“Marxism attempts to reveal the ways in

which our socioeconomic system is the ULTIMATE source of our experience.” - Tyson

4. Marxist


which our socioeconomic system is the ULTIMATE source of our experience.” – Tyson

Marxist theorists, therefore, are interested in answering the overarching question:○ Whom does it (the work, the effort, the policy,

the road, the country, et al) benefit?

4. Marxist


which our socioeconomic system is the ULTIMATE source of our experience.” – Tyson

Marxist theorists, therefore, are interested in answering the overarching question:○ Whom does it (the work, the effort, the policy,

the road, the country, et al) benefit?○ The elite? The Middle Class?

4. Marxist

Facets:The Marxist critic is interested, primarily, in

how the lower/working classes are OPPRESSED in every day life and in literature.○ This CAN be, remember, done through force,

propaganda, or omission.

4. Marxist

Discussion:

4. Marxist

Discussion:Consider the standards of a “proper life”

espoused by Franklin – in what ways do we see his struggles as unrealistic to the common man?

4. Marxist

Discussion:Consider the standards of a “proper life”

espoused by Franklin – in what ways do we see his struggles as unrealistic to the common man?○ Reader Response/Marxist bonus – consider: if

we, as the common people, see this as the popular belief of perfection…can we become perfect unless we are born wealthy???

4. Marxist

Discussion:More optimistically…consider Franklin’s

advocating of a strong moral life as an “equalizer” – how does this SUGGEST a method for all men to be truly equal in an American society?

4. Marxist

Discussion:Look to Franklin’s Axe anecdote (pg. 145)…

in what ways does Franklin seek to turn his privileged upbringing/background (printer journeyman – business owner) towards a more working class background?

4. Marxist

Discussion:Look to Franklin’s Axe anecdote (pg. 145)…

in what ways does Franklin seek to turn his privileged upbringing/background (printer journeyman – business owner) towards a more working class background?○ The Optimist: How does this anecdote

suggest a “common link” of struggles and knowledge common to those in ALL strata of society?

4. Marxist

Discussion:Look to Franklin’s aphorisms (pg. 147): your

text notes that they are updated adaptations of traditional proverbs.

4. Marxist


text notes that they are updated adaptations of traditional proverbs.○ I ask you this: what purpose is served by

selling them?

4. Marxist


text notes that they are updated adaptations of traditional proverbs.○ I ask you this: what purpose is served by

selling them?Where can we spot a business owner making a

buck?

4. Marxist


text notes that they are updated adaptations of traditional proverbs.○ The optimist in you will ask this: how do these

aphorisms show a “universality”, free of class-labels?

4. Marxist

Discussion:“…that all men are created equal; that they

are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” (pg. 156)○ How does this support the belief structure of

the upper class in the colonies?

4. Marxist



the upper class in the colonies?How is repetition used throughout the Declaration to

support a “right to free business”?

4. Marxist



the upper class in the colonies?How is repetition used throughout the Declaration to

support a “right to free business”?What populations are left out of this statement?

4. Marxist


are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” (pg. 156)○ Flip side: Jefferson and company can be

considered here to be the intellectual class – how do they seem to suggest an ushering in of a new era, free of royalty?

4. Marxist

Discussion:Look to Wheatley’s Hymn (pg. 172)

○ How does this show only those with the luxury to “enjoy nature”, rather than those who fight to survive, or those forced to live within the cities?

4. Marxist Discussion:

Look to Wheatley’s Hymn (pg. 172)○ How does this show only those with the luxury to

“enjoy nature”, rather than those who fight to survive, or those forced to live within the cities?

○ Bonus Marxist/Post-Colonial Interpretation: Consider Wheatley’s biography (pg. 170) – consider elements to her life in which the dominant culture was FORCED upon her from youth, and how this contributes to her eventual fame – does she espouse “white/upper class” values?

4. Marxist


○ The optimist viewpoint: consider this hymn as a method for ALL to enjoy “God’s gifts” in equal measure – are the best things in life meant for all?

4. Marxist


○ The optimist viewpoint: consider this hymn as a method for ALL to enjoy “God’s gifts” in equal measure – are the best things in life meant for all?

○ The bonus: does Wheatley’s fame as a poet suggest America as a true equalizer?

4. Marxist

Discussion:Paine – pg. 160 – “tyranny, like hell, is not

easily conquered”○ How is the ruling power (think post-colonial) of

Great Britain represented?

4. Marxist



Great Britain represented?What does Paine LEAVE OUT in terms of what the

“new power” will eventually become?

4. Marxist



Great Britain represented?Optimistically – how does Paine demonstrate himself

as stepping against the aristocracy for a measure of equality for all? Consider his statements on representation, democracy, and rights of freedom.

4. Marxist

The Dialectic

4. Marxist

The DialecticThis is the backbone to Marxist thinking –

this system maintains that “…what drives historical change are the material realities of the economic base of society, rather than the ideological superstructure of politics, law, philosophy, religion, and art that is built upon that economic base.” - Richter, 1088

4. Marxist

The DialecticMarx states: “stable societies develop sites

of resistance: contradictions build into the social system that ultimately leads to social revolution and the development of a new society upon the old”

4. Marxist

The DialecticMarx states: “stable societies develop sites of

resistance: contradictions build into the social system that ultimately leads to social revolution and the development of a new society upon the old”

This cycle of contradiction/tension/revolution must continue – there will ALWAYS be conflict between upper, middle, and lower (working) classes, and this conflict will be reflected in literature and other forms of expression

4. Marxist

The Revolution:Sometimes, this control is through a

propagation of values and beliefs – consider Paine’s constant reference to Providence, Franklin’s statements that the life he espouses is a godly life, and Jefferson’s ideals that they are fated by divinity to rule.

4. Marxist

The RevolutionPhyllis Wheatley’s “General Washington”

shows signs of divinity – in what ways do you see literary device used to elevate a mortal man, a land-holding, slave-owning aristocrat, to the level of godhood?

4. Marxist

The RevolutionPhyllis Wheatley’s “General Washington”

shows signs of divinity – in what ways do you see literary device used to elevate a mortal man, a land-holding, slave-owning aristocrat, to the level of godhood?○ What you see here is a level of propaganda,

from the Marxist perspective, used to keep the common man docile – against his/her own best interest, active to keep the aristocrats in power.

4. Marxist

The Revolution:

4. Marxist

The Revolution: Conflict between classes will ALWAYS

lead to upheaval and revolution by oppressed peoples, forming the groundwork for a new order of society. Marx believes the TRUE revolution would be led by the working class under the guidance of intellectuals.

4. Marxist

The Revolution: Once equality is assured, and the elite

are overthrown, intellectuals will compose an equal society, where everyone owns everything.

4. Marxist

The Revolution: Once equality is assured, and the elite

are overthrown, intellectuals will compose an equal society, where everyone owns everything.This is NOT communism. This can best be

described as a democratic socialism. The “final goal” of such a political/social structure is a lack of an elite class.

4. Marxist

Final Thought:There are a billion permutations and

nuances to be found within this large theory – Marxist critics can safely be said to be Marxist when they follow the basic ideals set above.

college american literature. 1. post-colonialism

Documents

colonial aspects

postcolonialismfacetsa

text reveal

colonial powers

colonialist views

canonized colonialist

colonialist attitudeex

elements work