What is Literary Criticism?
What is Literary Criticism?
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Literary criticism usually refers to analysis of a particular work or works: studies of individual authors, genres, literary movements, and the like....A work of literary theory might use literary texts as examples or illustrations that serve to develop a larger theoretical point, while a literary critic might use a theoretical perspective as a means of better understanding a literary text. From: Stevens, Anne H. Literary Theory and Criticism: An Introduction. Second edition., Broadview Press, 2021.
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"Literary criticism” refers to the act of interpreting and studying literature. A literary critic is someone who argues on behalf of an interpretation or understanding of the particular meaning(s) of literary texts. The task of a literary critic is to explain and attempt to reach a critical understanding of what literary texts mean in terms of their aesthetic, as well as social, political, and cultural statements and suggestions. From Saylor Foundation - An Introduction to Literary Criticism and Theory.
Definitions Adapted From Univ.of WI Research Guide, TX Weslyan Univ. LibGuide.
Searching for Literary Criticism Sources
Steps to Search for Literary Criticism Sources
STEP 1: Do effective searching using:
- Novel Title or Theory as Keywords with AND and OR. Use the title of your novel (or the literary theory) AND literary criticism. Other phrases to use include "criticism", "literary criticism", "analysis", "literary analysis", etc.
- Search your author's name as a Subject in the database. Look for subjects like criticism and interpretation.
STEP 2: Found an interesting source? Don't read it all. Skim read a book or article for keywords, novel titles, theories, or themes.
- For articles: Look at the title, abstract/summary, introduction or conclusion.
- For books: Look at the title, subjects, or table of contents.
STEP 3: Check out footnotes, references, and citations used in a source you like. This is called citation chasing and will lead you to other great sources!
Adapted from CU LibGuide, Purdue Literature website.
Library Databases for Literary Criticism
Gale Literature includes literary criticism, biographies, primary sources, reference books, periodicals, and multimedia sources.
You will not be likely to find criticism about the novels selected for this assignment (with a few exceptions). Instead, focus on finding an article about the literary theory you would like to apply to the novel you have selected.
1. Enter one or multiple keywords related to your chosen research topic. Use the Operators (AND, OR) and special characters (wildcard/truncation, quotation marks) as search tips.
2.Limit to peer-reviewed journals and publication date based on the date your novel.
JSTOR contains back files of academic journal articles in full text (does not include the last 3-5 most recent years.)
1.In JSTOR Advanced Search, experiment with field selection in the drop down menu. Enter a different concept or keyword in each search box.
2. Once you find a source you like, Download PDF to view full text.
ProQuest's Literature Databases feature hundreds of titles covering Art, Architecture, Design, History, Philosophy, Music, Literature, Theatre and Cultural Studies. Make sure to select peer reviewed scholarly journals, and note that book reviews are NOT appropriate sources to use for this assignment.
1. In Advanced Search, enter keywords and select "Anywhere except full text" from the drop down menu for the most relevant menu.
2. Select "peer-reviewed" or "Scholarly journals" from the Limit to options to get credible, scholarly sources from the results.
Salem Literature contains fulltext of the Critical Insights series, including literary criticism. Use the Advanced Search to look for theories, well known authors and texts, and similar terms.
- OneSearchUse OneSearch Discovery tool to search multiple databases at once.
Select the "Advanced Search" to search by Subject using:
Literature -- History and criticism
Literature -- History and criticism -- Theory, etc.
Criticism -- Authorship
Step 1: Open OneSearch link. Select Advanced Search.
Step 2: Add your author, novel title, or theory as a keyword. For the next keywords, Select "Subject" in the "any field" option and choose a subject heading term like "Literature -- History and criticism".
