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If a study of literary theory and criticism would increase my appreciation of the classics, is the time and effort worth it? And if it is, are there any lay, non-technical introductions to the subject (not those imposing tombs with such titles as "Theory and Criticism")?

I ask because I feel I don't do justice to my reading. I have, for the most part, been reading "art for art's sake." Rarely do I think critically about a book, let alone write a treatise or (shame on me) a thoughtful review on GR. Even if I re-read a book, the motive is purely aesthetic. I treat Dickens and Dostoevsky like your ordinary dime novel! This is regrettable, of course, so I ask for your help.

hi Lyn,
I think that books of literary criticism and theory would make a change in your perception of your favorite works.
I recommend "how to interpret literature" by Robert Dale Parker. it's fun to read and not very dogmatic, it would be a nice start.
good luck

First, let me say that Dickens was meant to be read like a dime novel. His books were meant to be entertainment. Second, there are lots of books that teach us to notice what we read and have a deeper understanding of what the writer is doing. I suggest Mimesis by Eric Auerbach and Reading Like a Writer by Francine Prose. Then, if you're interested in what others have said over the centuries, Theory of Literature by Rene Wellek and Austin Warren (this can be heavy going but will show you chapter by chapter how others have approached literature--don't take it too seriously).

Thank you, Chahrazad and Susan. Gaining a new perspective in my reading and gleaning from those of others sounds very promising indeed! I have placed the books you recommended on my to-read shelf. Thank you again.

Lyn, there's a series of books I have found useful called "The Critical Idiom," they're small and not long and each one addresses an aspect of literature, like "genre" "tragedy" "satire" etc. Here's the series:

/series/1127...

I also own this but haven't read it yet:

Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction

The books in this series (Very Short Introductions) I have found to be very useful, and written in a way that almost any adult can understand.

Lobstergirl, thank you for reminding me about the "Very Short Introductions series," which I have found useful for other subjects. I will also check out "The Critical Idiom" series; "Genre" seems like an appropriate first choice.

Lyn wrote: "If a study of literary theory and criticism would increase my appreciation of the classics, is the time and effort worth it? And if it is, are there any lay, non-technical introductions to the subj..."

There is a long history of literary criticism (and a shorter history of literary theory). You need to sort of think about what your purpose is.

Up to perhaps forty or so ago (give or take a decade or two!) most literary criticism was focused on a broad look at books, what they meant, the themes they were addressing, and that sort of thing. There is a lot of writing in this genre. Some examples I find particularly informative are Harold Goddard's The Meaning of Shakespeare, Harold Bloom's The Western Canon, most of Clifton Fadiman's criticism, Virginia Woolf's Common Reader, and work like that. Another book in this vein I would certainly recommend is Quiller-Couch's Adventures in Criticism, and almost any other critical work of Quiller-Couch (and, for that matter, of G. Wilson Knight).

About those forty years ago (again give or take those decades) literary criticism and theory started to become an academic study unto itself. One of the earlier forms of this was Jacques Derrida's theory of deconstruction, which I won't even try to summarize but you can read a lot about it on the web and maybe even understand a bit of it (I barely comprehend its vague outlines). Then came a whole series of schools of criticism, each one getting, in my opinion, more and more technical, more and more narrow. We have, for example, Marxist criticism, feminist criticism, queer criticism (yes, it's generally called that), and a whole host of others. The journals of modern literary criticism and theory are pretty much incomprehensible to anybody but a dedicated scholar of litcrit. If you're near an academic library, pick up a copy of PMLA (formerly, I believe, the Proceedings of the Modern Language Association) and see if any of it makes sense to you.

If you really want to dig into litcrit and theory, one possibility is Peter Barry's Beginning Theory: An Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory. Another possibility is Bennett and Royle Introduction to Literature, Criticism and Theory. I suggest that you try to get these out of a library to avoid their cluttering your shelves if after a dozen pages you decide this is not for you.

It would also probably be helpful to pick up a copy of the Penguin Dictionary of Literary Terms & Literary Theory. It will give you succinct definitions of terms such as dialogic/monologic, semiotics, dissociation of sensibility, and almost any other term you'll run across in your reading.

Probably none of this is what you want, but there it is if it's any use to you.

Thank you for your erudition, Everyman. It sounds like you've done quite a bit of digging and chiseling!

Everyman wrote: "The journals of modern literary criticism and theory are pretty much incomprehensible to anybody but a dedicated scholar of litcrit."

I'll skip the esoteric for now and wait for it to trickle into the general knowledge, if it ever does...

I'd like to endorse Everyman's recommendation of Barry's *Beginning Theory* but wondered whether it might also be helpful to contextualise classical novels. For example, there are themes in Dickens' novels (e.g the fallen woman) which reflect concerns at the time and are developed in Victorian literature generally (the fallen woman is central to e.g. C. Rossetti's *Goblin Market*, and Hardy's *Tess). I've found Paul Poplawski (ed.), *English Literature in Context* invaluable as a way of contextualising literature in this way and it also has a useful list of lit crit references.

I'd like to endorse Everyman's recommendation of Barry's *Beginning Theory* but wondered whether it might also be helpful to contextualise classical novels. For example, there are themes in Dickens' novels (e.g the fallen woman) which reflect concerns at the time and are developed in Victorian literature generally (the fallen woman is central to e.g. C. Rossetti's *Goblin Market*, and Hardy's *Tess). I've found Paul Poplawski (ed.), *English Literature in Context* invaluable as a way of contextualising literature in this way and it also has a useful list of lit crit references.

Thanks for the names of these books! I've been wondering whether I should get something like this. I'm reading or re-reading many classics and so I'm sure there are aspects that I'm missing.

I usually look up the historical/societal context of the story and any specific references mentioned, i.e., Notes from Underground for Crime and Punishment and The Odyssey for Ulysses. If the reference materials are short, I usually read them, otherwise I read a summary. For most classics, I know enough of the general history of the time to get through.

On the other hand, I like to focus on what resonates with me, rather than on the author's intent or parallels to other books. Since I get a lot of pleasure from just reading the books (versus studying them), I'm not sure I want to risk losing that to gain a more in-depth interpretation - if that makes sense!

I have to take a whole class on this and I am intimidated to say the least :)

Chakara wrote: "I have to take a whole class on this and I am intimidated to say the least :)"


I don't blame you. IMO, literary theory has become so complex and esoteric that it has no use for me as a reader. I was in a long discussion with a university prof of lit theory who agreed with me that most of what is being written nowadays is completely unintelligible to the lay reader, but is written for the professionals.

Do let us know here what text you're using, what you're learning, and whether you think any of it will actually make reading more enjoyable or rewarding for you.