西方批评理论考试.docx
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西方批评理论考试.docx
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西方批评理论考试
1、Newcriticism
2、Formalism
3、Reader-responsetheory
WhatDoYouThink?
Atitsmostbasiclevel,readerresponsecriticismconsidersreaders'reactionstoliteratureasvitaltointerpretingthemeaningofthetext.However,reader-responsecriticismcantakeanumberofdifferentapproaches.Acriticdeployingreader-responsetheorycanuseapsychoanalyticlens,afeministslens,orevenastructuralistlens.Whatthesedifferentlenseshaveincommonwhenusingareaderresponseapproachistheymaintain"...thatwhatatextiscannotbeseparatedfromwhatitdoes"(Tyson154).
Tysonexplainsthat"...reader-responsetheoristssharetwobeliefs:
1)thattheroleofthereadercannotbeomittedfromourunderstandingofliteratureand2)thatreadersdonotpassivelyconsumethemeaningpresentedtothembyanobjectiveliterarytext;rathertheyactivelymakethemeaningtheyfindinliterature"(154).Inthisway,reader-responsetheorysharescommongroundwithsomeofthedeconstructionistsdiscussedinthePost-structuralareawhentheytalkabout"thedeathoftheauthor,"orherdisplacementasthe(author)itarianfigureinthetext.
4、Structuralism
LinguisticRoots
Thestructuralistschoolemergesfromtheoriesoflanguageandlinguistics,anditlooksforunderlyingelementsincultureandliteraturethatcanbeconnectedsothatcriticscandevelopgeneralconclusionsabouttheindividualworksandthesystemsfromwhichtheyemerge.Infact,structuralismmaintainsthat"...practicallyeverythingwedothatisspecificallyhumanisexpressedinlanguage"(Richter809).Structuralistsbelievethattheselanguagesymbolsextendfarbeyondwrittenororalcommunication.
Forexample,codesthatrepresentallsortsofthingspermeateeverythingwedo:
"theperformanceofmusicrequirescomplexnotation...oureconomicliferestsupontheexchangeoflaborandgoodsforsymbols,suchascash,checks,stock,andcertificates...sociallifedependsonthemeaningfulgesturesandsignalsof'bodylanguage'andrevolvesaroundtheexchangeofsmall,symbolicfavors:
drinks,parties,dinners"(Richter809).
PatternsandExperience
Structuralistsassertthat,sincelanguageexistsinpatterns,certainunderlyingelementsarecommontoallhumanexperiences.Structuralistsbelievewecanobservetheseexperiencesthroughpatterns:
"...ifyouexaminethephysicalstructuresofallbuildingsbuiltinurbanAmericain1850todiscovertheunderlyingprinciplesthatgoverntheircomposition,forexample,principlesofmechanicalconstructionorofartisticform..."youareusingastructuralistlens(Tyson197).
Moreover,"youarealsoengagedinstructuralistactivityifyouexaminethestructureofasinglebuildingtodiscoverhowitscompositiondemonstratesunderlyingprinciplesofastructuralsystem.Inthefirstexample...you'regeneratingastructuralsystemofclassification;inthesecond,you'redemonstratingthatanindividualitembelongstoaparticularstructuralclass"(Tyson197).
StructuralisminLiteraryTheory
Structuralismisusedinliterarytheory,forexample,"...ifyouexaminethestructureofalargenumberofshortstoriestodiscovertheunderlyingprinciplesthatgoverntheircomposition...principlesofnarrativeprogression...orofcharacterization...youarealsoengagedinstructuralistactivityifyoudescribethestructureofasingleliteraryworktodiscoverhowitscompositiondemonstratestheunderlyingprinciplesofagivenstructuralsystem"(Tyson197-198).
NorthropFrye,however,takesadifferentapproachtostructuralismbyexploringwaysinwhichgenresofWesternliteraturefallintohisfourmythoi(alsoseeJungiancriticismintheFreudianLiteraryCriticismresource):
1.theoryofmodes,orhistoricalcriticism(tragic,comic,andthematic);
2.theoryofsymbols,orethicalcriticism(literal/descriptive,formal,mythical,andanagogic);
3.theoryofmyths,orarchetypalcriticism(comedy,romance,tragedy,irony/satire);
4.theoryofgenres,orrhetoricalcriticism(epos,prose,drama,lyric)(Tyson240).
PeirceandSaussure
Twoimportanttheoristsformtheframework(hah)ofstructuralism:
CharlesSandersPeirceandFerdinanddeSaussure.Peircegavestructuralismthreeimportantideasforanalyzingthesignsystemsthatpermeateanddefineourexperiences:
1."iconicsigns,inwhichthesignifierresemblesthethingsignified(suchasthestickfiguresonwashroomdoorsthatsignify'Men'or'Women';
2.indexes,inwhichthesignifierisareliableindicatorofthepresenceofthesignified(likefireandsmoke);
3.truesymbols,inwhichthesignifier'srelationtothethingsignifiediscompletelyarbitraryandconventional[justasthesound/kat/orthewrittenwordcatareconventionalsignsforthefamiliarfeline]"(Richter810).
TheseelementsbecomeveryimportantwhenwemoveintodeconstructioninthePostmodernismresource.Peircealsoinfluencedthesemioticschoolofstructuralisttheorythatusessignsystems.
SignSystems
Thedisciplineofsemioticsplaysanimportantroleinstructuralistliterarytheoryandculturalstudies.Semioticians"...appl[y]structuralistinsightstothestudyof...signsystems...anon-linguisticobjectorbehavior...thatcanbeanalyzedasifitwerealanguage"(Tyson205).Specifically,"...semioticsexaminesthewaysnon-linguisticobjectsandbehaviors'tell'ussomething.
Forexample,thepictureoftherecliningblondbeautyintheskin-tight,blackvelvetdressonthebillboard...'tells'usthatthosewhodrinkthiswhiskey(presumablymale)willbeattractiveto...beautifulwomenliketheonedisplayedhere"(Tyson205).Lastly,Richterstates,"semioticstakesofffromPeirce-forwhomlanguageisoneofnumeroussignsystems-andstructuralismtakesofffromSaussure,forwhomlanguagewasthesignsystemparexcellence"
5、Poststructuralism/Deconstruction
TheCenterCannotHold
Thisapproachconcernsitselfwiththewaysandplaceswheresystems,frameworks,definitions,andcertaintiesbreakdown.Post-structuralismmaintainsthatframeworksandsystems,forexamplethestructuralistsystemsexplainedintheStructuralistarea,aremerelyfictitiousconstructsandthattheycannotbetrustedtodevelopmeaningortogiveorder.Infact,theveryactofseekingorderorasingularTruth(withacapitalT)isabsurdbecausethereexistsnounifiedtruth.
Post-structuralismholdsthattherearemanytruths,thatframeworksmustbleed,andthatstructuresmustbecomeunstableordecentered.Moreover,post-structuralismisalsoconcernedwiththepowerstructuresorhegemoniesandpowerandhowtheseelementscontributetoand/ormaintainstructurestoenforcehierarchy.Therefore,post-structuraltheorycarriesimplicationsfarbeyondliterarycriticism.
WhatDoesYourMeaningMean?
Byquestioningtheprocessofdevelopingmeaning,post-structuraltheorystrikesattheveryheartofphilosophyandrealityandthrowsknowledgemakingintowhatJacquesDerridacalled"freeplay":
"Theconceptofcenteredstructure...iscontradictorilycoherent...theconceptofcenteredstructureisinfacttheconceptofafreeplaywhichisconstituteduponafundamentalimmobilityandareassuringcertitude,whichisitselfbeyondthereachofthefreeplay"(qtd.inRichter,878-879).
Derridafirstpositedtheseideasin1966atJohnsHopkinsUniversity,whenhedelivered“Structure,Sign,andPlayintheDiscourseoftheHumanSciences”:
"Perhapssomethinghasoccurredinthehistoryoftheconceptofstructurethatcouldbecalledan'event,'ifthisloadedworddidnotentailameaningwhichitispreciselythefunctionofstructural-orstructuralist-thoughttoreduceortosuspect.Butletmeusetheterm“event”anyway,employingitwithcautionandasifinquotationmarks.Inthissense,thiseventwillhavetheexteriorformofaruptureandaredoubling”(qtd.inRichter,878).Inhispresentation,Derridachallengedstructuralism'smostbasicideas.
CanLanguageDoThat?
Post-structuraltheorycanbetiedtoamoveagainstModernist/Enlightenmentideas(philosophers:
ImmanuelKant,RéneDescartes,JohnLocke,etc.)andWesternreligiousbeliefs(neo-Platonism,Catholicism,etc.).AnearlypioneerofthisresistancewasphilosopherFriedrichNietzsche.Inhisessay,“OnTruthandLiesinanExtra-moralSense”(1873),Nietzscherejectseventheverybasisofourknowledgemaking,language,asareliablesystemofcommunication:
“Thevariouslanguages,juxtaposed,showthatwordsareneverconcernedwithtruth,neverwithadequateexpression...”(248).
Belowisanexample,adaptedfromtheTysontext,ofsomelanguagefreeplayandasimpleformofdeconstruction:
Time(noun)flies(verb)likeanarrow(adverbclause)=Timepassesquickly.
Time(verb)flies(object)likeanarrow(adverbclause)=Getoutyourstopwatchandtimethespeedoffliesasyouwouldtimeanarrow'sflight.
Timeflies(noun)like(verb)anarrow(object)=Timefliesarefondofarrows(oratleastofoneparticulararrow).
So,post-structuralistsassertthatifwecannottrustlanguagesystemstoconveytruth,theverybasesoftruthareunreliableandtheuniverse-oratleasttheuniversewehaveconstructed-becomesunraveledorde-centered.Nietzscheuseslanguageslipasabasetomoveintotheslipandshiftoftruthasawhole:
“Whatistruth?
…truthsareanillusionaboutwhichithasbeenforgottenthattheyareillusions...”(OnTruthandLies250).
ThisreturnsustothediscussionintheStructuralistarearegardingsigns,signifiers,andsignified.Essentially,post-structuralismholdsthatwecannottrustthesign=signifier+signifiedformula,thatthereisabreakdownofcertaintybetweensign/signifier,whichleaveslanguagesystemshopelesslyinadequateforrelayingm
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