Saylor.org - ENGL301: Introduction to Literary Theory Syllabus

Unit 1: What is Literary Theory?

The first unit of this course will introduce you to some wide-ranging questions about literary theory while situating the field within the broader scope of literary studies. This unit also will serve to introduce you to the early developments and stages of literary criticism and theory.

Unit 1 Time Advisory

This unit should take you approximately 5.5 hours to complete.

☐ Subunit 1.1: 4.5 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 1.1.1: 2 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 1.1.2: 2.5 hours

☐ Subunit 1.2: 1 hour

Unit1 Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this unit, you should be able to:

define literary theory;
define literary criticism;
literature as a discipline of study;
identify and discuss ancient Greek explanations of the purpose of literature, particularly those of Plato and Aristotle; and
discuss the rise of literary theory in the 20^th century.

1.1 The Emergence of Literature as a Discipline of Study

1.1.1 What Is Literary Criticism?

Reading: The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Vince Brewton’s “What Is Literary Theory?” and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “An Introduction to Literary Theory and Criticism”
Link: The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Vince Brewton’s “What Is Literary Theory?” (HTML) and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “An Introduction to Literary Theory and Criticism” (PDF)

Instructions: Read the section titled “What Is Literary Theory?” from the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy’s “Literary Theory” webpage, followed by the section of The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack titled “An Introduction to Literary Theory and Criticism.” The Saylor Foundation's An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack may be downloaded in its entirety at the top of this course, or the section of the coursepack titled “An Introduction to Literary Theory and Criticism” may be downloaded from the link above. Be sure to answer the study questions provided at the end of this section of the coursepack.

These resources provide you with a broad introduction to the purpose of literary criticism. Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: What is traditional literary criticism? How does literary theory help us to understand literature?

This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.
Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 1: Introduction”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 1: Introduction” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Watch Dr. Fry’s introductory lecture (about 40 minutes in length). Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.
Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following questions: What, according to Dr. Fry, is literary theory? How is literary theory useful to the study of literature?

This lecture should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

1.1.2 Classical Greek Conversations on the Purpose of Literature

Reading: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s versions of Plato’s The Republic and Aristotle’s Poetics; The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “The Early Origins of Literary Theory: Plato and Aristotle”
Link: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s versions of Plato’s The Republic (HTML) and Aristotle’s Poetics (HTML); The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “The Early Origins of Literary Theory: Plato and Aristotle” (PDF)

The Poetics is also available in:
Google Books
PDF
Kindle

Instructions: From The Republic, read Book III-Book V for a discussion of the purpose of art. Then, from Poetics, read Book I-Book III for a similar conversation about the role of literature in society. The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack may be downloaded in its entirety at the top of this course, or the section titled “The Early Origins of Literary Theory: Plato and Aristotle” may be downloaded from the link above. Read that section in its entirety and answer the study questions provided at the end of the section.

The earliest known works of literary criticism in the Western world were written by Plato and his student Aristotle in Greece in the fourth century BCE. At that time, the Greeks had a wealth of literature to discuss and compare thanks to their already centuries-old traditions of drama and epic poetry (most notably, The Iliad and The Odyssey, both attributed to the poet Homer).

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: What do Plato and Aristotle argue are the main purposes of literature? How does Aristotle distinguish between the genres of poetry? What are the six elements of tragedy, according to Aristotle? What does Plato believe the social purpose of art to be? How do the aesthetic theories of Plato and Aristotle differ from each other?

This reading, including the consideration of the above study questions, should take you approximately 2.5 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

1.2 The Rise of Critical Theory in the 20th Century

Reading: Purdue University Online Writing Lab’s “Literary Theory and Schools of Criticism” Timeline
Link: Purdue University Online Writing Lab’s “Literary Theory and Schools of Criticism” Timeline (HTML)

Instructions: Access the timeline, which offers an outline of the development of literary theory in the 20^th century. Following your reading, consider answering the following questions, based on your work in this course thus far: What might some of the weaknesses of literary theory be? What are the major schools of criticism and how are they related to each other? Which schools of criticism are connected to each other in terms of their respective perspectives and theories? Which schools of criticism and theories are, or seem to be, opposed to each other’s perspectives?

This reading, including the consideration of the above study questions, should take you approximately 1 hour complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

Unit 2: Form, Structure, and Signs

In this unit you will explore, in greater detail, some of the first schools of literary thought that arose in the 20^th century. These interpretive approaches are text-oriented, sharing an emphasis on literary form and textual device. According to many of the thinkers you will encounter in this unit, neither the author’s intention for a work of literary art, nor the context in which the work was written, matters when deriving meaning from that work.

Unit 2 Time Advisory

This unit shouldtake you approximately 13 hours to complete.

☐ Subunit 2.1: 4 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 2.1.1: 2 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 2.1.2: 2 hours

☐ Subunit 2.2: 7 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 2.2.1: 2 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 2.2.2: 0.5 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 2.2.3: 2.5 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 2.2.4: 2 hours

☐ Subunit 2.3: 2 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 2.3.1: 1 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 2.3.2: 1 hour

Unit2 Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this unit, you should be able to:

define formalism and Russian formalism and explain the related concept of defamiliarization;
describe and define New Criticism, and explain the concepts of the intentional and affective fallacies; and
explain the major tenets of structuralism.

2.1 Formalism

2.1.1 Key Concepts, Practices, and Figures

Reading: The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Vince Brewton’s “Formalism and New Criticism”
Link: The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Vince Brewton’s “Formalism and New Criticism” (HTML)

Instructions: Access the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy’s article on literary theory. Read the entirety of the section titled “Formalism and New Criticism” for a basic introduction to these theories.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: What is formalism? What is New Criticism? What made New Criticism “new,” exactly? How did New Criticism change the way literature was understood and interpreted? As you continue studying literary theory in this course, consider how the principles of New Criticism have subsequently been used throughout different modes and methods of literary theory.

This reading, including the consideration of the above study questions, should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 7: Russian Formalism”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 7: Russian Formalism” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Watch Dr. Fry’s lecture (about 49 minutes in length). Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.

Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following questions: How does formalism per se differ from Russian formalism? How are the two theories connected?

This lecture should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

2.1.2 Defamiliarization: Experience and Language

Reading: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Defamiliarization”; Project Gutenberg’s version of Leo Tolstoy’s The Kreutzer Sonata: “Chapter 2”; and Harvard University’s version of Victor Shklovsky’s “Art as Technique”
Link: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Defamiliarization” (HTML); Project Gutenberg’s version of Leo Tolstoy’s The Kreutzer Sonata: “Chapter 2” (HTML); and Harvard University’s version of Victor Shklovsky’s “Art as Technique” (PDF)

The Kreutzer Sonatais also available in:
Google Books
PDF
Kindle

Instructions: Click on the links above to access the readings, including a definition of defamiliarization and chapter 2 of Leo Tolstoy’s novella The Kreutzer Sonata. For the chapter in The Kreutzer Sonata, consider how formalists would read this chapter as an example of defamiliarization. Then, read Russian critic Victor Shklovsly’s essay “Art as Technique,” in which Shklovsky specifically discusses defamiliarization in The Kreutzer Sonata.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: Why has defamiliarization been considered an important technique in the study of literature? How does the second chapter of The Kreutzer Sonata present an occurrence of defamiliarization?

This reading should take you approximately 2 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: “Defamiliarization” has been reposted by the kind permission of Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown, and can be viewed in original form here. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder. For The Kreutzer Sonata and “Art as Technique,” please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

2.1.3 “Defamiliarization”: Experience and Language

2.2 New Criticism

2.2.1 Forerunners to the Movement

Reading: Bartleby.com’s version of T.S. Eliot’s “Tradition and the Individual Talent”
Link: Bartleby.com’s version of T.S. Eliot’s “Tradition and the Individual Talent” (HTML)

Instructions: Click on the link above and read Eliot’s short essay, which played a role in launching New Criticism as a literary movement. Be sure to read the introduction at the onset of the reading for more context on the implications of Eliot’s seminal essay. Eliot’s “Tradition and the Individual Talent” contains a number of ideas that influenced the development of New Criticism, including the redefinition of tradition, the rejection of conventional critical methods, and the formulation of concepts such as the objective correlative.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: What does Eliot suppose to be the role of tradition in the development of English poetry? Why does he feel tradition is often overlooked in literary studies? What does Eliot mean by tradition, exactly? What is an objective correlative, and why does the author consider this concept so vital to strong literature?

This reading, including the consideration of the above study questions, should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 14: Influence”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 14: Influence” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Click on the link above and watch the entire lecture (about 51 minutes in length) for a discussion of Eliot’s influence on New Criticism. Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.

Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following question: Why is tracing influence an important part of literary study, according to Dr. Fry?
This lecture should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

2.2.2 Development in the American Universities of the 1930s

Reading: The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Vince Brewton’s “Formalism and New Criticism”
Link: The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Vince Brewton’s “Formalism and New Criticism” (HTML)

Instructions: Click on the link above to access the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy’s entry on literary theory and read the entire section titled “Formalism and New Criticism.” Note that this reading has been assigned earlier in the course for introductory purposes; as you review the reading, focus in particular on the evolution of the American school of New Critics in the 1930s and 1940s.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: What is the relationship between formalism and New Criticism? What social, political, and artistic changes during the 1930s and 1940s brought about New Criticism?

This reading should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

2.2.3 Intentional and Affective Fallacies and the Triumph of Close Reading

Reading: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Affective Fallacy” and “Intentional Fallacy”; Southern Methodist University’s version of William Wimsatt and Monroe Beardsley’s “The Intentional Fallacy”
Link: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Affective Fallacy” (PDF) and “Intentional Fallacy” (PDF); Southern Methodist University’s version of William Wimsatt and Monroe Beardsley’s “The Intentional Fallacy” (HTML)

Instructions: Click on the links above to access the readings, beginning with definitions of affective fallacy and intentional fallacy. Then, read Wimsatt and Beardsley’s essay titled “The Intentional Fallacy,” from their book The Verbal Icon: Studies in the Meaning of Poetry, for further discussion of these terms.

Following your reading, consider answering the following question: What is the difference between affective fallacy and intentional fallacy?

This reading should take you approximately 1.5 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: “Affective Fallacy” and “Intentional Fallacy” have been reposted by the kind permission of Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown, and can be viewed in their original form here and here. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder. For the Wimsatt and Beardsley article, please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 5: The Idea of the Autonomous Artwork”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 5: The Idea of the Autonomous Artwork” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Watch the entire lecture (about 46 minutes in length). Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.

Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following questions: What is an autonomous artwork, according to Dr. Fry? What might an example of a non-autonomous artwork be?

This lecture should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

2.2.4 What Is “New” about New Criticism?

Reading: Bartleby.com’s version of John Keats’s “Ode on a Grecian Urn” and Mrbauld.com: Cleanth Brooks’s “Keats’ Sylvan Historian: History without Footnotes”
Link: Bartleby.com’s version of John Keats’s “Ode on a Grecian Urn” (HTML) and Mrbauld.com: Cleanth Brooks’s “Keats’ Sylvan Historian: History without Footnotes” (HTML)

Instructions: Read Keats’s “Ode on a Grecian Urn,” followed by Cleanth Brooks’s critical essay.
In his essay on Keats’s famous poem about art and its relation to beauty, Cleanth Brooks performs a close reading, examining the devices and poetic choices that Keats has made in order to derive meaning from the poem. Brooks’s reading is a quintessential example of a New Critical approach to a text.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: What does Keats suggest about art, beauty, and time in his poem? How does Brooks’s piece respond to Keats’s poetry and his theory of artistic creation? How does Brooks’s approach exemplify New Criticism?

This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.
Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 6: The New Criticism and Other Western Formalisms”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 6: The New Criticism and Other Western Formalisms” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Watch the lecture (about 50 minutes in length). Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the videoare available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.

Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following questions: What are the “other Western formalisms” that Dr. Fry mentions? How are these approaches to formalism different from formalism per se?

This lecture should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

2.3 Structuralism

2.3.1 Structuralism: Similarities to and Differences from Formalism

Reading: Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: “Structuralism and Poststructuralism” and Wofford College’s “Differences between Structuralism and Post Structuralism”
Links: Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Vince Brewton’s "Structuralism and Poststructuralism" (HTML) and Wofford College’s “Differences between Structuralism and Post Structuralism” (PDF)

Instructions: Read the entire section titled “Structuralism and Poststructuralism” from Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy’s article on literary theory. The article should provide an excellent review of the basic tenets of structuralism, as well as a sense of the theory evolution out of formalism. Then click on “Differences between Structuralism and Post Structuralism and read the PDF labeled “differences struct postruct.pdf” on the Wofford College website. Consider answering the following question: What are the differences between structuralism and post-structuralism?

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

2.3.2 Ferdinand de Saussure and the Linguistic Sign

Reading: Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s version of Ferdinand de Saussure’s Third Course of Lectures on General Linguistics: “Introductory Chapter: Brief Survey of the History of Linguistics” and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “De Saussure’s Linguistic Theories”
Link: Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s version of Ferdinand de Saussure’s Third Course of Lectures on General Linguistics: “Introductory Chapter: Brief Survey of the History of Linguistics” (HTML) and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “De Saussure’s Linguistic Theories” (PDF)

Instructions: First, read the entire introductory chapter from Ferdinand de Saussure’s Third Course of Lectures on General Linguistics, which is one of the most prominent texts to come out of the Geneva School of early linguistics. The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack may be downloaded in its entirety at the top of this course, or the section titled “De Saussure’s Linguistic Theories” may be downloaded from the link above. Read that section in its entirety and answer the study questions provided at the end of the section.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: How does an understanding of linguistics help us to understand a work of literature? How have de Saussure’s theories of linguistics changed the way literary texts are interpreted? The Course in General Linguistics was published posthumously on the basis of notes taken from a series of lectures that de Saussure delivered at the University of Geneva. In his lectures, de Saussure presents language as a system of signs—a concept that would become the basis for a number of poststructuralist theories.

This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

Unit 3: Post-Structuralisms

As denoted by the plural nature of this unit’s title, poststructuralism is a less-unified theoretical movement than its precursors. Perhaps this lack of coherence is fitting, as many of the most famous poststructuralist thinkers challenge the notion that critical discourse can be coherent - just as they question whether language can truly communicate. Shocking and self-defeating as these theories may sound, they have greatly influenced much of 20^th-century literary and philosophical thinking. In this unit, you will explore these poststructuralist theories, attempting both to situate them in terms of the theories you already have examined and to identify their potential limitations.

Unit 3 Time Advisory

This unit should take you approximately 21.25 hours to complete.

☐ Subunit 3.1: 7 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 3.1.1: 2.5 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 3.1.2: 1 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 3.1.3: 1.5 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 3.1.4: 1 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 3.1.5: 1 hour

☐ Subunit 3.2: 8 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 3.2.1: 2 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 3.2.2: 3 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 3.2.3: 3 hours

☐ Subunit 3.3: 6.25 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 3.3.1: 2.5 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 3.3.2: 1 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 3.3.3: 2.25 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 3.3.4: 0.5 hour

Unit3 Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this unit, you should be able to:

define the terms semiotics, semiology, and intertextuality;
explain the basic concepts and key figures associated with deconstruction;
define the ideas of aporia, textual play, and différance;
compare and contrast the ideas of a number of major figures associated with the poststructuralist theoretical movement, including those of Michel Foucault, Roland Barthes, and Jacques Derrida; and
explain the fundamental concepts behind psychoanalytic literary criticism and compare and contrast the works of Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, and Jacques Lacan.

3.1 Semiotics

3.1.1 What Are Semiotics and Semiology?

Reading: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Semiotics;” Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s version of Roland Barthes’s Elements of Semiology; and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Roland Barthes’s Semiotics”
Link: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Semiotics” (PDF); Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s version of Roland Barthes’s Elements of Semiology (HTML); and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Roland Barthes’s Semiotics” (PDF)

Instructions: Click on the links above to access the readings, beginning with the short definition of semiotics from the University of Toronto’s Glossary of Literary Theory, for an introduction to the term; followed by the excerpt from Roland Barthes’s Elements of Semiology for an example of the critical uses of this term in literary theory. You can download the Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack at the top of this course, or you can download the coursepack section titled “Roland Barthes’s Semiotics” by clicking on the link above. Read the entirety of that section and answer the study questions provided at the end of the section.

Following your reading, consider also answering the following question: How does the study of semiology help to expand our understanding of literature?

This reading should take you approximately 1.5 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: “Semiotics” has been reposted by the kind permission of Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown, and can be viewed in its original form here. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder. For the other linked readings in this assignment, please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.
Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 8: Semiotics and Structuralism”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 8: Semiotics and Structuralism” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Click on the link above and watch the entire lecture (about 50 minutes in length). Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.

Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following question: What does Dr. Fry suggest to be the importance of semiotics and structuralism to literary study?

This lecture should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

3.1.2 Intertextuality: Semiotics and Literary Texts

Reading: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Intertextuality” and Aberystwyth University: Dr. Daniel Chandler’s Semiotics for Beginners: “Intertextuality”
Link: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Intertextuality” (PDF) and Aberystwyth University: Dr. Daniel Chandler’s Semiotics for Beginners: “Intertextuality” (HTML)

Instructions: Click on the links above and read both definitions of intertextuality in their entirety for a basic introduction to this concept.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: What is intertextuality? How are literary texts sometimes influenced by other texts? How does an understanding of the operations of intertextuality help us to interpret a piece of literature? Are all pieces of literature, to some measure or another, “intertextual” in nature?

This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: “Intertextuality” has been reposted by the kind permission of Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown, and can be viewed in its original form here. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder. For Dr. Chandler’s “Intertextuality,” please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

3.1.3 Key Concepts

Reading: Aberystwyth University: Dr. Daniel Chandler’s Semiotics for Beginners: “Introduction;” The University of Vermont: Dr. Thomas Streeter’s “Semiotic Terminology;” and Stanford University’s Center for the Study of Language and Information: The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Albert Atkin’s “Peirce’s Theory of Signs”
Link: Aberystwyth University: Dr. Daniel Chandler’s Semiotics for Beginners: “Introduction” (HTML); The University of Vermont: Dr. Thomas Streeter’s “Semiotic Terminology” (HTML); and Stanford University’s Center for the Study of Language and Information: The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Albert Atkin’s “Peirce’s Theory of Signs” (HTML)

Instructions: Click on the links above to access the readings, beginning with Dr. Chandler’s “Introduction” to semiotics and Dr. Streeter’s overview of semiotic terminology, both of which you should read in their entirety. Finally, read Dr. Atkin’s entire discussion of “Peirce’s Theory of Signs.”

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: How does an understanding of semiotics help us to understand literature? How do readers decide what is and is not a “sign” in a piece of literature?

This reading should take you approximately 1.5 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

3.1.4 Roots in Saussurean Linguistics

Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 9: Linguistics and Literature”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 9: Linguistics and Literature” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Click on the link above and watch the entire lecture (about 50 minutes in length). Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.

Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following question: According to Dr. Fry, what is the relationship between linguistics and literature?

This lecture should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

3.1.5 The Influence of American Pragmatic Philosophy and Charles Sanders Peirce

Reading: Marxists Internet Archive’s versions of Charles Sanders Peirce’s “How To Make Our Ideas Clear” and William James’s “What Pragmatism Means”
Link: Marxists Internet Archive’s versions of Charles Sanders Peirce’s “How To Make Our Ideas Clear” (HTML) and William James’s “What Pragmatism Means” (HTML)

Instructions: Read both essays. Peirce’s essay is one of the seminal texts on the philosophy of pragmatism, and James’s short piece provides a reflection on pragmatism’s importance.

Following your reading, consider answering the following question: How does James define pragmatism? Why is pragmatism important for readers of literature to understand?

This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

3.2 Deconstruction

3.2.1 Basic Concepts and Key Figures

Reading: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Deconstruction” and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Derrida and Deconstruction”
Link: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Deconstruction” (HTML) and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Derrida and Deconstruction” (PDF)

Instructions: Click on the links above, beginning with a definition of deconstruction that provides an overview of the term as it is used in literary theory. The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack may be downloaded in its entirety at the top of this course, or the section on “Derrida and Deconstruction” may be downloaded from the link above. Read that section in its entirety and answer the study questions provided at the end of the section.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: What is deconstruction? How does deconstruction help us to understand literary texts? Why might so many critics resist the concept of deconstruction and consider it to be counterproductive to the general task of literary interpretation?
This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: “Deconstruction” has been reposted by the kind permission of Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown, and can be viewed in original form. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder. For the coursepack reading, please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the coursepack webpage.
Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 10: Deconstruction I”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 10: Deconstruction 1” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Watch the video lecture (about 52 minutes in length). Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.
Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following question: How, in Dr. Fry’s view, does an understanding of deconstruction help readers to understand literature?

This lecture should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

3.2.2 Jacques Derrida, Aporia, and the Text

Reading: Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s excerpt of Jacques Derrida’s Of Grammatology: “Linguistics and Grammatology” and Web-Books.com’s version of William Butler Yeats’s “Among School Children”
Links: Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s excerpt of Jacques Derrida’s Of Grammatology: “Linguistics and Grammatology” (HTML) and Web-Books.com’s version of William Butler Yeats’s “Among School Children” (HTML)

Instructions: First, read the excerpt from Jacques Derrida’s Of Grammatology for his discussion of deconstructionist concepts. In Of Grammatology, Derrida, often considered the father of deconstructionist thought, demonstrates that, when reduced to its most fundamental elements, a text becomes a set of irreducible signs, losing its narrative coherence. Following your reading of Derrida, read William Butler Yeats’s poem “Among School Children” before moving on to the resource below (Dr. Paul H. Fry’s second lecture on deconstruction, in which Dr. Fry performs a deconstructionist critique of Yeats’s poem).

Following your reading, consider answering the following question: What do deconstructionist critiques reveal about pieces of literature that other critical perspectives might not be able to show?

This reading should take you approximately 1.5 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.
Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 11: Deconstruction II”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 11: Deconstruction II” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Watch the lecture (about 53 minutes in length). Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.

Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following questions: What does Derrida suggest about culture and its relationship to nature? How does this relationship between culture and nature connect to Derrida’s understanding of language and meaning? In what ways do Paul de Man’s ideas about rhetoric versus grammar help us to understand tensions in language and meaning? What are some of the criticisms of or concerns about deconstruction that have been expressed by scholars? What are some of the ways in which proponents of deconstruction might defend this theory against these criticisms or concerns, particularly when considering the nature of reality?

This lecture, including the consideration of the above study questions, should take you approximately 1.5 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

3.2.3 Authorship and Discourse

Reading: Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s versions of Roland Barthes’s “The Death of the Author” and Michel Foucault’s “What Is an Author?”
Link: Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s versions of Roland Barthes’s “The Death of the Author” (HTML) and Michel Foucault’s “What Is an Author?” (HTML)

Instructions: Read the online excerpts of Barthes’s “The Death of the Author” and Foucault’s “What Is an Author?”In his influential essay “The Death of the Author,” critic Roland Barthes challenges those readers who attempt to interpret a text by seeking to determine authorial intention or biographical context, claiming instead that the reader, not the author, writes the text. In “What Is an Author,” critic Michel Foucault also grapples with the concept of the author, tracing what he calls the “author-function” and its development throughout history.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: How does Foucault understand the concept of the author as compared with Barthes’s vision of the author? Do Foucault and Barthes agree or disagree on this point, and to what extent?

This reading should take you approximately 2 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.
Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 2: Introduction (Continued)”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 2: Introduction (Continued)” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Watch the lecture (approximately 47 minutes in length) for a specific discussion of Barthes’s “The Death of the Author” as well as Foucault’s “What Is an Author?” Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: In light of Barthes’s and Foucault’s ideas, what are some understandings of the relationship between the author (i.e., the authority of the author) and various types of discourse? In what ways does Dr. Fry defend the author in his lecture?

This lecture should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

3.3 Psychoanalytic Literary Criticism

3.3.1 Freudian Roots of Psychoanalytic Criticism: The Psyche and the Unconscious

Reading: Washington State University: Dr. Michael Delahoyde’s “Psychoanalytic Criticism”; The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Stephen P. Thornton’s “Sigmund Freud”; Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s version of Sigmund Freud’s A Philosophy of Life: New Introductory Lectures on Psycho-analysis; and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Psyc
Link: Washington State University: Dr. Michael Delahoyde’s “Psychoanalytic Criticism” (HTML); The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Stephen P. Thornton’s “Sigmund Freud” (HTML); Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s version of Sigmund Freud’s A Philosophy of Life: New Introductory Lectures on Psycho-analysis (HTML); and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Psychoanalytic Theory” (PDF)

Instructions: First, read the brief articles on psychoanalytic criticism and Sigmund Freud; then read the entirety of Freud’s lecture, which discusses his concepts of the unconscious and repression.The Saylor Foundation's An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack may be downloaded in its entirety at the top of this course, or the section on “Psychoanalytic Theory” may be downloaded from the link above. Read that section in its entirety and answer the study questions provided.
Following your reading, consider also answering the following question: How does psychoanalysis—and Freud’s theories of psychoanalysis in particular—help us to understand literature?

This reading should take you approximately 1.5 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.
Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 12: Freud and Fiction”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 12: Freud and Fiction” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Watch the lecture (about 50 minutes in length). Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.

Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following questions: What are the underlying ideas about psychology and language that psychoanalytic theory supposes? How do these theories connect with scholar Peter Brooks’s way of understanding fiction? What roles do mortality and death play in Brooks’s theory, and how do Brooks’s ideas interact with Freud’s concept of the pleasure principle?

This lecture should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

3.3.2 Carl Jung and the Collective Unconscious

Reading: Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s version of Carl Jung’s Modern Man in Search of a Soul: “The Basic Postulates of Analytical Psychology”
Link: Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s version of Carl Jung’s Modern Man in Search of a Soul: “The Basic Postulates of Analytical Psychology” (HTML)

Instructions: Read the excerpt from Jung’s Modern Man in Search of a Soul, which includes Jung’s discussion of the unconscious.

Following your reading, consider answering the following question: How do Jung’s theories of psychology differ from and expand upon those of Freud?

This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

3.3.3 Combining Freud and Post-Structuralism: Lacan’s Imaginary, Symbolic, and Real Orders

Reading: The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Matthew Sharpe’s “Jacques Lacan”
Link: The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Matthew Sharpe’s “Jacques Lacan” (HTML)

Instructions: Read the entry’s sections 1 and 2, titled “Biographical and General Introduction” and “Lacan’s Philosophical Anthropology,” respectively.

Écrits, Jacques Lacan’s seminal collection of essays and articles, represents what many have called Lacan’s return to Freud, or his revisiting of Freud’s original theories, as a means of understanding the relationship between language and the formation of the self.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: What major tenets of Freudian theory does Lacan aim to unify? How does Lacan reframe Freud’s notions of the ego and the id within the context of the Helene Cixous? And how does Lacan reframe Freud’s theory of Oedipal complex?

This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 13: Jacques Lacan in Theory”
Link: Yale University: Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 13: Jacques Lacan in Theory” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Watch the lecture (about 51 minutes in length). Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.

Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following questions: How does Fry define the terms metonymy and metaphor vis-à-vis the ideas of Peter Brooks and Roman Jakobson? How do these terms and theories connect with Lacan’s understanding of the unconscious (particularly as it relates to the dream world)? How does Lacan depart from the physicality of Freudian theory? What is desire, according to Lacan?

This lecture, including the consideration of the above study questions, should take you approximately 1.25 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

3.3.4 Concepts of Self, Other, and Language

Reading: The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Lacan and the Mirror Stage”
Link: The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Lacan and the Mirror Stage” (PDF)

Instructions: Click on the link above. The coursepack may be downloaded in its entirety at the top of this course, or the section titled “Lacan and the Mirror Stage” may be downloaded from the link above. Please read that section in its entirety and answer the study questions provided at the end of the reading.

Following your reading, consider also answering the following questions: Why is it important to understand the concept of the unconscious when it comes to studying literature? What insight into the workings of human consciousness does Lacan’s theory of the mirror stage provide?

This reading should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

Unit 4: Feminism, Gender, and Queer Theory

In this unit, you will examine various forms of feminist and gender theories, recognizing the ways in which categories of gender and sex have shaped literary expression. You will explore the deep ambivalence that many of these literary theories share when addressing basic analytic categories such as the concepts of gender, woman, and man, exploring, for example, the way in which contemporary gender theory considers such concepts to be social constructions.

Unit 4 Time Advisory

This unit should take you approximately 20.75 hours to complete.

☐ Subunit 4.1: 8 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 4.1.1: 1.5 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 4.1.2: 1 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 4.1.3: 1.5 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 4.1.4: 2 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 4.1.5: 1 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 4.1.6: 1 hour

☐ Subunit 4.2: 6 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 4.2.1: 1 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 4.2.2: 2 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 4.2.3: 1 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 4.2.4: 2 hours

☐ Subunit 4.3: 6.75 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 4.3.1: 3 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 4.3.2: 3.75 hours

Unit4 Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this unit, you should be able to:

compare and contrast first-wave and second-wave feminism;
provide definitions for and compare and contrast the terms feminism, gynocriticism, and French feminism;
compare and contrast the works of theorists Simone de Beauvoir, Luce Irigaray, Hélène Cixous, and Julia Kristeva;
define the concepts of écriture féminine and abjection;
describe and state the major tenets of gender theory;
describe and state the major tenets of J.L. Austin’s performativity theory;
describe the importance of the work of Judith Butler, especially her work on gender performativity and queer theory; and
explain the significance of and define the following terms: liminality, transivity, and gender.

4.1 Feminism

4.1.1 First-Wave versus Second-Wave Feminism

Reading: Stanford University’s Center for the Study of Language and Information: The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Nancy Tuana’s “Approaches to Feminism” and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Introduction to Feminist Theory”
Link: Stanford University’s Center for the Study of Language and Information: The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Nancy Tuana’s “Approaches to Feminism” (HTML) and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Introduction to Feminist Theory” (PDF)

Instructions: Access the readings, starting with Dr. Tuana’s entire encyclopedia article, which provides a discussion of feminism and its development. The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack may be downloaded in its entirety at the top of this course, or the section titled “Introduction to Feminist Theory” may be downloaded from the link above. Read that section in its entirety and answer the study questions provided at the end of the section.

Following your reading, consider also answering the following questions: What insight does feminist theory provide to the study of literature? What are the differences between the first and second waves of feminism?

This reading should take you approximately 1.5 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

4.1.2 Feminism Migrates to Literary Theory

Lecture: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 20: The Classical Feminist Tradition”
Link: Yale University’s Open Yale Courses: Introduction to Theory of Literature: Dr. Paul H. Fry’s “Lecture 20: The Classical Feminist Tradition” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, MP3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Watch the lecture (about 53 minutes in length). Note that a transcript of the lecture, an audio MP3 file, and Flash and QuickTime versions of the video are available through Yale’s Open Yale Courses website, also linked above.

Following your viewing of the lecture, consider answering the following questions: What are some of the key concepts of classical feminist theory? How does classical feminist theory differ from later forms of feminist theory?

This lecture should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

4.1.3 Elaine Showalter and Gynocriticism

Reading: Nanjing University’s version of Dr. Elaine Showalter’s “Representing Ophelia: Women, Madness, and the Responsibilities of Feminist Criticism” and The New York Times: Dr. Helene Moglen’s “Enter Gynocriticism”
Link: Nanjing University’s version of Dr. Elaine Showalter’s “Representing Ophelia: Women, Madness, and the Responsibilities of Feminist Criticism” (HTML) and The New York Times: Dr. Helene Moglen’s “Enter Gynocriticism” (HTML)

Instructions: Read Showalter’s essay as well as the New York Times review of Showalter’s book The New Feminist Criticism.

In her essay “Representing Ophelia,” Showalter examines literary and artistic representations of the figure of Ophelia (from Shakespeare’s Hamlet), explicating each instance as an index of a particular period’s attitude towards women and their sexuality. Moglen’s book review offers a primary account of the effects of Showalter’s ideas on contemporary discussions of literary theory.

Following your reading, consider answering the following question: What are some of the various approaches that feminist critics have taken toward analyzing the character of Ophelia in Hamlet? Considering Helene Moglen’s critique of Showalter’s volume, what are the book’s shortcomings, according to Moglen? And what are the strengths that still make this book an effective collaboration with gynocriticism?

This reading should take you approximately 1.5 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

4.1.4 French Feminism: Simone de Beauvoir, Luce Irigaray, Hélène Cixous, and Julia Kristeva

Reading: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Feminist Criticism”; Virginia Tech’s Center for Digital Discourse and Culture: Dr. Kristin Switala’s Feminist Theory Website: Dr. Kelly Oliver’s “Julia Kristeva” and Bridget Holland’s “Luce Irigaray”; and The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Sarah K. Donovan’s “Luce
Link: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Feminist Criticism” (PDF); Virginia Tech’s Center for Digital Discourse and Culture: Dr. Kristin Switala’s Feminist Theory Website: Dr. Kelly Oliver’s “Julia Kristeva” (HTML) and Bridget Holland’s “Luce Irigaray” (HTML); and The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Sarah K. Donovan’s “Luce Irigaray” (HTML)

Instructions: Access the readings, beginning with the entry from the Glossary of Literary Theory titled “Feminist Criticism,” which you should read in its entirety (focusing specifically on the French feminist construction of the concept of woman in literature). Then read the short entries from the Feminist Theory Website on Julia Kristeva and Luce Irigaray - two prominent French feminist thinkers - as well as Dr. Sarah K. Donovan’s article on Irigaray.

Following your reading, consider answering the following question: What are some of the key elements of contemporary feminist theory?

This reading should take you approximately 2 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: The material from the Glossary of Literary Theory above has been reposted by the kind permission of Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown, and can be viewed in its original form here. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder. For the other materials linked in this reading assignment, please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

4.1.5 Écriture Féminine

Reading: Stanford University’s Presidential Lectures in the Humanities and Arts: Excerpts from Hélène Cixous’s “The Laugh of the Medusa” and Mary Jane Parrine’s “Hélène Cixous”
Link: Stanford University’s Presidential Lectures in the Humanities and Arts: Excerpts from Hélène Cixous’s “The Laugh of the Medusa” (HTML) and Mary Jane Parrine’s “Hélène Cixous” (HTML)

Instructions: Access the readings, starting with the short excerpts from Hélène Cixous’s “The Laugh of the Medusa,” which provide a basic idea of Cixous’s concept of écriture féminine. In this highly figurative essay, Cixous combines elements of Lacan’s psychoanalysis and Derrida’s deconstructionism to argue that women can most accurately tell their own stories by writing through their bodies. After reading the excerpts from Cixous’s essay, read the entirety of Stanford University’s overview of Cixous’s place in the world of literary theory.

This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

4.1.6 Kristeva: Freud, Semiotics, and Abjection

Reading: Purdue University: Dr. Dino Felluga’s Introductory Guide to Critical Theory: “Modules on Kristeva”: “I: On Psychosexual Development” and “II: On the Abject”
Link: Purdue University: Dr. Dino Felluga’s Introductory Guide to Critical Theory: “Modules on Kristeva”: “I: On Psychosexual Development” (HTML) and “II: On the Abject” (HTML)

Instructions: Read Dr. Felluga’s two articles on Julia Kristeva’s work.

Following your reading, consider answering the following question: How does knowledge of psychosexual development help us to understand the role of women and feminism in the study of literature?

This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

4.2 Gender Theory

4.2.1 Gender as Construct

Reading: The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Vince Brewton’s “Gender Studies and Queer Theory” and Dr. Aurelia Armstrong’s “Foucault and Feminism”
Link: The University of Tennessee’s Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Dr. Vince Brewton’s “Gender Studies and Queer Theory” (HTML) and Dr. Aurelia Armstrong’s “Foucault and Feminism” (HTML)

Instructions: Read the two articles on gender theory.

Dr. Armstrong’s article on Foucault and feminism prompts us to think about how theories of gender intersect with theories about society, particularly societal power structures. As you read, think about how Foucault articulates the relationships among power, sexuality, and the body.

Following your reading, consider answering the following questions: What is the difference between the terms gender and sex as they are used in literary criticism and theory? How do feminist thinkers such as Judith Butler and Nancy Hartsock account for Foucault’s theories? In what ways does Foucault help us to think about notions of political identity and autonomy (or freedom)?

This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

4.2.2 Bodies and Gender Practices

Reading: Purdue University: Dr. Dino Felluga’s Introductory Guide to Critical Theory: Dr. Dino Felluga and Dr. Emily Allen’s “General Introduction to Theories of Gender and Sex”
Link: Purdue University: Dr. Dino Felluga’s Introductory Guide to Critical Theory: Dr. Dino Felluga and Dr. Emily Allen’s “General Introduction to Theories of Gender and Sex” (HTML)

Instructions: Read Dr. Felluga and Dr. Allen’s overview, which traces concepts of sexuality from ancient times to modernity. As you read, please pay close attention to historical developments in the treatment of the article’s ideas of bodily sex and acquired gender.

Following your reading, consider answering the following question: To what extent do Dr. Felluga and Dr. Allen suggest that gender is something that is performed?

This reading should take you approximately 2 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

4.2.3 The Impact of J.L. Austin’s Performativity Theory

Reading: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Speech Act Theory” and “Langue/Parole”
Link: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Speech Act Theory” (PDF) and “Langue/Parole” (HTML)

Instructions: Read the glossary’s two entries, which provide an excellent review of J.L. Austin’s ideas as well as a further discussion of the theories of structuralism and linguistics. As you read, pay close attention to Austin’s notion of performative utterances and Austin’s three components of speech: locutionary acts, illocutionary acts, and perlocutionary acts. Also be sure to give particular attention to the glossary’s entry on langue and parole, considering the importance of these concepts to literary theory and criticism.

This reading should take you approximately 1 hour to complete.

Terms of Use: The material above has been reposted by the kind permission of Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown, and can be viewed in its original form here. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder.

4.2.4 Judith Butler and Gender Performativity

Reading: Yale University’s version of Judith Butler’s Gender Trouble: “Preface”; and Purdue University: Dr. Dino Felluga’s Introductory Guide to Critical Theory: “Modules on Butler”: “I: On Gender and Sex” and “II: On Performativity”
The Saylor Foundation does not yet have materials for this portion of the course. If you are interested in contributing your content to fill this gap or aware of a resource that could be used here, please submit it here.
Submit Materials

Unit 5: Marxism, Ideology, and Materialism

In this unit, you will examine approaches to literature that are largely sociological in nature, as many of the thinkers you are about to encounter understand works of literature as products of historical forces that are best analyzed through careful consideration of the material conditions in which they were produced. This unit will focus on literary theories that explore the historical, social, cultural, and political conditions under which literature is formed and produced.

Unit 5 Time Advisory

This unit should take you approximately 21 hours to complete.

☐ Subunit 5.1: 6 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 5.1.1: 2 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 5.1.2: 0.5 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 5.1.3: 2 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 5.1.4: 0.5 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 5.1.5: 1 hour

☐ Subunit 5.2: 8 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 5.2.1: 5 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 5.2.2: 0.5 hour

☐ Sub-subunit 5.2.3: 2.5 hours

☐ Subunit 5.3: 7 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 5.3.1: 2 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 5.3.2: 2 hours

☐ Sub-subunit 5.3.3: 3 hours

Unit5 Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this unit, you should be able to:

define and explain the importance of the concepts of Marxism, ideology, dialectical materialism, false consciousness, mode of production, and materialist criticism; and
compare and contrast the works of a number of influential Marxist critics, including Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Terry Eagleton, Fredric Jameson, Theodor W. Adorno, and Mikhail Bakhtin.

5.1 Marxism 101

5.1.1 Karl Marx and His Ideas

Reading: Marxists Internet Archive’s version of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels’s “Manifesto of the Communist Party” and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Marxist Theory”
Link: Marxists Internet Archive’s version of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels’s “Manifesto of the Communist Party” (HTML) and The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: “Marxist Theory” (PDF)

“Manifesto of the Communist Party” (The Communist Manifesto) also is available in:

PDF
Kindle (Free)

Instructions: Click on the first link above to access an online text of the “Manifesto of the Communist Party.” Read the section titled “Preamble” as well as “Chapter I: Bourgeois and Proletarians.” One of the most influential documents ever written, the Communist Manifesto presents history as a continuous process of change and transformation that is motivated by class struggle. The Saylor Foundation’s An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack may be downloaded in its entirety at the top of this course, or the section titled “Marxist Theory” may be downloaded from the link above. Read the entire section and answer the study questions provided at the end of the section.

Following your reading, consider also answering the following questions: How does capital operate in society, according to Marx? How has class struggle influenced the history of the Western world? How do systems of power operate, according to Marx?

This reading should take you approximately 2 hours to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpages above.

5.1.2 What Is Ideology?

Reading: Marxists Internet Archive: Encyclopedia of Marxism’s “Glossary of Terms”: “Ideology”
Link: Marxists Internet Archive: Encyclopedia of Marxism’s “Glossary of Terms”: “Ideology” (HTML)

Instructions: Read the glossary’s short definition of ideology, which provides you with a basic overview of the term as it relates to Marxist theory.

This reading should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.

Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

5.1.3 Class and Consumption

Reading: Purdue University: Dr. Dino Felluga’s Introductory Guide to Critical Theory: “Modules on Marx”: “I: On Ideology,” “II: On the Stages of Economic Development,” “III: On Capital,” and “IV: On Commodity Fetishism”
Link: Purdue University: Dr. Dino Felluga’s Introductory Guide to Critical Theory: “Modules on Marx”: “I: On Ideology”, “II: On the Stages of Economic Development”, “III: On Capital”, and “IV: On Commodity Fetishism” (HTML)

Instructions: Read the four sections of Dr. Felluga’s overview of Marxism for more on Marx’s ideas about materialism, class, and consumption.

Following your reading, consider answering the following question: How does an understanding of Marx’s theories help us to interpret literature?

This reading should take you approximately 2 hours to complete.

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5.1.4 Dialectical Materialism

Reading: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Dialectical Criticism”
Link: The University of Toronto: Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown’s Glossary of Literary Theory: “Dialectical Criticism” (PDF)

Instructions: Read the definition of dialectical criticism for a discussion of the term as it relates to Marxist literary theory.

Following your reading, consider answering the following question: How can the principles of dialectical criticism be applied to the study of literature?

This reading should take you approximately 30 minutes to complete.

Terms of Use: The material linked above has been reposted by the kind permission of Greig E. Henderson and Christopher Brown, and can be viewed in its original form here. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder.

5.1.5 Engels and False Consciousness

Reading: Marxist Internet Archive’s “False Consciousness” and Marx and Engels Correspondence: “Engels to Franz Mehring”
Link: Marxist Internet Archive’s "False Consciousness" (HTML) and Marx and Engels Correspondence: "Engels to Franz Mehring" (HTML)

Instructions: From the Marxist Internet Archive’s Glossary, please read the definition of “false consciousness” for an excellent review of the implications of the term. Also, please read the entire letter linked here for a discussion of “false consciousness.” Please note that this letter was the only time the term “false consciousness” was actually used in a Marxist text. Consider answering the following question: what is “false consciousness?"

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5.2 Marxist and Materialist Literary Criticism

5.2.1 Theodor Adorno and “Critical Theory”

Reading: Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: “Theodor Adorno” and Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s version of Theodor Adorno’s The Supramundane Character of the Hegelian World Spirit
Link: Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: “Theodor Adorno” (HTML) and Athenaeum Library of Philosophy’s version of Theodor Adorno’s The Supramundane Character of the Hegelian World Spirit (HTML)

Instructions: Please read the linked articles above for an understanding of Theodor Adorno’s approach to literature and the key concepts that underscore his literary theories. Consider answering the following question: What is the “Hegelian World Spirit” according to Adorno?

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Lecture: YouTube: Yale University: Dr. Paul Fry’s “Lecture 17: The Frankfurt School of Critical Theory”
Link: YouTube: Yale University: Dr. Paul Fry’s “Lecture 17: The Frankfurt School of Critical Theory” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, Mp3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Please watch the entire lecture (about 52 minutes). Please note that the transcript, audio mp3, and QuickTime and Flash versions of the video may be found on the Yale OpenCourses website.
Consider answering the following questions: What were the key principles of the Frankfurt School of Critical Theory? How do the principles of this school relate to or differ from the principles of New Criticism?

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5.2.2 Terry Eagleton and Materialist Criticism

Reading: Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: “Marxism and Critical Theory”
Link: Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: "Marxism and Critical Theory" (HTML)

Instructions: Please read the entire section titled “Marxism and Critical Theory” linked here. While the article provides a broad overview of Marxist theory, please focus specifically on Eagleton’s contributions to literary criticism.

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5.2.3 “Always Historicize”: Fredric Jameson’s Re-Writing of Marxist Thought

Reading: West Chester University’s version of Frederic Jameson’s The Political Unconscious and The Saylor Foundation's An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: "Frederick Jameson’s Post-Marxist Theory"
Links:West Chester University’s version of Frederic Jameson’s The Political Unconscious (HTML) andThe Saylor Foundation's An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: "Frederick Jameson’s Post-Marxist Theory" (PDF)

Instructions: Please read the linked excerpt from Jameson’s The Political Unconscious, which establishes a structure for the political analysis of literary texts. Building on Marxist theory, Fredric Jameson’s The Political Unconscious examines and problematizes the interpretive frameworks through which we understand and, in a sense, “construct” a literary work. The Saylor Foundation's An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack can be downloaded in its entirety at the top of the page, or the section on "Frederick Jameson's Post-Marxist Theory" can be downloaded from the link above. Please read the section titled “Frederick Jameson’s Post-Marxist Theory,” and answer the study questions. Consider answering the following questions: What does Jameson mean by “always historicize?” What does Jameson suggest about the proper way of approaching literature through that statement? How does Jameson conceptualize Marxist theory?

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Lecture: YouTube: Yale University: Dr. Paul Fry’s "Lecture 18: The Political Unconscious"
Link: YouTube: Yale University: Dr. Paul Fry’s "Lecture 18: The Political Unconscious" (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, Mp3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Please watch the entire lecture (it’s about 54 minutes in length). Please note that the transcript, audio mp3, and QuickTime and Flash versions of the video may be found on the Yale OpenCourse website. Consider answering the following question: What is the “Political Unconscious,” according to Fry and Jameson?

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5.3 Mikhail Bakhtin

Reading: Text Etc. C. John Holcombe’s “Mikhail Bakhtin”; Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy’s “The Bakhtin Circle”; and The Saylor Foundation's An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: "Bakhtin and Carnival"
Links: Text Etc. C. John Holcombe’s "Mikhail Bakhtin" (HTML); Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy’s "The Bakhtin Circle" (HTML); and the Saylor Foundation's An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: "Bakhtin and Carnival" (PDF)

Instructions: From Text Etc., read the entry titled “Mikhail Bakhtin” for a simple explanation of his theories. Also, please read the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy’s entry on Bakhtin for a complementary summary of his ideas. The Saylor Foundation's An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack can be downloaded in its entirety at the top of the page, or the section on "Bakhtin and Carnival" can be downloaded from the link above. Please read the section titled "Bakhtin and the Carnival," and answer the study questions. Consider answering the following questions: What are Bakhtin’s major contributions to literary theory? How does Bakhtin’s notion of the carnival allow writers to question and examine authority and behavioral norms?

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5.3.2 Bakhtin’s Theories: Similarities to and Differences from Marxist Literary Theory and Saussurean Linguistics

Reading: Text Etc. C. John Holcombe’s “Linguistics”
Link: Text Etc. C. John Holcombe’s "Linguistics" (HTML)

Instructions: Please read the entire article linked here, which traces Saussure’s influence on different schools of theory. In particular, please pay attention to the section titled “The Structuralists,” which contrasts this school of thought with Marxist theory.

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5.3.3 The Novel and Heteroglossia

Reading: The Saylor Foundation's article on Mikhail Bakhtin’s “Discourse in the Novel”; Project Gutenberg’s version of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice; and The Saylor Foundation's An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: "Applying Theory in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice"
Links: The Saylor Foundation’s article on Mikhail Bakhtin’s "Discourse in the Novel" (PDF); Project Gutenberg’s version of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice (HTML); and The Saylor Foundation's An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack: "Applying Theory in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice" (PDF)

Instructions: Please read the list of excerpts from Bakhtin’s “Discourse in the Novel” linked here for a sense of Bakhtin’s principle theories. Also, please read Chapter 1 of Austen’s Pride and Prejudice to accompany Dr. Fry’s lecture linked below, in which he specifically discusses heteroglossia in the text. The Saylor Foundation's An Introduction to Literary Theory Coursepack can be downloaded in its entirety at the top of the page, or the section on "Applying Theory in Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice" can be downloaded from the link above. Please read the section titled "Applying Theory in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice," and answer the study questions. “Discourse in the Novel” is perhaps the most distilled version of Bakhtin’s theories concerning language, ideology, and discourse. In it, he claims that every human utterance is part of a complex web of dialogic interrelations with other utterances.

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Reading: YouTube: Yale University: Dr. Paul Fry’s “Lecture 16: The Social Permeability of Reader and Text”
Link: YouTube: Yale University: Dr. Paul Fry’s “Lecture 16: The Social Permeability of Reader and Text” (YouTube)

Also available in:
HTML, Mp3, Adobe Flash, and Quicktime

Instructions: Please listen to the entire lecture for a discussion of Bakhtin’s theories (it is about 50 minutes in length). Please note that the transcript, audio mp3, and QuickTime and Flash versions of the video may be found on the Yale OpenCourse website. Consider answering the following question: How does Dr. Fry understand the relationship between reader and text?

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Course Syllabus for "ENGL301: Introduction to Literary Theory".

Learning Outcomes

Course Requirements

Course Information

Preliminary Information

Course Overview