Art criticism

The rather long essay, “An Experiment in Criticism”, by C.S. Lewis offers a reverse type of traditional literary criticism that focuses on distinction of readers instead of the book itself. The way of approach to the literature classifies the different types of readers. It, then, embedded a vigorous declaration on how evaluative criticism can overpower and overwhelm the reader which results in the slaughter of an individual’s opinion on a literature. It is a wonderful book as it takes u the road…

It has been said that literary criticism started before Plato, but he is known the bedrock or the womb that birth other literary criticism. It is the foundation of the building called literary theory or criticism. He prescribes what a good literature or poetry should be. Plato’s philosophy of idealism – the existence of two worlds; the ideal world which is perfect and the visible world which is an imitation of the ideal. This idea criticizes art as an imitation of an imitation. And as a result,…

Walter Besant’s lecture “The Art of Fiction” in light of Henry James’ published response of the same title. I will argue that James’ is correct and warranted to critique Besant’s approach, but that James’ concerns are ultimately overstated. Besant’s lecture “The Art of Fiction” aims to defend fiction and elevate the novel among the “higher” arts. Historically, critics wouldn’t dare speak of fiction in the same breath they praise the fine arts – to even consider it an art at all would be a…

This essay looks to discuss my assumption that the best interpretation of a work of literature is the author’s intention for the work, as it is the basis for the work. This paper criticises this assumption as it does not allow for a sufficient understanding of literature and since there is no way to prove that there is a best interpretation. The paper offers a new assumption to alleviate these problems which states that a set of interpretations which have sufficient textual evidence are the…

literary journal, he himself convinced by the moral function of art, transcending the function of the ‘salon’ to one of a literary status. The Salons are widely recognised in a contemporary setting for their importance in the pioneering of the art critic. Diderot can be…

Why do we read literature and how do we judge it? In C. S Lewis 's classic book An Experiment in Criticism comes from the conviction that literature exists for the elation of the reader and that a book shall not be judged by the reading but by whom the reader is. Lewis argues, to distinguish between a good book and a bad, we must therefore not refer to how the book is written but by how it is read. Throughout the book, Lewis discuss’ his theories about why that is true, starting by separating…

In addition, pope's essay on criticism considered a summary of neoclassical critical views and at the same time a prove for his defense of the social role of criticism. Also, the importance of the poetry is shown in the way its description of criticism as a means of keeping the traditional cultural values in a time of socioeconomic change. For pope, criticism frames the artistic description of nature and nature is idealized in his Essay with "the ancients" (Fairer 31). Almost all the poem's…

Bandy, Stephen C. "'One Of My Babies': The Misfit and the Grandmother." Studies in Short Fiction 33.1 (1996):107-118.Rpt. in Short Story Criticism. Ed. Janet Witalec. Vol. 61. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Literature Resource Center. Web. 28 Mar. 2016. The critic, Stephen Brandy, believes that the short story “A Good Man is Hard To Find” is a harsh realization to the truths of Christianity beliefs. He claims that “one cannot deny that the concerns of this story are the basic…

In C.S. Lewis’s An Experiment in Criticism, Lewis attempts to distinguish how good and bad readers interpret books. 'Let us try to discover how far it might be plausible to define a good book as a book which is read in one way, and a bad book as a book which is read in another” (1). Although Lewis’s essay is primarily dominated by “the many and the few,” the paramount message of the book pertains to the ego; moreover, how the literary experience heals the wound without undermining individuality.…

TASK 1 : ESSAY Discuss the application of relevant theories of literary criticism in the selected text. Literary criticism from my point of view can be defined as the art or practice of judging and commenting on the qualities and characteristics of various literary works. Modern critics tend to pass down the concerns of earlier centuries, such as formal categories or the place of moral or aesthetic value. Some analyse texts as self-contained entities, in segregation from external factors,…