{"id":59,"date":"2018-05-29T10:58:31","date_gmt":"2018-05-29T10:58:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/sunycorning1020elec201819\/?post_type=chapter&p=59"},"modified":"2018-06-21T22:33:42","modified_gmt":"2018-06-21T22:33:42","slug":"finding-literary-criticism","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/sunycorning1020elec201819\/chapter\/finding-literary-criticism\/","title":{"raw":"Finding Literary Criticism","rendered":"Finding Literary Criticism"},"content":{"raw":"

Finding Literary Criticism<\/h2>\r\n
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\r\n\r\nLiterary criticism is writing that explores the meaning of works of literature. Among other things, literary criticism analyzes works of literature in terms of their historical and literary context. It can also examine a particular type of literature or compare different works by the same author or works by different authors.\r\n\r\nLiterary criticism analyzes fiction, poetry, drama and some types of non-fiction by considering key issues such as plot, character, setting, theme, imagery, and voice. Literary criticism may also consider the effectiveness of a work of literature, but it\u2019s important to note that in this context the word \u201ccriticism\u201d doesn\u2019t simply mean finding fault with the writing but rather looking at it from a critical or analytical viewpoint in order to understand it better.\r\n\r\nIt\u2019s also important to note that literary criticism involves more than just summarizing the plot or offering biographical information about the author.\r\n

Evaluating Sources of Literary Criticism<\/h2>\r\nIf you\u2019re asked to find\u00a0scholarly<\/em>\u00a0sources of literary criticism, you should look for journals that are peer-reviewed. In other words, before articles are accepted for publication in the journal, they\u2019re reviewed by other scholars. Articles in a scholarly journal will also include citations for other works that are referenced. Scholarly books, likewise, will document their sources and are usually written by someone affiliated with a college or university and published by a university press. Sometimes a book of literary criticism is actually a compilation of articles that have previously appeared in journals. If that\u2019s the case, you can try to ascertain the nature of the journal in question.\r\n\r\nEven if you know an article has come from a peer-reviewed journal, you may still wonder about its relevance, particularly if the work or author you\u2019re researching is one that\u2019s been studied extensively. One way to get more information about a source is to type the title of the article into Google Scholar and see how many times it\u2019s been cited. The higher the number, the more likely it is that the article is influential\u2014or at least controversial. You can do a similar search to learn more about the reputation of a journal, book, or author.\r\n\r\nFinally, when looking for critical work, don\u2019t rely on sources like SparkNotes, which provide help for students but are not considered reputable scholarly sources.\r\n

Sources of Literary Criticism<\/h2>\r\nAn ideal placeto begin your search for literary criticism is the English subject guide on the TAMU libraries\u2019 website: library.tamu.edu\/subject-guides\/English. We also recommend their handout \u201cStarting Points for Literary Criticism.\u201d\r\n\r\nHere are some of the useful links you\u2019ll find on the library website:\r\n\r\nAcademic Search Complete: EBSCO<\/strong>: This online database, a general source for scholarly works in a variety of disciplines, covers works on the literature of all languages. The database covers almost 11,000 publications and offers full text on about 5,000 of those.\r\n\r\nThe Year\u2019s Work in English Studies:<\/strong>\u00a0This bibliography lists and assesses the scholarly literary criticism published in a given year. The information is presented according to major literary periods, such as \u201cAmerican Literature to 1900\u201d and can also be searched by author. It can be accessed at:\u00a0ywes.oxfordjournals.org\/<\/a>\r\n
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Also recommended for you:<\/h2>\r\nLiterary Terms<\/a>\r\n\r\nAnalyzing Novels & Short Stories<\/a>\r\n\r\nAnalyzing Plays<\/a>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n
Analyzing Poetry<\/a><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>","rendered":"

Finding Literary Criticism<\/h2>\n
\n
\n

Literary criticism is writing that explores the meaning of works of literature. Among other things, literary criticism analyzes works of literature in terms of their historical and literary context. It can also examine a particular type of literature or compare different works by the same author or works by different authors.<\/p>\n

Literary criticism analyzes fiction, poetry, drama and some types of non-fiction by considering key issues such as plot, character, setting, theme, imagery, and voice. Literary criticism may also consider the effectiveness of a work of literature, but it\u2019s important to note that in this context the word \u201ccriticism\u201d doesn\u2019t simply mean finding fault with the writing but rather looking at it from a critical or analytical viewpoint in order to understand it better.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also important to note that literary criticism involves more than just summarizing the plot or offering biographical information about the author.<\/p>\n

Evaluating Sources of Literary Criticism<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re asked to find\u00a0scholarly<\/em>\u00a0sources of literary criticism, you should look for journals that are peer-reviewed. In other words, before articles are accepted for publication in the journal, they\u2019re reviewed by other scholars. Articles in a scholarly journal will also include citations for other works that are referenced. Scholarly books, likewise, will document their sources and are usually written by someone affiliated with a college or university and published by a university press. Sometimes a book of literary criticism is actually a compilation of articles that have previously appeared in journals. If that\u2019s the case, you can try to ascertain the nature of the journal in question.<\/p>\n

Even if you know an article has come from a peer-reviewed journal, you may still wonder about its relevance, particularly if the work or author you\u2019re researching is one that\u2019s been studied extensively. One way to get more information about a source is to type the title of the article into Google Scholar and see how many times it\u2019s been cited. The higher the number, the more likely it is that the article is influential\u2014or at least controversial. You can do a similar search to learn more about the reputation of a journal, book, or author.<\/p>\n

Finally, when looking for critical work, don\u2019t rely on sources like SparkNotes, which provide help for students but are not considered reputable scholarly sources.<\/p>\n

Sources of Literary Criticism<\/h2>\n

An ideal placeto begin your search for literary criticism is the English subject guide on the TAMU libraries\u2019 website: library.tamu.edu\/subject-guides\/English. We also recommend their handout \u201cStarting Points for Literary Criticism.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here are some of the useful links you\u2019ll find on the library website:<\/p>\n

Academic Search Complete: EBSCO<\/strong>: This online database, a general source for scholarly works in a variety of disciplines, covers works on the literature of all languages. The database covers almost 11,000 publications and offers full text on about 5,000 of those.<\/p>\n

The Year\u2019s Work in English Studies:<\/strong>\u00a0This bibliography lists and assesses the scholarly literary criticism published in a given year. The information is presented according to major literary periods, such as \u201cAmerican Literature to 1900\u201d and can also be searched by author. It can be accessed at:\u00a0ywes.oxfordjournals.org\/<\/a><\/p>\n

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Also recommended for you:<\/h2>\n

Literary Terms<\/a><\/p>\n

Analyzing Novels & Short Stories<\/a><\/p>\n

Analyzing Plays<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Analyzing Poetry<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t
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Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t
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