You will need the following materials today: o Your Survival Guide (turn to page 116) o Your R.J. o Your copy of Their Eyes Were Watching God
Working with the Psychoanalytic Lens, the New Historicism Lens, & the Feminism/Gender Lens The basics of the main critical lenses can be found in your Survival Guide, beginning on page 116.
Psychoanalytic criticism in part builds on Freudian theories of psychology. o Freud maintained that desires and unconscious conflicts give rise to 3 areas of the mind that wrestle for dominance as one matures: o Id: the unorganized part of the personality structure that contains a human's basic, instinctual drives. o Ego: prevents one from acting on basic urges (est. by the id) while working to achieve a balance with one s moral and idealistic standards (est. by the superego) o Superego: the internalization of cultural rules, mainly taught/influenced by parents/guardians. o Freud believed an Oedipus complex: essentially, this involves children's need for their parents and the conflict that arises as children mature and realize they are not the absolute focus of their mother's attention. Talk with your partner what would Freud have to say about the character of Hamlet? Oedipus? (Be prepared to share your observations with the class as a whole.)
Psychoanalytic criticism in part builds on Jungian theories of psychology. o Jungian criticism attempts to explore the connection between literature and what Carl Jung (a student of Freud) called the collective unconscious of the human race. Jungian criticism assumes that all stories and symbols are recurring myths and archetypes. o Jung developed/identified 3 main archetypes (there are more, but these are the main 3): o Shadow: largely negative and unconscious, this is an aspect of the personality which the conscious ego does not identify within itself o Anima: the unconscious of the male, expressed as a feminine inner personality o Animus: the unconscious of the female, expressed as a masculine inner personality o In literary analysis, a Jungian critic looks for archetypes. When dealing with this sort of criticism, it is often useful to keep a handbook of mythology and a dictionary of symbols on hand (e.g. your Allusions Packet in your Survival Guide). Talk with your partner what would Jung have to say about the characters of Happy and Biff? (Be prepared to share your observations with the class as a whole.)
othis school of thought seeks to reconnect a work with the time period in which it was produced and identify it with the dominant social, political, and moral movements of the time. onew Historicism assumes that every work is a product of the historic moment that created it. onew historicists do not believe that one can look at history objectively, but rather that one interprets events as products of one s time and culture. onew Historicists, when analyzing literature, will mainly look at: o How language/characters/events present reflect the current events of the author s day o Diction choices o If the work supports or condemns historically significant events/beliefs/political figures/movements/etc. o How the work considers traditionally marginalized populations Talk with your partner what would a New Historicist have to say about The Great Gatsby? (Be prepared to share your observations with the class as a whole.)
Feminist criticism o This school of thought is concerned with the economic, political, social, and psychological oppression of women. o It looks at how aspects of our culture are inherently patriarchal (male dominated). o It is also concerned with less obvious forms of marginalization such as the exclusion of women writers from the traditional literary canon. Gender studies o Has been influenced greatly by feminist studies. o It explores issues of sexuality, power, and marginalized populations (specifically female, gay, lesbian, and transgender) in literature and culture. o Has a primary concern in regards to manner in which gender and sexuality are discussed. o To label a character as masculine and another as feminine is inherently reiterating gender stereotypes. If one means that a certain character is dominating and another is meek, than they should be classified as such. Talk with your partner what would a Feminist/Gender Theorist have to say about Hills Like White Elephants? (Be prepared to share your observations with the class as a whole.)
Applying these three lenses to Their Eyes Were Watching God Remember, the basics of the main critical lenses can be found in your Survival Guide, beginning on page 116: you may also find the Little Red Riding Hood interpretations helpful these can be found starting on page 133.
Now, think about Their Eyes Were Watching God from your assigned lens. o In your RJ, take detailed notes of your thoughts. o o Use the typical questions (noted under your assigned theory in your Survival Guide) to help you dig deeply into the text. Identify direct quotes from Their Eyes Were Watching God to support your ideas. o On Thursday, we will have three graded fishbowl discussions centering around each of the three assigned lenses. Tomorrow If you own your own copy of How to Read Literature Like a Professor please bring it along with you. Group A New Historicism (see guide page 127-128 for details & questions you may wish to do outside research on the era/author) Group B Feminism/ Gender (see guide pages 131-132 for details & questions) Group C Psychoanalytic (see guide page 118-120 for details & questions)