Writing literary criticism essays is a big part of academic writing, especially for students of literature. It can be complicated because of the subjective nature of literary works. However, as long as you focus on properly justifying your interpretation or impressions of a literary piece, you can end up writing impressive or effective interpretations of literary works.
In this article, we will provide tips on writing a proper literary criticism essay. For this purpose, we contrast and compare two poems: "Silver Wedding" by Vernon Scannell and "Marrysong" by Dennis Scott. I also give a brief overview of the various approaches to criticizing literature.
What is literary analysis?
Literary analysis refers to interpretations of works of literature, including novels, plays, short stories, poems, and so on. It can take various forms. There are several approaches through which you can conduct literary analysis. They include:
The Traditional approach
The Historical-Biographical approach
The Moral-Philosophical approach
The Formalistic approach
The Psychological approach
The Mythological-Archetypal approach
The Feminist approach
Each of these approaches likely deserves an essay of their own. However, I will quickly summarize them here. The Traditional approach is the most basic and essential aspect of literary analysis. It simply focuses on the essential elements of the work of literature, such as plot, theme, mood, setting, and character.
However, other approaches go beyond that. For example, the Historical-Biographical approach takes into the historical setting and facts of the author's life. The Moral-Philosophical approach focuses on the moral lessons taught by a work of art.
An approach like the Formalistic approach is a reaction against approaches such as the Moral-Philosophical and especially the Historical-Biographical approaches. It focuses instead on the form of the poem and how well that form and structure is integrated and inseparable from the meaning of the poem and ignores factors such as the biographical facts or intentions of the author.
The Psychological approach in many ways is the opposite of the Formalistic one. It probes the psychology of the author to find subconscious motivations for the written text. The most famous example of this is the Oedipus complex, where male characters are supposedly driven by the author's desire to murder their fathers and sleep with their mothers.
The Mythological-Archetypal approach relies heavily on aspects of the Psychological approach. However, it goes one step further and focuses on a concept known as racial and cultural memory. It is the idea that all human cultures have in common mythical archetypes that can be easily recognized in modern storytelling. This includes the Hero, Great Mother, and Sage archetypes. It is the most popular literary approach in modern pop culture, especially regarding cinema, where the concept often takes the form of the Hero's Journey.
In literature, a common archetype is that of the sacrificial hero. Hamlet for example can be interpreted as a kind of sacrificial hero. He sacrifices his sanity, his life, and his entire family to rid Denmark of the social and moral rot that developed from a fratricide committed by an Uncle who killed the king and his father to usurp the throne.
Lastly, there's the Feminist approach. In this literary approach, texts are examined from the woman's perspective. Much of Western literature has been written from a male perspective. How much bias against women is included in such literature? In what ways have women's voices and views been diminished and distorted? Feminist literary analysis seeks to critique literature by taking all such things into account.
All of these approaches are unique, rich, and interesting in their own right. However, before delving into them, you should learn your text. This means fully familiarizing yourself with the matter in front of you. This means the basics of the text: that is, theme, plot, setting, and character.
In other words, the traditional approach should come before anything else. It ensures that you have a sound understanding of the text before you proceed to extend your analysis using the other approaches.
The literary analysis approach to take
The literary approach to take may sometimes be decided by your course instructor. If you are given explicit instruction to adopt a Formalistic approach to analyzing "My Picture Left In Scotland" by Ben Johnson, then this is what you should do.
However, if the choice is left up to you, you don't always have to use one of the seven approaches outlined. You could use a combination of two or as many as it makes sense to. In addition, here are common themes of literary analysis that you might want to look at:
1. Compare and contrast. This is where you compare the style, tone, characterization, or themes from two different works, such as two poems or two novels. You may even compare themes and characters within a single work.
2. Character sketches. This involves analyzing character development or behavior in a novel or short story.
3. Social or cultural analyses. This is analysis that situates the themes of a piece of literature within its proper social or cultural context.
4. Historical analysis. This explains how the themes of a work of literature deal with the historical context that it uses as a story background or the historical period within which it was written.
There are many other questions or themes on which literary analysis is conducted. So, this is by no means an exhaustive list.
The point of literary analysis is to demonstrate that you understand the work being analyzed and relate it to wider contexts, such as other works, history, and social or cultural themes or issues. The best literary analyses try to be original and unique in their insights while sticking to universal principles.
Tips to Follow
The key to proper literary analysis is following the fundamental rule of good writing: telling a coherent story. It makes no sense to start writing random ideas that come to mind when analyzing a poem, story, or novel.
You should know the ending even before you begin. Academic writing is unlike a mystery novel. Do not go for a surprise ending. Don't rely on natural inspiration. Instead, analyze the work, determine the themes, map out your ideas, and finally make an outline.
One of the main ways to ensure that a coherent story is being told from the beginning to the end is through the development of a proper thesis statement. The thesis statement is more or less the main idea of your essay. Ideally, it should be stated within the first three sentences of the paragraph.
You should continually go back to your thesis statement while writing. That is to make sure that you remain on track. Also, don't be afraid to change your thesis statement while you write. If a new idea or theme makes your original thesis statement less accurate, then you should change it accordingly.
Here are a few other tips to follow when doing literary analysis:
1. Make extensive and good use of quotations. However, don't overdo it. It makes no sense to have an analysis that has more quotations from the original text than your own writing. This gives the impression that you are trying to cheat the word count or did not properly digest the text to express it in your own words.
2. Make sure you understand the text. The text should be thoroughly read. Only then will you be able to understand it to have the confidence to comment on it.
3. Make an outline before you write. As mentioned earlier, it would be best to map out your journey with the analysis before you even begin writing. This makes writing both faster and easier.
4. Consult others' work when necessary. There is something attractive and romantic about developing your own ideas. Thinking on your own is of course great. However, this does not mean that you should never rely on analysis written by others. Consulting the work of others can inspire new ideas and keep you grounded in universal themes or methods of analysis.
5. Have a thorough knowledge of literary devices. This means knowing how to talk about meter, metaphor, irony, symbolism, and so on. These types of rhetorical devices are usually inseparable from the meaning of a literary work.
An example of two poems
To make a good impression with your literary analysis, you should focus on discovering universal insights. The ideal opportunity to do so would be to compare and contrast two works of art from widely distinct contexts or cultures and see how they reflect and differ from each other.
At EminentEdit, we believe in show, don't tell. So, we will demonstrate an example of analysis with two poems. For this purpose, we have chosen two appropriate pieces. The first is "Silver Wedding" by Vernon Scannell, the British poet, and the second is "Marrysong" by the Jamaican poet Dennis Scott.
Let's try to imagine the prompt for an essay that compares and contrasts these two poems. It would read something as follows:
What are the similarities and differences in the attitude to marriage exhibited in these two poems?
Example of literary criticism essay |
Comparing "Marrysong" and "Silver Wedding": A Romantic Versus Cynical View of Marriage
Introduction
"Marrysong" manages to preserve a romantic view of marriage despite its high levels of frustration, whereas "Silver Wedding" preserves a heavy note of resignation and outright despair. Marysong achieves this romantic effect through careful imagery and natural scenery that carefully moves from frustration to despair, while Scannell relies on a sustained tone of sardonic cynicism.
In the poem by Dennis Scott, the female spouse is portrayed as a complicated woman who is difficult to "learn." However, the challenge of "learning" her is eventually portrayed as a rewarding and life-long journey in and of itself. By contrast, Scannell sees himself as trapped in a despairing marriage that he simply can't escape.
Both poems are brilliantly written and achieve their intended effects. In our analysis, we uncover how both poets managed to show the deep frustration and resentment in marriage and how they depart in terms of how they come to terms with these frustrations.
Illustrating the Frustrations of Marriage
Both poets portray masterfully the frustrations of marriage through effective and well-chosen imagery. Scannel uses the after-party of his 25-year wedding anniversary to ruminate on the hurt, regret, and despair that has characterized his marriage:
The party is over and I sit among
The flotsam that its passing leaves,
The dirty glasses and fag-ends:
Outside, a black wind grieves.
This imagery suggests exhaustion, fatigue, and even desperation. This is a man at the end of his rope. The Scott poem begins more subtly and prepares carefully for a long extended metaphor that eventually transforms the frustrations of his marriage into something challenging, rewarding, and even romantic.
His partner is portrayed almost as a mythic landscape that is hard to know or learn.
He never learned her, quite. Year after year
that territory, without seasons, shifted
under his eye.
Therefore, unlike Scannell, Scott's poem begins much more ambiguously. The frustration is noted, but the outright despair is lacking. Scott leaves room for encouragement or resolution, whereas Scannell makes it clear that the"party is over."
In "Silver Wedding," the frustration and despair appear to be based on guilt at a man wronging his wife, which is suggested by lines, such as:
Helen, my spouse, my sack of sighs,
Reproaches me for every hurt
With injured, bovine eyes.
"Bovine eyes" suggest the innocence of a woman who has been mistreated by her spouse. Similar is suggested in Scott's poem, where he says:
An hour he could be lost
in the walled anger of her quarried hurt
The key difference is that his spouse's hurt is eventually portrayed as natural feminine fickleness, which is sometimes delightful and other times baffling and frustrating.
An hour he could be lost
in the walled anger of her quarried hurt
or turning, see cool water laughing where
the day before there were stones in her voice.
He charted. She made wilderness again.
The author of "Marrysong" never approaches the bitterness of the "Silver Wedding," where the wife is described as "a bag of sighs."
Two Different Perspectives On Marriage
The two poems part ways from the very beginning. Scannell's poem begins at the end of his wedding celebration quite fittingly. This is further reinforced throughout the poem, with lines such as:
There must have been passion once, I grant,
But neither she nor I could bear
To have its ghost come prowling from
Its dark and frowsy lair.
Here, the author makes it clear that the idea of happiness and passion is so foreign that it is portrayed as a ghost. Dennis Scott's poem, by contrast, starts with a description of a journey that he will never tire of. The continual frustration and his attempts to come to terms with it and beat it are portrayed as part of the passion that remains alive in his marriage. Scott uses beautiful and succinct language to describe this, such as "He charted. She made wilderness again."
Both poems in fact make effective use of language, meter, and imagery. In the case of "Silver Wedding," the half-rhyming scheme and regular meter give the poem a surreal sing-song quality. The poet is wryly celebrating surviving the despair and turmoil of a ruined marriage. The short meter and rhyme give the impression of a man singing and dancing in the wasteland of a nuclear holocaust.
Moreover, the scenes associated with a party coming to an end faithfully reflect the theme.
Scott uses iambic pentameter, which reflects the way that he tightly controls the imagery of his wife being a challenging, yet rewarding landscape to explore. The way that he extends the metaphor from the first line all the way to the end, without ever getting trite is truly impressive.
Conclusion
The two poems are effective in portraying the frustrations of marriage. A life-long commitment to one partner can indeed be difficult and frustrating. However, "Marrysong" comes to terms with the frustration by seeing it as a challenge that might have delights yet to discover, and with the husband taking care to treat his wife with tenderness and patience. "Silver Wedding" sees it as all lost and wonders how the two even reached so far.
Multiple meanings and ways of interpreting
In this short literary criticism essay, I sought to practice what I preach. From even the title of the essay I tried to tell one coherent story: namely, both poems are about men expressing the frustration of life-long commitment to their wives or spouse, with Scannell sinking into cynicism and despair and Scott taking a more romantic approach.
The first sentence explains as much: Marrysong" manages to preserve a romantic view of marriage despite its high levels of frustration, whereas "Silver Wedding" preserves a heavy note of resignation and outright despair. The remainder of the poem focuses on showing how the two poems reflect and differ from each other.
Also, note while we use some quotations, we don't use too many. This is because as mentioned earlier you should focus on reproducing your own interpretation and understanding of the text. The two poems are already quite famous. Your lecturer already knows them. There is no need to repeat the text of the poems extensively.
1. Traditional
Now, this is just one interpretation. Several other approaches could be applied to this poem. In my analysis, I focused on mood, setting, theme, and the characterization of the persona or speaking voice in the poems. This could be seen as a Traditional approach.
2. Formalistic
A Formalistic approach, which I touched upon would highlight how the form and intent are blended in Scott's poem through an extended metaphor where his spouse's emotions are described as a landscape he could never tire of exploring, although sometimes difficult.
3. Historical-Biographical
A Historical-Biographical approach to Scannell's poem would attempt to find facts about his married life that may have contributed to the negative feelings expressed in the poem. In the case of Scott, the fact that he was a Jamaican poet would help explain several aspects of the poem. For example, the title of the poem "Marrysong" is Jamaican dialect for Marriage Song.
The poem is otherwise written in "proper English." Dennis Scott is well-known for his ability to skillfully blend Jamaican dialect in lyrical poetry without resorting to broad satire or humor as is often the case with other Caribbean and Jamaican poets who use dialect in their poetry. A historical-biographical approach would compare this poem to other poems by Dennis Scott and how he uses (or not) Jamaican dialect in this poem to mine further meaning.
For example, in his poem Uncle Time, Scott writes about the devastating effect of time on human life, love, and aspirations. We could say that Scott by giving his poem a title in Jamaican dialect wanted to mark his poem as a product of Jamaican land- and cultural-scape even while speaking about a sophisticated and delicate subject as the nature of love and long-term commitment to a spouse.
Also, even if the poem is not written in dialect, the landscape described resembles the native and natural landscape of his country of Jamaica. This leaves the question: Is Scott describing just the relationship with his wife or the nature of the relationship between him and his country? This analysis would not be possible without taking into account the biography and history of the poet and the poem.
4. Feminist critique
A Feminist critique would acknowledge that Scott's approach was gentler to his wife than Scannel's. However, Scott would not be left completely off the hook. He would have been critiqued for objectifying his wife as a landscape to be conquered as opposed to a human with genuine emotions that are rooted in reason and logic that he should work toward understanding.
In short, there are many paths or approaches that you should follow in interpreting a work of literature. What is expected is for you to provide an original synthesis. Literary analysis is one of the few forms of academic writing where you allow your own personal opinion and creative expression to feature in your analysis.
Original synthesis and unique critiques show that you have read and understood the text and you can express what you have learned in your own words. If you're able to produce an original perspective in the process that would be ideal. Good luck with your literary analysis!
Cite this EminentEdit article |
Antoine, M. (2023, May 06). Literary Analysis With an Example. https://www.eminentediting.com/post/tips-for-writing-literary-analysis-with-an-example |
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