New Criticism: Values and Terms [slide/lexicon] Flashcards
Aesthetic Experience
Aesthetics is concerned with “the nature and basis of criticism, … just as criticism itself is concerned with works of art” (Beardsley)
Analysis
Emphasized close reading, particularly of poetry, to discover how a work of literature functioned as a self-contained, self-referential aesthetic object
Symbolism
Symbolism is often studied, rather than plot, as the way in which a work is structured.
Diction
The manner in which anything is expressed in (spoken or written) words; choice or selection of words and phrases; wording, phrasing; verbal style.
Etymology
The process or practice of tracing the origin of a word so as to explain what is considered to be its true literal meaning.
Tension
May come from parodies, ironies, and ambiguities. Should be resolved into wholeness.
Paradox
An apparently absurd or self-contradictory statement or proposition, or a strongly counter-intuitive one, which investigation, analysis, or explanation may nevertheless prove to be well-founded or true.
Irony
The expression of one’s meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect; esp. (in earlier use) the use of approbatory language to imply condemnation or contempt (cf. sarcasm n.). In later use also more generally: a manner, style, or attitude suggestive of the use of this kind of expression.
Ambiguity
Objectively: Capability of being understood in two or more ways; double or dubious signification, ambiguousness.
Affective fallacy
the erroneous practice of interpreting texts according to the psychological or emotional responses of readers, confusing the text with its results
Intentional fallacy
when one confuses the meaning of a work with the author’s purported intention
Unity/Wholeness
New Critics “may find tension, irony, or paradox in this relation, but they usually resolve it into unity and coherence of meaning” (Biddle 100). A unifying theme should resolve any tensions in the text.
