Ronald S. Crane’s essay concerns the way in which the literary scholar should be viewed. There are two different ideas: the historian and the critic. Crane mentions Howard Mumford Jones, placing him at one end of the spectrum. Jones believes when approaching literature, one must focus on the world and how it is changing, recording all events so those who come after him/her can understand and pass judgments based on facts. At the other end of the spectrum, Crane sets John Livingston Lowes in the foreground, stating that criticism is the only justification to literature. He does not say that we should ignore history, but rather should use it as tool to understand human emotion and to find the deeper meaning through literature.
In Crane’s argument for history, he proposes we ask what is involved in writing history and apply those findings to literature, when it is considered an art form. He says what we take from historical criticism is the same thing we take from any type of historical study: we want to know how humanity has changed. While he believes this is all good, we need to see that it is not the only thing, or the best thing, when it comes to literature. In the second section, Crane begins to show his side of the argument, namely that literary criticism is superior to that of historical criticism. Crane believes that literature is art, so before one criticizes it, one must appreciate it. Also, he states that art is meant to be enjoyed and those who read literary texts should be sensitive to that fact and thus cannot merely be “learned men.”
At the end of his essay, Crane makes it clear he believes that literary criticism is superior to historical criticism. He believes that students should read literature, not about it. His “new criticism” is one that follows pluralism and is a melding of the two previously stated ideas. Crane talks of both literary criticism and historical criticism as a spring board to fully understanding literature and believes that in the future, we can decide on what is a true critical fact rather than all these theories. He says we need to revive the classics and when that happens, the “renewed cultivation” of reading and writing will commence. This, Crane believes, is what any worthy piece of literary criticism should be based on.
The spectrum of criticism about the author is vast.
Heberle, Mark. "Contemporary Literary Criticism." O'Brien, Tim. The Things They Carried. Vol. 74. New York, 2001. 312.
164-69. Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Jeffrey W. Hunter. Vol. 341. Detroit: Gale, 2013.Artemis Literary Sources. Web. 5 May 2014.
Schoenberg, T. J. (2001). Bradford, William - Introduction. "Literary Criticiem (1400-1800). Retrieved March 2011, from enotes.com/literacy-criticism: www.enotes.com/literary-criticism/bradford-williams
Bryfonski, Dedria, and Phyllis Carmel Mendelson. Contemporary Literary Criticism. Volume 8. Detroit: Gale Research, 1978. 474-7
Guerin, Wilfred L., Earle Labor, Lee Morgan, Jeanne C. Reesman, and John R. Willingham. A Handbook of Critical Approaches to Literature. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. 125-156.
"Morton, Thomas - Introduction." Literary Criticism (1400-1800). Ed. Thomas J. Schoenberg. Vol. 72. Gale Cengage, 2002. eNotes.com. 2006. 21 Feb, 2011
The notion of the author has often been disputed when it comes to critical literary studies. The argument centers around one basic question: Should the author be considered when looking at a text? There are numerous reasons given as to why the author is important or why the ...
Bressler, Charles E. Literary Criticism: An Introduction to Theory and Practice. 5th ed. New York: Longman, 2011. Print.
W. K. Wimsatt and Monroe C. Beardsley are two of the most famous New Critical theorists. Their essay, “The Intentional Fallacy” impacted and further developed the study of New Criticism. It even has a profound impact on the way scholars practice criticism now. “The Intentional Fallacy” exposes the various “fallacious” or mistaken approaches to the interpretation of literature. It is false to believe that literature follows through with what the assumed purpose is from the author himself. Wimsatt and Beardsley argue that there are a whole variety of meanings of which the author might even be unaware of or never intended to be. If the audience can produce textual evidence, that meaning is valid. Meaning is found within the text itself and not within the intentions of the author. If the reader focuses on the intentions of the author, that is a fallacy or a mistaken approach to the
Kaplan, Amy. “The Spectacle of War in Crane’s Revision of History”. Bloom, Harold ED. New
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. "Essay date 1935." Twentieth-Century Litirary Criticism 9. Ed. Dennis Poupond. Detroit: Gale Research, 1983. 316-317
“A Tale Intended to be After the Fact…” is how Stephan Crane introduced his harrowing story, “The Open Boat,” but this statement also shows that history influences American Literature. Throughout history, there has been a connection among literary works from different periods. The connection is that History, current events, and social events have influenced American Literature. Authors, their literary works, and the specific writing styles; are affected and influenced by the world around them. Authors have long used experiences they have lived through and/or taken out of history to help shape and express in their works. Writing styles are also affected by the current trends and opinions of the period they represent. By reading American Literature, we have seen the inhumane treatment of slaves, we have seen the destruction caused by wars, and we have seen the devastation of eras such as The Great Depression.
...s Joyce. The Modern Library. 1928. 5-11. Rpt. in Twentieth Century Literary Criticism. ed. Dennis Poupard. Detroit: Gale Research Company, 1985. 16:203-205.
Historical Criticism is criticism that “considers how military, social, cultural, economic, scientific, intellectual, literary, and every other kind of history helps us to understand the author and the work” (Lynn 142). Simply stated, unlike the previously discussed criticisms, Historical Criticism connects a work to certain times or places, revealing its historical influences. Therefore, the reader is required to perform research in order to learn more about the author’s life, the author’s time period and culture, and the way of reasoning during that time. Accordingly, with a critical eye, the reader should relate the information back to the work which will provide the reader with a richer understanding of the reading as well as with author’s message to the reader (Lynn 29-31). Beyond “close reading”, the reader must research what establishes the foundation of the work. Although, below the foundation of a work there lies an even richer understanding of the
“A literary work was no mere individual play of imagination, …. but a transcript of contemporary manners, a manifestation of a certain kind of mind.”