Russian literary theorist, Victor Shklovsky explores the implications of form in the constitution literature in relation to the devices that are specific to written language. Literary art invariably projects prescribed elements unnatural to innate human speech thus representing a divide in verbal and written language use. The theory of formalism regards the differences between the language of literature and ordinary discourse through the formal aspects prescribed to each so as to map the “observable features”. Using the concept of art as a means of experiencing life, Victor Shklovsky’s “Theory of Prose” employs a formalist perspective, focusing on textual features of literature to reinforce the importance of defamiliarization in arousing the …show more content…
This can be seen through defining art and literature by its structural elements, defamiliarization-constituting literariness, making that which is familiar strange to heighten consciousness, as well as the absence of social or political issues. The ideas presented within Shklovsky’s text are representative of a dichotomy between spoken and written discourses as a means of defining art. And so, “Theory of Prose” allows the formal elements of literature to defamiliarize everyday life, thus drawing the attention of the reader to that which they often pass over.
There are many contributing factors to the definition of literature, which complicates the act of naming meant to group concepts based on their similarities. Though there have been “various attempts to define literature” through the features that are contained within this artistic genre, there has been no
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This interpretation challenges the work of those critics who long assumed that literature was described through its identity as “imaginative writing” because it broadens the definition to fit texts that are situated in reality as well (Eagleton, 2). Literature’s use of language makes readers aware of its presence as an artistic text through the formal elements that “transforms and intensifies ordinary language” (Eagleton, 2). This means that the definition of literature is determined through the aesthetic linguistic qualities as they differ from regular discourse, classifying both through the form of the other. Through formal literary devices such a “sound, imagery,” and “rhythm”, texts are removed from their counterpart of regular speech and made strange (Eagleton, 3). This abnormal use of language allows for literature to move away from the efficiency of regular speech in the sense that ideas within texts require a perceptual effort of comprehension to occur (Shklovsky, 4). By contrast, normal speech patterns are more efficient due to the fact that they are “habitual” and do not require the users to think deeply about what is being said (Shklovsky, 5). In other words, these artistic works force the reader to work to understand the ideas that are embedded within the pieces reinforcing their status as literature through
Todorov, Tsvetan. The Fantastic: A Structural Approach to a Literary Form. Cleveland: The Press of Case Western Reserve University, 1973. 168-174.
I frankly confess that I have, as a general thing, but little enjoyment of it, and that it has never seemed to me to be, as it were, a first-rate literary form. . . . But it is apt to spoil two good things – a story and a moral, a meaning and a form; and the taste for it is responsible for a large part of the forcible-feeding writing that has been inflicted upon the world. The only cases in whi...
Literature—the dictionary defines it being the art of written works that is designed to entertain, educate and instruct; writers use literature in an attempt to transfer their ideas from paper to the reader; for some, this task means bringing their story to a different place and time that is entirely separate from what the reader could perceive as ordinary, on order to serve the writer’s intent. With this the impossible, becomes the probable, and the worst fear possibly imagined becomes the breathed reality; with no stated separation between the living, and the dying. The word literature in itself cannot be accurately defined, and by attempting to do so limits, the word is instantaneously limited in its usage and effect. Literature just is, just as much as it is not.
Deep-seated in these practices is added universal investigative and enquiring of acquainted conflicts between philosophy and the art of speaking and/or effective writing. Most often we see the figurative and rhetorical elements of a text as purely complementary and marginal to the basic reasoning of its debate, closer exploration often exposes that metaphor and rhetoric play an important role in the readers understanding of a piece of literary art. Usually the figural and metaphorical foundations strongly back or it can destabilize the reasoning of the texts. Deconstruction however does not indicate that all works are meaningless, but rather that they are spilling over with numerous and sometimes contradictory meanings. Derrida, having his roots in philosophy brings up the question, “what is the meaning of the meaning?”
There are different philosophers argue on the functions of art and language serve on two different functions, or that they are the same function basically. Tolstoy claims that art and language are two separate activities with different functions. On the other hand, Collingwood states that art and language are more or less the same. In this essay, I will argue that both philosophers’’ theories are invalid, that art and language are two separate activities with different functions. Tolstoy, and Collingwood both make valid points throughout their theories but Tolstoy’s theory had a stronger position with my thought process. I am currently a marketing major that understands the language is one entity, while art is another. It must trigger some
Parker, Robert Dale. How to Interpret Literature: Critical Theory for Literary and Cultural Studies. New York: Oxford, 2011. Print.
Carver, Raymond. Cathedral. Exploring Literature: Writing and Arguing About Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and the Essay. Ed. Frank Madden. 4th ed. New York: Pearson Longman, 2009. 1151-61. Print
Tan, Amy. “Two Kinds.” Exploring Literature: Writing and Arguing About Fiction, Poetry, Drama and The Essay.4th e. Ed. Frank Madden. New York: Pearson Longman, 2009. 253-261. Print.
Consequently, one can broach a series of querries about literature and the nature of literary theories : what is literature ? What is the novel and what is its function ? And finally, to what extent does criticism affect the quality of literature ? This welter of questions is nothing but the tip of the ice berg.
Chekov, Anton. "Vanka." Understanding Fiction. 3rd ed. Eds. Clanth Brooks and Robert Penn Warren. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hill, 1979. 46-49
Often, the value of a piece of literature is measured by how accurately it reflects certain contemporary social issues or recurring psychological phenomena, as understood not only by scholars, but also laymen. Literature, therefore, is collectively a study of linguistic experiments and human responses. The ability to manipulate diction and syntax to create convincing and original narratives that calculatingly evoke specific emotional reactions strikes me as a weapon as empowering as it is enthralling. Nabokov’s “Lolita”, the epitome of the unreliable narrator trope, commands poetic language that never fails to fascinate and beguile readers; its influence and effectiveness are what I hope to someday emulate in my writing.
Literature is a cultural memory and not only a recording device but also a body of commemorative actions that include the knowledge stored by culture. Writing is a function of memory and a modern way of explaining texts that are designed to produce cultural memory. Literature’s role in culture is connected with the past culture, and it evolves with a technique of remembering. Cultural memory and the role of literature serves as an aid that helps to improve and sharpen the established cultural knowledge so that it can be passed down to generation to generation so that each generation can draw from the knowledge of its content. Literary representation of historical events helps create our sense of cultural identity for example how we remember past events and determines what we do and how we will live. According to Rodriguez, & Fortier (2007), “literature in the human science should be defined provisionally as discourse with a clear sequential order that connects events in a meaningful way for a definite audience and thus offer insights about the world and/or people’s experience of it”
Literature is an essential part of society in the present day and enables the communication between multiple parties in a written form. Texts can provide a vast knowledge on subjects dependent on content whereas novels are often seen as being purely for leisure and enjoyment. However it can often be seen that prose
The New Critics, just like Wimsatt and Beardsley put forward in their essay, also believed in the ‘organicity’ of the text. In the essay, they write, “A poem should not mean but be.” And, since the meaning of the poem or the text is the medium through which it can exist, and words, in turn, is the medium through which the meaning is expressed, the poem or the text b...
Literature is rarely, if ever, merely a story that the author is trying to tell. It is imperative that the reader digs deep within the story to accurately analyze and understand the message the author is trying to portray. Authors tend to hide themselves in their stories. The reader can learn about the author through literary elements such as symbolism, diction, and structure. A good example of this is Robert Frost’s poems The Road Not Taken and Nothing Gold can Stay in which he uses ordinary language unlike many other poets that became more experimental (Frost, Robert. “1.”).