A. A hypothesis about how literary texts can be understood
B. A methodology for applying ideas to literary texts
C. The practice of interpreting literary texts
D. A trend in university English departments
Related Mcqs:
- As a mode of literary criticism or theory, gender theory attempts to bring which of the following to literary texts ?
A. An understanding of the various conceptions and understandings of gender that have carried throughout various cultures
B. An understanding of gender as a human construct
C. An understanding of how standard histories of western societies are presented in terms of heterosexual identity
D. All of these. - Some critics of literary theory argue that literary theory is problematic for which reason ?
A. Literary theory tends to be too political.
B. Literary theory does not offer a holistic interpretation of a text.
C. Literary theory depends on specialized knowledge that is outside the realm of literary studies.
D. All of the above answers are correct. - Some critics of literary theory argue that literary theory is problematic for which reason ?
A. Literary theory does not offer a holistic interpretation of a text.
B. Literary theory depends on specialized knowledge that is outside the realm of literary studies.
C. Literary theory is sometimes very abstract and difficult to read.
D. All of the above. - One purpose of LITERARY CRITICISM is described below: A formalist approach might enable us to choose between a reading which sees the dissolution of society in Lord of the Flies as being caused by too strict a suppression of the “bestial” side of man and one which sees it as resulting from too little suppression. We can look to the text and ask: What textual evidence is there for the suppression or indulgence of the “bestial” side of man? Does Ralph suppress Jack when he tries to indulge his bestial side in hunting? Does it appear from the text that an imposition of stricter law and order would have prevented the breakdown? Did it work in the “grownup” world of the novel? What purpose does this prescribe to ?
A. To help resolve a question, problem, or difficulty in the reading.
B. To help decide which is the better of two conflicting readings.
C. To enable to form judgments about literature.
D. All of the above answers are correct. - According to the literary critic, Paul Fussell, which of the following was a central trope of English poetry written during the Great War ?
A. Patriotic imagery
B. Irony
C. Nihilism
D. Apocalyptic imagery - In the first lecture of his Modern Poetry course, what argument does Professor Langdon Hammer make about the relationship between the modern city and poetic modernism ?
A. Most modernist poets lived in large cities; therefore, they often used urban imagery in their poetry.
B. Many languages and many forms of language were used in large cities; modernist poets often treated language not as something given and natural but as a construct which they could manipulate.
C. Individuals often felt lost and alienated in large cities, and among poets this resulted in turning inward and focusing only on the world of one’s own imagination.
D. All of these answers - In his first lecture onWilliam Butler Yeats, Professor Hammer says that the young Yeats identified with King Goll. What does he mean by this ?
A. Yeats’s poetry was autobiographical, but he understood his life through the prism of myths and symbols; symbolism was therefore present in both Yeats’s life and in his poetry.
B. Yeats believed that each person was an instance of a general cultural type or symbol.
C. The young Yeats wished to emphasize his identity as an English poet and draw attention away from his Irish heritage.
D. Both A and B - “Can this be so!” cried goodman Brown, with a stare of amazement at his undisturbed companion. Howbeit, I have nothing to do with the governor and council – they have their own ways, and are no rule for a simple husbandman, like me. But, were I to go on with thee, how should I meet the eye of that good old man, our minister, at Salem village? Oh, his voice would make me tremble, both Sabbathday and lecture-day!” The word “husbandman” usually means farmer, but in this context it means something else – what ?
A. Rancher
B. Male partner in a marriage
C. Cowboy
D. Man of ordinary status - As a mode of literary criticism or theory, formalism attempted to bring which of the following to literary studies ?
A. An awareness of the historical circumstances surrounding a text’s production
B. A set of objective criteria for critical analysis
C. An awareness of the economic circumstances surrounding a literary text
D. Strict criteria for evaluating the quality of a literary text - What is the difference between traditional literary criticism and post-New Criticism literary theory ?
A. Traditional literary criticism is mainly focused on exploring gender issues.
B. Traditional literary criticism only examines pre-20th-century literary texts.
C. Traditional literary criticism focused on tracking influences and textual allusions and considering the historical contexts of literary texts.
D. Traditional literary criticism attempted to consider the psychological aspects of literary texts.
