1. Foundational Orientation: What is Literature? What is Meaning?
| Theory | Ontological View of Literature | Primary Site of Meaning | Core Assumption |
|---|---|---|---|
| Formalism | Autonomous linguistic structure | Internal devices (form, language) | Literature is a system of organized techniques |
| New Criticism | Self-contained verbal object | Textual unity and relations | Meaning is internal and structurally unified |
| Structuralism | System of signs within language | Deep structures (codes, binaries) | Meaning is produced by underlying systems |
| Post-Structuralism | Instable textual field | Slippage of signification | Meaning is never fixed; always deferred |
| Psychoanalysis | Text as symptom of unconscious | Desire, repression, symbolic order | Literature expresses unconscious drives |
| Marxism | Cultural product of material conditions | Economic base, ideology | Literature reflects and distorts class relations |
| Reader-Response | Event of reading | Reader interaction | Meaning is produced in reading act |
| New Historicism | Cultural artifact in power network | Discourse, institutions | Literature is embedded in historical power |
| Feminism | Gendered cultural construction | Patriarchy, representation | Literature encodes gender ideology |
| Postcolonial Theory | Colonial and postcolonial discourse | Empire, hybridity | Literature reflects colonial power structures |
| Queer Theory | Normative system of sexuality | Heteronormativity, desire | Identity is constructed and unstable |
| Ecocriticism | Ecological-cultural system | Human-nonhuman relations | Literature encodes environmental relations |
2. Methodological Core: How Reading is Done
| Theory | Method of Analysis | Key Technique | Analytical Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Formalism | Device analysis | Defamiliarization | Sound, rhythm, structure |
| New Criticism | Close reading | Paradox, irony | Organic unity |
| Structuralism | System mapping | Binary opposition | Deep narrative grammar |
| Post-Structuralism | Deconstruction | Différance, trace | Instability of meaning |
| Psychoanalysis | Symptomatic reading | Dream analysis, slips | Unconscious desire |
| Marxism | Ideological critique | Base/superstructure | Class struggle |
| Reader-Response | Interpretive analysis | Reception theory | Reading process |
| New Historicism | Archival contextualization | Discourse analysis | Power/knowledge systems |
| Feminism | Gender critique | Representation analysis | Patriarchy in text |
| Postcolonial Theory | Imperial discourse reading | Hybridity, mimicry | Colonial power structures |
| Queer Theory | Normativity disruption | Queering text | Sexual identity instability |
| Ecocriticism | Environmental reading | Ecological mapping | Human-nature relation |
3. Concept of Subject and Identity
| Theory | View of Subject | Stability of Identity | Key Conceptual Figure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Formalism | Irrelevant / textual function | Not central | Device |
| New Criticism | Implicit textual coherence | Stable textual meaning | Organic unity |
| Structuralism | Constructed by language systems | Structurally determined | Sign |
| Post-Structuralism | Fragmented, decentered | Fully unstable | Subject as effect of language |
| Psychoanalysis | Split subject | Unconscious divided self | Ego / Id / Superego |
| Marxism | Class-determined subject | Socially produced | Economic agent |
| Reader-Response | Active interpretive subject | Variable | Reader/interpretive community |
| New Historicism | Discursively produced subject | Historically contingent | Power-laden identity |
| Feminism | Gendered subject | Constructed by patriarchy | Gender performativity |
| Postcolonial Theory | Colonized/postcolonial subject | Hybrid, fractured | Subaltern |
| Queer Theory | Non-normative subject | Fluid, unstable | Performative identity |
| Ecocriticism | Ecological subject | Interdependent | Human-nature assemblage |
4. Power, Ideology, and Structure
| Theory | View of Power | Mechanism of Control | Key Analytical Lens |
|---|---|---|---|
| Formalism | Not central | Linguistic devices | Form over ideology |
| New Criticism | Minimal focus | Textual coherence | Aesthetic autonomy |
| Structuralism | Implicit systems | Language structures | Semiotic codes |
| Post-Structuralism | Diffused power | Discourse networks | Deconstruction |
| Psychoanalysis | Psychic authority | Repression | Unconscious regulation |
| Marxism | Central category | Class domination | Ideology critique |
| Reader-Response | Community-based norms | Interpretive frameworks | Reception structures |
| New Historicism | Central focus | Institutions/discourse | Power-knowledge |
| Feminism | Patriarchal power | Gender systems | Representation critique |
| Postcolonial Theory | Imperial domination | Colonial discourse | Cultural hegemony |
| Queer Theory | Normativity systems | Heteronormativity | Sexual regulation |
| Ecocriticism | Anthropocentrism | Ecological exploitation | Environmental ethics |
5. Text, Context, and Meaning Production
| Theory | Role of Text | Role of Context | Meaning Production |
|---|---|---|---|
| Formalism | Central autonomous unit | Ignored | Internal structure |
| New Criticism | Self-contained object | Secondary | Organic unity |
| Structuralism | Instance of system | Background structure | Generated by codes |
| Post-Structuralism | Unstable text | Infinite context | Deferred meaning |
| Psychoanalysis | Symptom of psyche | Psychological depth | Hidden unconscious |
| Marxism | Ideological product | Economic history | Material conditions |
| Reader-Response | Interactive object | Reader situation | Constructed reading |
| New Historicism | Cultural artifact | Fully embedded | Power discourse |
| Feminism | Gendered representation | Patriarchal society | Ideological encoding |
| Postcolonial Theory | Colonial discourse text | Imperial history | Hybrid meaning |
| Queer Theory | Normative disruption | Cultural sexuality norms | Anti-stable meaning |
| Ecocriticism | Ecological text | Environmental systems | Relational meaning |
6. Historical Trajectory of Theoretical Development
| Phase | Dominant Theories | Intellectual Shift |
|---|---|---|
| Early 20th century | Formalism, New Criticism | Text autonomy and structure |
| Mid-20th century | Structuralism | Systemic meaning production |
| Late 20th century | Post-Structuralism, Psychoanalysis | Instability of meaning and subject |
| Critical-material turn | Marxism, New Historicism | Power and ideology centrality |
| Identity theories | Feminism, Postcolonial, Queer | Identity as constructed and political |
| Reception turn | Reader-Response | Meaning as reading event |
| Ecological turn | Ecocriticism | Human-nonhuman relationality |
7. Integrated Meta-Model of Literary Theory
| Dimension | Classical Formal Models | Power/Ideology Models | Identity/Subject Models | Ecological Models |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Focus | Text structure | Social systems | Identity construction | Environmental relations |
| Meaning source | Internal form | Historical power | Discourse/subjectivity | Relational networks |
| Stability | High (Formalism/New Criticism) | Medium | Low (Queer/Post-structuralism) | Distributed |
| Method | Close reading / structural analysis | Contextual critique | Identity deconstruction | Systemic mapping |
| Outcome | Unified interpretation | Ideological critique | Destabilized meaning | Interconnected systems |