Within the intellectual trajectory of Franco Moretti, the integration of network theory represents one of the most significant conceptual expansions of distant reading. If earlier phases of his work displaced the primacy of close reading in favor of macro-patterns, network theory goes further: it replaces narrative sequence with relational architecture as the fundamental unit of […]
Franco Moretti occupies a decisive position in contemporary literary theory because he fundamentally reconfigures what it means to read literature. Instead of treating texts as singular aesthetic objects requiring close interpretation, he proposes a macroscopic model in which literature is studied as a system of forms distributed across time, geography, and institutions. His work displaces
I. Introduction: Distant Reading and the Reframing of Literary Comparison Franco Moretti has fundamentally reoriented comparative literary studies by shifting attention from close textual interpretation toward what he terms “distant reading”—a method that foregrounds large-scale patterns, genres, and systemic literary evolution rather than isolated textual analysis. Within this framework, the novel is not a self-contained
I. Introduction: The Play as a Self-Contained System of Epistemic Crisis Hamlet by William Shakespeare is among the most densely interpreted works in the literary canon, frequently approached through psychological, philosophical, and historical frameworks. Yet within the methodological discipline of New Criticism, such external frameworks are suspended in favor of reading the play as an
I. Introduction: The Dramatic Monologue as Self-Contained Mental Field The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T. S. Eliot represents a decisive transformation in the structure of lyric poetry: the shift from outward description to inward dramatization of consciousness. Within the framework of New Criticism, the poem is not treated as psychological confession or
I. Introduction: The Novella as an Autonomous Verbal Construct Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad has often been interpreted through historical, colonial, and psychological frameworks. However, within the methodological discipline of New Criticism, such contextual approaches are bracketed in favor of examining the text as a self-contained system of meaning. The novella presents itself as
I. Introduction: The Mock-Epic as Autonomous Verbal Artifact The Rape of the Lock by Alexander Pope occupies a distinctive position within English literature as the quintessential mock-epic. While often interpreted as a сатirical commentary on eighteenth-century aristocratic culture, within the methodological rigor of New Criticism the poem demands to be read as a self-contained verbal
I. Introduction: The Poem as an Autonomous Field of Conflict Mending Wall by Robert Frost appears, at first glance, deceptively simple: two neighbors meet annually to repair a stone wall dividing their properties. Yet within the disciplined framework of New Criticism, the poem reveals itself as a densely structured verbal artifact, governed by internal tensions,
I. Introduction: The Poem as Autonomous Argument To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell is often situated within the tradition of metaphysical poetry, noted for its intellectual wit and elaborate conceits. Yet, within the rigorous framework of New Criticism, the poem must be approached not as a cultural artifact or biographical expression but as an
I. Introduction: The Novel as a Self-Contained Symbolic System The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is frequently interpreted through historical frameworks such as the Jazz Age, the American Dream, or biographical parallels. However, within the disciplined lens of New Criticism, such contextual considerations are bracketed in favor of examining the novel as an autonomous