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Structuralism challenged the belief that a work of literature reflected a given reality; instead, a text was constituted of linguistic conventions and situated among other texts.
Structuralist critics analyzed material by examining underlying structures, such as characterization or plot, and attempted to show how these patterns were universal and could thus be used to develop general conclusions about both individual works and the systems from which they emerged.
Structuralism looks for underlying themes in a larger group to see how a single example fits in a system. It is more concerned with the method of transmitting an idea and how meaning is created, rather than the idea itself.
It states that language consists on conventionally agreed connections between symbols and external objects. These connections vary between cultures, however there are underlying universal structures like ugly vs beautiful that are constant throughout cultures.
"...if you examine the physical structures of all buildings built in urban America in 1850 to discover the underlying principles that govern their composition, for example, principles of mechanical construction or of artistic form..." you are using a structuralist lens. (Tyson 197-198).
“Literary theory” is the body of ideas and methods we use in the practical reading of literature.
Literary theory is a description of the underlying principles, one might say the tools, by which we attempt to understand literature.
A very basic way of thinking about literary theory is that these ideas act as different lenses critics use to view and talk about art, literature, and even culture. These different lenses allow critics to consider works of art based on certain assumptions within that school of theory.
"Nothing is a sign
unless it is
interpreted as
a sign."
Charles Sanders Pierce
Ferdinand de Saussure
(1857 - 1913)
Charles Sanders Peirce
(1839 - 1914)
Brizee, Allen, and J. Case Tompkins. "Structuralism and Semiotics (1920s
Culler, Jonathan. Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford
McManus, Barbara F. "Structuralist Approaches." The College of New
Rather than merely analyzing a book’s meaning, critics do their best to find how an author creates meaning. Critics do not disregard meaning, but believe that the meaning is found deep beneath symbols/signs.
Structuralism is a way to examine a literary text to arrive at their meaning, rather than the actual meanings of the text themselves.
present)." Purdue Online Writing Lab. Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University, 19 Oct. 2011. Web. 22 Sept. 2013. <http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/722/07/>.
University Press, 1997.
Rochelle. N.p., Oct. 1998. Web. 22 Sept. 2013. <http://www2.cnr.edu/home/bmcmanus/structuralism.html>.
10 Aug. 2008. Web. 22 Sept. 2013. <http://edweb.tusd.k12.az.us/dherring/ap/consider/frye/indexfryeov.htm>.
"Northrop Frye's Theory of Archetypes." Tucson Unified School District. N.p.,