Substantiating
your interpretations through
use of critical terms and concepts
As you progress
through the course, you will become a more sophisticated
reader and critic. The language which you use in your
written analysis of texts will develop, as will the
sophistication of your interpretations, and it is likely
that you will make more use of terms and concepts
associated with literary criticism. As is the case with
other academic disciplines, literary criticism has its
own terminology, which critics use in describing
particular technical features of texts (e.g.
'enjambment', 'caesura', 'blazon'), or in critically
interpreting what a text is doing, how it is operating,
the kinds of effects which it has (e.g. 'catharsis').
Having these
terms as a part of your own critical vocabulary can
enhance the quality of your analysis in written work - it
can help to sharpen your textual analysis and make your
essays more persuasive, original, insightful etc. It can
also enable you to say things about the texts which you
might otherwise find difficult to articulate. As well as
developing your means of expression, understanding these
terms and the concepts to which they refer can change the
way in which you read, enabling you to see things in
texts that you might not have been conscious of
otherwise.
It is likely that you will encounter
critical terms and concepts in your classes and secondary reading. Before
you try to use these in your own critical writing, you should ensure that
you fully understand the meaning of the critical term or concept, and the
appropriate circumstances in which it is applied. You might find it useful
to consult a dictionary of literary terms.
As with the use of contextual
information in your essay, the important point in using critical terms and
concepts is appropriateness. You will get credit for using critical terms
and concepts in your essay if they serve to advance the argument you are making.
If the critical terms are not relevant or are used in a superficial way, you
will not benefit through their use.
