Criticism

 Thinking Activity:- Northrop Frye 

Hello Readers! This blog is a response to the Thinking Activity assigned by Dr. Dilip Barad sir, Department of English, MKBU. In this blog I am going to discuss answers to questions with the help of ChatGPT. Which are related to criticism of Northrop Frye. 

About Northrop Frye:- 

Born:- 1912

Died:- 1991

Northrop Frye, in full Herman Northrop Frye. He was a Canadian literary critic and literary theorist. He truly considered one of the most influential of the 20th century. His book Anatomy of Criticism one of the most important works of literary theory published in the 20th century. The American critic Harold Bloom commented at the time of its publication that 'Anatomy of Criticism' established Frye as 'the foremost living student of western literature.' Northrop Frye's contributions to cultural and social criticism spanned a long career during which he earned widespread recognition and also recieved many honours. In his most famous essay:- The Archetypes of literature he begins with the sentence that,

Every Organized body of knowledge can be learned progressively; and experiences shows that there is also something progressive about the learning of literature. It means that - it is impossible to "learn literature": one learns about it in a certain way, but what one learns, transitively, is the criticism of literature.

Q. 1 What is Archetypal Criticism? 

Answer by Chat GPT 

 Archetypal Criticism is a type of literary criticism that focuses on the Archetypal motifs and symbols that are present in literature. It is based on the idea that certain symbols, images, and themes are universal, recurring elements in literature, and that they reflect deep-seated human experience and desires. These symbols found in many cultures and have been passed down through the ages. Examples of Archetypes include the hero, the mother, the journey, the quest and the descent into the underworld. These Archetypes are believed to represent universal human experiences and desires that are common to all people, regardless of culture or historical context. 

Archetypal Criticism seeks to identify and interpret the Archetypal motifs and symbols in a work of literature, and to explore the deeper meaning and significance that these elements have for the reader's. This approach emphasises the psychological and spiritual dimension of literature, and often draws on the insights of psychology, mythology, and anthropology to illuminate the meaning of a literary work. 

Northrop Frye is key figures of Archetypal Criticism. He proposed the idea that the main appeal of literature was it's connection to primitive story formulas. He claimed literature is a kind of displaced mythology that constantly reverts to the same patterns that we see in Ancient mythes. In literature we can identify archetypal geography like garden of Eden or wasteland, character types , heroes and villains and themes like good vs evil. 

Q. 2 What is a contribution of Northrop Frye in Archetypal Criticism? 

Answer by Chat GPT 

Northrop Frye was a Canadian literary critic and scholar who made significant contribution to the field of literary criticism, including Archetypal Criticism. Archetypal Criticism involves analysing literature based on common patterns, symbols and motifs that are universally recognised across cultures, drawing from the work of psychologist Carl Jung and other scholars. 

In his book "Anatomy of Criticism", Frye outlined four main Archetypal plots:- 

• Comedy - Spring 
• Tragedy - Autumn
• Romance - Summer 
• Irony/ Satire - Winter 

• Comedy is aligned with spring because the genre of comedy is characterized by the birth of the hero, revival and resurrection. Also, spring symbolizes the defeat of winter and darkness.
• Romance and summer are paired together because summer is the culmination of life in the seasonal calendar, and the romance genre culminates with some sort of triumph, usually a marriage.
• Autumn is the dying stage of the seasonal calendar, which parallels the tragedy genre because it is, known for the "fall" or demise of the protagonist. 
• Satire is metonymized with winter on the grounds that satire is a "dark" genre. Satire is a disillusioned and mocking form of the three other genres. It is noted for its darkness, dissolution, the return of chaos, and the defeat of the heroic figure. 

These plots represent fundamental structures that recur throughout literature and provide a framework for analysing and understanding narrative works. Additionally, Frye emphasized the importance of understanding the role of myth and symbolism in literature. He believed that myths and symbols serve as a kind of collective language that speaks to universal human experiences and emotions, and that by identifying and interpreting these elements in literature, we can gain a deeper understanding of the human condition. 

3. What do Archetypal critics do ? Explain with examples. 

Answer by Chat GPT

Archetypal critics analyse literature based on the identification and interpretation of recurring patterns, symbols and motifs that are universally recognised across cultures. These critics believe that these Archetypes, or universal symbols, are deeply ingrained in the human psyche and are therefore reflected in the stories we tell. 

Archetypal critics examine literature to identify common themes, images, and symbols that may be associated with Archetypes such as the hero, the villian, the trickster, the mentor, the quest, and the journey. By identifying these Archetypes, critics can gain a deeper understanding of the underlying patterns and themes in literature, and how these relate to universal human experiences and emotions. 

Here are some examples of novels that can be analysed through the lens of archetypal criticism:

• "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" by Joseph Campbell - this non-fiction book explores the archetype of the hero as it appears in myths and legends from around the world.
• "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy by J. R. R. Tolkien - this epic fantasy series features many Archetypal characters and themes, including the hero's journey, the mentor figure, the wise old man, and the battle between good and evil.
• "The Hunger Games" trilogy by Suzanne Collins- This dystopian series features Archetypal characters such as the hero, the mentor, the villian, and the trickster. The themes of survival, sacrifice, and rebellion also reflect universal human experiences. 
• "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald- this classic novel can be analysed through the archetypal lens of the quest, ad the protagonist Jay Gatsby seeks to win back the love of his life and reclaim his social status. 
• "Harry Potter" series by J. K. Rowling- This popular series features many Archetypal characters and themes, including the hero's journey, the mentor figure, the trickster, and the battle between good and evil.

 All things considered as Archetypal critics can gain a deeper understanding of the cultural and psychological influences that shape the stories we tell, and the ways in which literature reflects and shapes our understanding of the world. 

Q. 4 "Every Organized body of Knowledge can be learned progressively; and experiences shows that there is also something progressive about the learning of literature. Our opening sentence has already got us into a semantic difficulty." Explain the semantic difficulty. 

Answer by Chat GPT 

The semantic difficulty in the opening sentence is that it suggests two different meanings of the word "progressive ". The first meaning of "progressive" refers to something that can be learned in a systematic and incremental manner. This implies that organised bodies of knowledge can be learned progressively, as can literature. The second meaning of "progressive" refers to something that develops over time, implying that the learning of literature is itself progressive process. In other words, it suggests that one's understanding and appreciation of literature can deepen and evolve as one reads and gains more experience. 

Therefore, the semantic difficulty arises from the fact the word "progressive" is used in two different senses in the same sentence, leading to a potential ambiguity in the meaning of the sentence.

Physics is an organized body of Knowledge about nature, and a student of it says that he is learning physics, not that he is learning nature. Art, like nature, is the subject of a systematic study and has to be distinguished from the study itself, which is criticism. It is therefore impossible to "learn literature". One can learns about it in a certain way, but what one learns, transitively, is the criticism of literature. 

Similarly, the difficulty often felt in "teaching literature" arises from the fact that it cannot be done: the criticism of literature is all that can be directly taught. So while no one expects literature itself behave like science, there is surely no reason why criticism, as a systematic and organized study, should not be, at least partly, a science. Criticism deals with the arts and may well be something of an art itself, but it does not follow that it must be unsystematic. If it is to be related to the science too, it does not follow that it must be deprived of the graces of culture. 

Q . 5 as above - "The relation of Criticism to religion, when they deal with the same documents, is more complicated. In Criticism, as in history, the divine is always treated as a human artifact. God for the critic, whether he finds him in paradise lost or the Bible, is a character in a human story".

Ans. by ChatGPT 

This lines suggests that when criticism and religion are analysing the same texts or documents, there is a complex relationship between the two. In Criticism, divine is often treated as a human artifact rather than an otherworldly force or deity. This means that God or other divine beings are seen as characters in a human story, rather than as purely supernatural entities.

For example, when a literary critic analyses a work like paradise lost or the Bible, they may examine the character of God or other divine figures as they would any other characters in the text. In contrast, for many religious believes, God is not simply a character in a story. But a real and active presence in the world. They may see the Bible or other religious texts as divinely inspired and consider them to contains truths that go beyond human understanding.

However, within religious traditions, there can be understanding religious texts. Some may take a moral approach, seeing the stories and teaching as a direct communications from God, while others may take a more metaphorical or symbolical approach, seeing the texts ad containing deeper meaning and insights into human nature and the divine.

Overall, while there can be an overlap between criticism and religion in their treatment of religious texts, their perspectives and goals are often quite different. Critics aim to analyse and understand the texts as works of literature or history, while religious believers may look to the texts for guidance, inspiration, and spiritual insight.

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