Introduction Flashcards
Literary Theories
Definition of ‘literature’
- broad vs. narrow
- normative vs. descriptive
- extrinsic vs. intrinsic
literary communication system
Sender/Author -> Message/Code/Literary
Text-> Receiver/Reader
the 6 functions of language
- emotive (addresser) - state something “wow!”
- conative (addressee) - motivate to do something “go away!”
- phatic (medium of contact) - establishing communication “Hello? Can your hear me?”
- poetic (message) - focus on the message “Black and white”
- metalingual (code) - language can be (non-) verbal expressive “An apple is a fruit”
- referential (context/subject) “the earth is round”
Literal vs. Figurative
literal: actual example
figurative: metaphorical example to show your meaning
Denotative vs. Connotative
denotation: actual meaning of the word
connotation: the association made with the word
Example: snake
denotation: snake (meaning of the word)
connotation: devil/poisonous
Intertextuality
interconnectiveness of texts
- complex
Literary Periods according to Nünning (11)
500-1150 Old English Period
1150-1500 Middle English Period
1500-1649 Renaissance
1649-1660 Commonwealth
1660- 1700 Restoration
1700-1780 Neo-Classicism and Enlightenment
1780-1837 Romantic Period
1837-1901 Victorian Period
1901-1914 Edwardian Period
1914-1945 Modernism
since 1945 Post-War and Postmodernism
(Literary) History
43, 1066, 1215, 1558, 1588
43 - Roman Conquest
1066 - Norman Conquest
1215 - First Constitution
1558 - Elizabethan Age begins
1588 - Defeat of the Spanish
(Literary) History
1603, 1620, 1642, 1688, 1707
1603 - James I becomes King
1620 - Mayflower arrives in America
1642 - First English Civil War
1688 - Glorious Revolution
1707 - England & Scotland united
(Literary) History
1745, 1776, 1805, 1812, 1815, 1832
1745 > Second Jacobite rebellion
1776 > Declaration of the Independence
1805 > Battle of Trafalgar
1812 > British-american war (over power of North American continent)
1815 > Battle of Waterloo (Victory over Napoleon)
1832 > Reform Act
(Literary) History
1837, 1851, 1901, 1917, 1947
1837 > Victorian Age begins
1851 > Great Exhibition
1901 > Queen Victoria dies
1917 > US joins WW1
1947 > Indian Independence Act
Discourse vs. story
Discourse: How is the story told?
Story: What is told in the story?
Taxonomy
Science of classification
- Literary History and Periodization
- Genres
- Stylistic Devices
- Languages
- Nationality
- Gender
Genre
three main genres:
- Drama (comedy, tragedy, history play,…)
- Narrative (short story, novel, fairytale,…)
- Poetry (sonnet, ballad, ode,…)
Paradigmatic/Syntagmatic
(Dichotomie)
- paradigmatic: exchangeability of (linguistic) elements
- syntagmatic: compability of elements
Roman Jacobson’s Communication Model
- a communicative situation can be analyzed into: -> six functions of language
- can be applied to literature: Literature IS communication
- addresser and addressee need to share a code (precondition)
emotive function
(addresser) - state something, like an emotion “he makes me so nervous.”
conative function
(addressee) - motivate to do something “Leave me alone!”
phatic function
(medium of contact) - establishing communication “Hello, can you hear me?”
poetic function
(message) - focus on the message and its meaning “Fridays For Future”
metalingual function
(code) - language can be (non-) verbal expressive “Do you know what I mean?”
referential function
(context/subject) - stating facts “The famous Harry Potter book series consists of seven books in total.”
Ferdinand de Saussure: semiotics (study of the sign)
- signifier (sketch of a tree) oben im Kreis
orthographic version of tree = signified
-> connection = arbitrary conventionally
What is the broad definition of literature?
A) All poetic and imaginary texts
B) All written communication
C) Literature in the English language
all written communication
