The first critical survey of its kind devoted solely to literary evaluation
Companion to Literary Evaluation bridges the gap between the non-academic literary world, where evaluation is deeply ingrained, and the world of academia, where evaluation is rarely considered. Encouraging readers to formulate and articulate arguments that balance instinctive judgment and reasoned assessment, this unique volume addresses key issues regarding literary values from the perspective of analytical aesthetics and the philosophy of literature.
Bringing together a diverse panel of contributors, the Companion explores competing theories of literary evaluation, the reasons for evaluating theater and lyric poetry in performance, the question of value in literary theory, debates over Modernism's negative impact on literature, the possibility of evaluating aesthetic beauty through scientific and formalist methods, the nature and status of literary evaluation as a branch of criticism, aesthetics in applied and community theater, evaluation outside academia, the perils of extreme relativism and subjectivism in literary evaluation, evaluation in schools and much more. Contributors question and reassess the reputations of authors across the canon, from Shakespeare and James Shirley to T S Eliot, Kathleen Raine, Virginia Woolf, Joyce and Beckett amongst others. The Companion:
- Illustrates how seemingly divergent perspectives on the artistic qualities and value of literature can sometimes overlap
- Covers the standard range of literary genres, while including others such as unfinished novels, freelance journalism, and lyric poetry in performance
- Offers methodologies that demonstrate why literature can be treated as something different from other forms of language and therefore assessed as art
- Explores the importance of maintaining clarity and specificity in the evaluation of literary works
Companion to Literary Evaluation is a must-read for undergraduates, research students, lecturers, and academics in search of fresh perspectives on standard literary critical issues.
A COMPANION TO LITERARY EVALUATION
The first critical survey devoted solely to literary evaluation
When we read a novel, watch a play, or hear lyric poetry in performance, we intuitively make a private assessment of its artistic qualities. Yet it is commonly assumed within academia that literature cannot be defined. Consequently, the question of "is it any good" is hardly ever addressed in the world of literary studies.
Bridging the gap between the non-academic literary world and the university, A Companion to Literary Evaluation helps readers balance instinctive judgment and reasoned assessment to articulate how or why a particular author, playwright, or poet inhabits an exalted position while others do not. A diverse panel of contributors explores key issues from various perspectives, including analytical aesthetics, the philosophy of literature, opinionated bias, and common sense. It covers topics from lyric poetry, newspaper reviewing, literary translation, and the question of Shakespeare's genius, to the simple notion of how a life of reading books alters our sense of what is good and what is not.
Throughout the book, easily accessible chapters emphasize the importance of maintaining clarity of values in the evaluation of literary works, illustrate how seemingly divergent perspectives sometimes overlap, discuss the impact of Modernism, the teaching of evaluation in schools, relativism versus subjectivism in assessing literary value, and more.
Incorporating methodologies that demonstrate why literature can be treated as something different from other forms of language, A Companion to Literary Evaluation is a must-read for undergraduates, research students, lecturers, and academics in search of fresh perspectives on standard literary critical issues.
