TOPIC: ENG 112

Glossary of Literary Terms

Alphabetical list of literary terms and definitions

What is literary criticism? How do I find it?

Literary Criticism is the interpretive work written by readers of literary texts, especially professional critics (known as literary critics). It is "criticism" not because it is negative or corrective but rather because those who write criticism ask probing, analytical, critical questions about the works they read.  Literary criticism is the evaluation, analysis, description, or interpretation of literary works. It is usually in the form of a critical essay, but in-depth book reviews can sometimes be considered literary criticism. Criticism may examine a particular literary work, or may look at an author’s writings as a whole.

Finding literary criticism can be challenging, but it is easier when using the right tools.

Click on the "Find Articles" tab above to see how to so a search and also to select a database.

"Samuel Johnson by Joshua Reynolds 2" by Joshua Reynolds is licensed under Public Domain 

Use one or both of the databases listed below to obtain appropriate materials to cite in the paper.

The Classical Period (1200 BC - 455 AD)

• Homeric, Classical Greek, Classical Roman, Patristic (Early Biblical writiings)

The Medival Period (455 -1485)

• Old English and Middle English

The Renaissance and Reformation (1485 - 1660)

• Tudor and Elizabethan 

The Enlightenment (Neoclassical) Period (1660-1790)

• Esteemed logic/reason and classical literature

The Romantic Period (1790-1830)

• Emphasized the imagination, nature, the individual, and the sublime

The Victorian Period & 19th Century (1832-1901)

• Morals and responsiblity/duty are emphasized
• Highly descriptive and emotional
• Marked by great novels (Charles Dickens and the Bronte sisters)
• In America, free verse and common measure poetry

The Modern Period (1914-1945?)

• Focus on the inner-self, inner-strenghth, and consciousness.
• Characterized often by loneliness, despair, and sadness toward society.
• Harlem Renaissance
• The Jazz Age
• The Lost Generation

The Postmodern Period (1945? onward)

• Reaction to societal and cultural changes after WWII
• Truth as a construct of an individual's reality
• Temporal distortion (jumping aroung in time)
• Pastiche (combining genre types)
• Participation (readers come to decisions about the narrative)
• Often characterized by irony, dark humor, and paranoia