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LITS3303 MODERN
CRITICAL THEORY
EXAM ADVICE,
2009-2010
1. Given that the term paper
examines your knowledge of Module One: Marxism, the final exam is based on
Module
Two: Psychoanalysis and Module Three: Phenomenology / Existentialism /
Hermeneutics.
Of course, some things discussed in Module One may
be relevant to what we did in Modules Two and Three, so it might be important to
bear some of those in mind as well. But your main focus should be on Modules Two and
Three.
2. There are SIX questions
in all to choose from. The exam is divided into TWO sections: Section A: Psychoanalysis and Section
B: Phenomenology / Existentialism /
Hermeneutics. You are
required to answer TWO questions in all, each drawn from a different
section. In each answer, you should
refer closely to the arguments advanced in at least TWO relevant works
studied.
3. Section A:
Psychoanalysis includes three questions based on the following topics and
sub-topics addressed in the
course of Module Two:
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Freudian Psychoanalysis / Jungian
Analytical Psychology:
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Freud's conception of the psyche -- what is
the difference between the earlier and later models;
-
Jung's conception of the psyche -- how is it similar to / different
from Freud's?;
-
Freud's claim to scientificity -- does
Psychoanalysis (and, indeed, Analytical Psychology) owe more to
literature than to the natural or social sciences? Is the strength
of psychoanalysis hermeneutical rather than scientific?
-
Psychoanalytic Literary Theory:
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Freud's views on the relationship between the
literary text and i) the Author and ii) the Reader in "Creative Writers and Day-Dreaming";
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Trilling's conception, influenced by
'ego-psychology,' of
literature in "Freud and Literature";
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Bloom's view of literary history as
something akin to an
oedipal romance (consisting of rejection, disavowal, repetition) in The Anxiety of Influence;
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Holland's model of
reader-response criticism.
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Jung's view of literature in "On the
Relation of Analytical Psychology to Poetry" as a therapeutic mechanism
which, by allowing us to tap into the collective unconscious, meets the
unconscious needs of a given age or people (how is this view different
from the Freudian view articulated by Freud, Trilling and/or Bloom?);
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Psychoanalytic Post-colonial
Theory:
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Fanon's engagement, especially in the
chapter entitled "The Psychopathology of the Negro" of Black Skin White Masks with both
Freudian Psychoanalysis and Jungian Analytical Psychology in an effort to conceptualise the
psyche and the pathology of the
'Antillean';
-
René
Ménil's
conception of literary history in "The Situation of Poetry in the
Caribbean";
-
Harris's quasi-Jungian view of Caribbean
literature and culture in "History, Fable and Myth in the
Caribbean and Guianas";
4. Section B: Phenomenology /
Existentialism / Hermeneutics includes three questions based on the following
topics and sub-topics addressed in the course of Module Three :
-
Phenomenology / Existentialism /
Hermeneutics:
-
Husserl's conception of a 'pure' or
'transcendental' Phenomenology in "Phenomenology";
-
Sartre's Phenomenological model of Existentialism
advanced in
Existentialism and Humanism;
-
Gadamer's use, in Truth and Method,
of Phenomenology to rethink the Hermeneutical tradition (as advanced by
predecessors like Schleiermacher and Dilthey);
-
Phenomenological / Existentialist /
Hermeneutical Literary Theory:
-
Iser's Phenomenological model of the
'reading process';
-
Sartre's application of Existentialism to literature in "Why Write?";
-
Jauss's application of Gadamerian
Hermeneutics to the study of literature;
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Phenomenological / Existentialist /
Hermeneutical Post-colonial Theory:
-
Fanon's engagement with Phenomenology and
Existentialism, especially in Ch. 7, "The Negro and Recognition," of Black Skin White Masks
and Ch. 1, "Concerning Violence," of The Wretched of the Earth;
see also his Phenomenological/Existentialist critique of traditional
conceptions of culture, such as that advanced by the Negritude thinkers,
in Ch. 4: "On National Culture";
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Lamming's Phenomenological emphases in "The Negro
Writer and his World."
5. I would advise you to
choose TWO of the sections described above and revise all the topics listed
therein by
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familiarising yourself with the school of
thought studied in this module by
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carefully, in the case of each theorist,
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studying the primary sources in
question in conjunction with my own summaries / notes;
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trying to recall the argument advanced in
each essay;
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consulting relevant secondary sources for the light that these
may shed on the views of the theorist in question (for suggested readings,
consult the relevant
PhilWeb
pages); and
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comparing and contrasting the point of view of
particular theorists.
Remember that the goal is not merely to
paraphrase the argument of a particular theorist but to marshall that
information in order to answer the particular question asked.
6. Some additional useful advice:
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One way to get a handle on a particular theory is to consider the
implications of the argument in question for your own work as a theorist and
critic: how has it changed how you think about the nature of human identity,
or the nature of knowledge, or the criticism of literature,
etc.? How has it also accordingly changed what you do as a literary critic?
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Another way to grasp a theory is to study a
practical application of it. For example, if you are trying to come to
grips with Freud's model of the psyche and the applicability of
psychoanalysis to literary criticism more generally, it might be
useful to read Marie Bonaparte's famous psychoanalytic study of Edgar Allan
Poe.
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Last but not least, remember that the secret in doing well in any exam is to
anticipate the kind of questions which may be asked. To this end,
prepare
thoroughly: study the PAST EXAM PAPERS
in this course and try, in the case of each topic and each theorist, to
recall my emphases (and even hints), to put your finger on the main issues at stake and, thus,
to figure out the kind of question which may be
asked of you.
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