Assignment - 4 - Limitations of I. A. Richards’s ‘Practical Criticism’

TOPIC OF THE BLOG:-

This blog is part of an assignment for the paper  109 - Literary Theory & Criticism and Indian Aesthetics, Sem - 2, 2023.

LIMITATIONS OF I. A. RICHARDS’S 

‘PRACTICAL CRITICISM’

Table of Contents:-

• Personal Information
• Assignment Details
• Abstract
• Keywords
• Introduction
• I. A. Richards
• I.A. Richards’s ‘Practical Criticism’
• What is this Practical Criticism about?
• Limitations of  I. A. Richards’s ‘Practical Criticism’
• Conclusion
• Works Cited

Personal Information:-

Name:- Pooja Anilbhai Bhuva

Batch:- M.A. Sem 2 (2022-2024)

Enrollment Number:- 4069206420220005

E-mail Address:- poojabhuva2002@gmail.com

Roll Number:- 15

Assignment Details:-

Topic:- Limitations of  I. A. Richards’s ‘Practical Criticism’

Paper & subject code:- 109 - Literary Theory & Criticism and Indian Aesthetics & 22402

Submitted to:- Smt. Sujata Binoy Gardi, Department of English, MKBU,

Bhavnagar

Date of Submission:- 31st March, 2023

About Assignment:- In this assignment I described how a famous, important and accepted by other critics has some limits to like other theories of Criticism which make this Criticism more intresting.

Abstract:- 

I. A. Richards, a Critic and Poet who gives theory to understand Poetry from different points of view. A point of view where we don't need any historical context or any other knowledge about it but at same time it is an important limitation of this theory. Practical Criticism is also related and plays an important role with the study of modernist literature. This theory can be the opposite of ‘Traditional and Individual Talent’ by T. S. Eliot. Though it is for better understanding of Poetry so it can be reliable to learn and with new points of view. 

Keywords:-

Richards, Criticism. Society, Historical sense, Limitations

Introduction:-

Practical Criticism is a method of literary analysis developed by I.A. Richards in the early 20th century. It is an approach to literary criticism that emphasizes close reading of a text and interpretation of its meaning, without any prior knowledge or information about the author, context, or genre of the work. The main principle of Practical Criticism is that the meaning of a literary text is created through the interaction between the words on the page and the reader's interpretation of them. In other words, the text is not seen as a fixed or objective entity, but rather as a fluid and subjective experience that is shaped by the reader's engagement with it.

I. A. Richards:-

Ivor Armstrong Richards also known by his short name I. A. Richards. He was born on Feb. 26, 1893 in Sandbach, Cheshire, Eng. and died on Sept. 7, 1979 in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire. This person was a teacher from England who changed the way people read and understood poetry. His ideas were so important that they led to a new way of analyzing literature called the New Criticism, and they also influenced some other ways of looking at literature. Richards went to Magdalene College in Cambridge and taught English and moral sciences there from 1922 to 1929. During that time, he wrote three important books: The Meaning of Meaning (1923) with another person named C.K. Ogden, which was about how words have meaning; Principles of Literary Criticism (1924) and Practical Criticism (1929), which were two books he used to explain his way of analyzing literature.

I.A. Richards’s ‘Practical Criticism’:-

I.A. Richards' "Practical Criticism" is a method of literary analysis that focuses on close reading and interpretation of a text without any prior knowledge or information about its author, context, or genre. This method was first developed in the 1920s and was influential in the field of literary studies in the mid-twentieth century. Richards believed that literary texts should be approached on their own terms, and that the meaning of a text is created through the interaction between the words on the page and the reader's interpretation of them. 

He argued that the job of the literary critic was to analyze the language of a text in detail, paying attention to things like syntax, word choice, and imagery, in order to uncover the underlying meanings and themes that the author was trying to convey. In order to practice practical criticism, Richards developed a series of exercises that involved reading and analyzing a text without any prior information about it. These exercises were designed to help readers focus on the language of the text and to develop their own interpretations based solely on the words on the page. Richards' approach to literary criticism was influential in its time, but it has been criticized for being too focused on the language of the text and for ignoring the social and historical context in which the text was produced. Nonetheless, his ideas have had a lasting impact on the field of literary studies, and the close reading and analysis of literary texts remain an important part of literary criticism today.

What is this Practical Criticism about(In Simple Words)?:-

According to Richards, the reader should approach a literary text without any preconceptions, assumptions or biases, and focus exclusively on the language of the text itself. The reader should examine the words, phrases, sentences, and overall structure of the text, and try to derive its meaning from this analysis alone. This approach is known as "close reading", and it is intended to help the reader understand the text on its own terms, rather than imposing external ideas or interpretations onto it.

Practical Criticism is often associated with the study of modernist literature, which is characterized by its experimentation with form, language, and meaning. Richards believed that modernist literature required a new approach to literary analysis, one that rejected traditional methods of interpretation and relied instead on the reader's own response to the text. Practical Criticism has had a significant influence on literary criticism and theory, and it remains a popular approach to literary analysis today.

Limitations of  I. A. Richards’s ‘Practical Criticism’:-

Limitations of ‘Practical Criticism’ can be shown in two ways. First one asks how this Criticism avoids Historical Context and second is about limits for using Language. 

One of the main limitations of Practical Criticism is its tendency to overlook the historical and social context in which a literary text was written. By focusing exclusively on the language of the text, Practical Criticism can sometimes ignore the broader cultural, political, and economic forces that shaped the author's intentions and influenced the meaning of the work. 

For example John Milton’s ‘Paradise Lost’ requires knowledge about a bit of history and a bit about historical myths. ‘Ozymandias’ by Percy Bysshe Shelley, ‘And Still I Rise’ by Maya Angelou, ‘The Waste Land’ by T. S. Eliot, etc.

Practical Criticism is a literary analysis method that focuses exclusively on the language of a literary text, with the goal of deriving meaning from the text itself rather than relying on external sources or context. While this approach can be useful for close reading and interpretation of literary works, it also has limitations, particularly in its narrow focus on language.

Practical Criticism is that it can be overly focused on the surface-level features of a text, such as word choice and syntax, while ignoring deeper layers of meaning. The language of a literary work is not always transparent or straightforward, and sometimes the most important meaning is hidden beneath the surface. By focusing exclusively on language, Practical Criticism can sometimes miss these deeper levels of meaning.

For example, consider a poem like T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land." While a reader applying Practical Criticism might analyze the language and syntax of the poem to derive its meaning, they might miss the deeper levels of symbolism and metaphor that are crucial to understanding the work. "The Waste Land" is filled with allusions, symbols, and metaphors that require a deeper level of analysis beyond the surface-level features of language.

So, Language and Historical Context are connected with each other and that’s why they become limited for this Criticism which is totally opposite from the theory of ‘Traditional and Individual Talent’ by Thomas Stern Eliot.

Practical Criticism is that it is highly subjective and lacks objectivity. Practical Criticism focuses on the individual reader's response to a literary work, which means that it is inevitably shaped by the reader's personal biases, preferences, and experiences. This subjectivity can make it difficult to derive a consistent or objective interpretation of a text.

Practical Criticism is that it can be overly focused on the individual reader's response to a text, at the expense of broader critical and theoretical frameworks. Practical Criticism tends to prioritize the reader's immediate response to a text over more structured or systematic approaches to literary analysis, such as feminist, Marxist, or postcolonial criticism. This can make it difficult to situate a work within a broader critical or theoretical context.

Conclusion:-

Practical Criticism can be a valuable tool for close reading and interpretation of literary texts, it is important to recognize its limitations in relation to historical and social context. To fully understand a literary work, it is often necessary to consider the broader cultural, political, and social forces that shaped its creation and influenced its meaning. It is important to recognize its limitations in relation to subjectivity and objectivity. The highly subjective nature of Practical Criticism can make it difficult to derive a consistent or objective interpretation of a text, and its focus on the individual reader's response to a text can sometimes overshadow broader critical and theoretical frameworks. To fully understand a literary work, it may be necessary to approach it from multiple critical perspectives, balancing subjective response with more structured and systematic approaches to analysis. So, with different limitations Practical Criticism like every theory of Criticism can be proven important if one remembers its limitations too.

Works Cited:-

• Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "I.A. Richards". Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Feb. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/biography/I-A-Richards. Accessed 30 March 2023.
• Ferry, Margaret Grove. “Too Good to Miss.” The English Journal, vol. 73, no. 2, 1984, pp. 97–98. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/817540. Accessed 30 Mar. 2023.
• Richards, I. A. Practical Criticism: A Study of Literary Judgment. Routledge, 2017.
• Shafer, Robert E. “The Practical Criticism of I. A. Richards and Reading Comprehension.” Journal of Reading, vol. 14, no. 2, 1970, pp. 101–08. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40012942. Accessed 30 Mar. 2023.

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