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Detailed Contents Detailed Contents Critical Strategies: An Overview Inside Front Cover Preface for Instructors xxv The Possibilities of Literary Meaning 1 TOM WAYMAN, Did I Miss Anything? 1 1. Reading: How Meaning Is Made 3 Who Makes Meaning? 3 LEWIS CARROLL, Jabberwocky 4 Are Some Readings Wrong? 7 Your Right to Read and Write 10 The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution 10 2. Writing: How Invention Strategies Shape the Process 13 BRENDAN GILL, from Here at The New Yorker 14 New Criticism 15 Reader-Response Criticism 17 Deconstructive Criticism 19 Biographical, Historical, and New Historical Criticism 21 Psychological Criticism 23 Feminist Criticism 25 Other Approaches 27 3. Literature: Why It Matters 29 What Isn’t Literature? 29 What Is Literature? 32 ROBERT FROST, It Bids Pretty Fair 32 Critical Strategies at Work 37 4. Read Poetry Creatively: Reader-Response Criticism 39 Reflection: The Creative Reader 39 DAVID WAGONER, This Is a Wonderful Poem 40 Strategies: Using Reader-Response Criticism 41 xi xii Detailed Contents JOHN BURNSIDE, The Sand Merchant’s Wife 42 Inventing 42 Shaping 46 Drafting 48 Useful Terms for Reader-Response Criticism 54 Elements: Symbol and Image; Personification, Allegory, and Allusion 54 GJERTRUD SCHNACKENBERG, Supernatural Love 56 MARGARET CAVENDISH, Earth’s Complaint 59 Practice: Environments 60 MARK STRAND, The Garden 60 JOY HARJO, For Anna Mae Aquash Whose Spirit Is Present Here and in the Dappled Stars 61 CAROLINE FRASER, All Bears 63 EMILY DICKINSON, Through the Dark Sod 64 ROBINSON JEFFERS, Carmel Point 65 Suggestions for Writing 66 5. Read Poetry Closely: New Criticism 67 Reflection: The Organic Text 67 ARCHIBALD MACLEISH, Ars Poetica 68 Strategies: Using New Criticism 71 GWENDOLYN BROOKS, The Mother 71 Inventing 72 Shaping 74 Drafting 75 LUCILLE CLIFTON, forgiving my father 78 Elements: Voice, Speaker, Tone, Point of View, and Irony 78 STEPHEN SHU-NING LIU, My Father’s Martial Art 81 Useful Terms for New Criticism 83 SEAMUS HEANEY, Digging 85 Practice: Ties That Bind 85 RICHARD WILBUR, The Writer 85 FROM THE GOSPEL OF LUKE, The Prodigal Son 87 THEODORE ROETHKE, My Papa’s Waltz 88 GREGORY DJANIKIAN, Immigrant Picnic 88 Suggestions for Writing 90 6. Read Poetry Playfully: Deconstruction 91 Reflection: An Open Space 94 JOHN ASHBERRY, Paradoxes and Oxymorons 94 Strategies: Using Deconstructive Criticism 96 Detailed Contents xiii LANGSTON HUGHES, Cross 96 Useful Terms for Deconstruction 102 Elements: Figures and Forms 103 DEREK WALCOTT, Frederiksted, Dusk 104 WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, Sonnet 17 109 Practice: Good and Evil 112 LINDA PASTAN, Ethics 112 ROBERT LOWELL, For the Union Dead 113 ELI MANDEL, Houdini 115 JOHN DONNE, Death Be Not Proud 116 JOHANNES VERMEER, Woman Holding a Balance (painting) 117 LINDA PASTAN, Woman Holding a Balance, Vermeer, 1664 118 MARGARET ATWOOD, Spelling 119 Suggestions for Writing 121 7. Read Fiction Powerfully: Political Criticism 122 Reflection: The Useful Text 122 ELIZABETH TALLENT, No One’s a Mystery 123 Strategies: Using Political Criticism 129 ERNEST HEMINGWAY, A Very Short Story 132 Inventing 137 Shaping 139 Drafting 139 Useful Terms for Political Criticism 143 Elements: Character, Setting, and Theme 144 WILLIAM FAULKNER, A Rose for Emily 144 AESOP, The Fox and the Grapes 155 Practice: Idealisms 157 LANGSTON HUGHES, Thank You, M’am 157 TOBIAS WOLFF, Say Yes 160 JOHN UPDIKE, A & P 164 NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE, The Birthmark 168 Suggestions for Writing 180 8. Read Fiction Contextually: Biographical, Historical, and New Historical Criticism 181 Reflection: Real Life 181 CHARLES JOHNSON, Moving Pictures 182 Strategies: Using Biographical, Historical, and New Historical Criticism 188 JOHN CHEEVER, Reunion 188 A Biographical Essay 192 xiv Detailed Contents Inventing 192 Shaping 195 Drafting 197 A New Historical Essay 200 Inventing 200 Shaping 201 Drafting 202 Useful Terms and Sources for Biographical, Historical, and New Historical Criticism 205 Sources for Biographical Research 208 Sources for Historical Research 209 Sources for New Historical Research 209 Elements: Plot and Structure 209 ELLEN MALPHRUS, Thanksgiving on the Chicken Bone Express 210 Practice: Missing Persons 216 JOHN CHEEVER, The Swimmer 217 JOHN CHEEVER, The Country Husband 225 Suggestions for Writing 242 9. Read Drama Thoughtfully: Psychological Criticism 243 Reflection: Someone’s Mind 243 MICHAEL HAMBURGER, A Poet’s Progress 245 Strategies: Using Psychological Criticism 249 MATTHEW ARNOLD, Dover Beach 249 Inventing 251 Shaping 253 Drafting 257 Useful Terms for Psychological Cricitism 262 Elements: Scene, Set, Actor, and Director 263 From William Shakespeare, Hamlet 264 Practice: Brainstorms 266 TERENCE McNALLY, Andre’s Mother 266 Suggestions for Writing 269 Fiction 271 10. Elements of Fiction 273 Engaging the Story 273 Suggestions for Reading Stories 279 T. CORAGHESSAN BOYLE, The Hit Man 279 JANETTE TURNER HOSPITAL, Morgan Morgan 286 Detailed Contents xv Recognizing Elements: Plot, Character, and Point of View 291 Stories to Experience 296 JOHN EDGAR WIDEMAN, Weight 296 ZORA NEALE HURSTON, Sweat 305 11. Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Flannery O’Connor: Two Case Studies 315 Reading Gilman’s The Yellow Wallpaper 316 CHARLOTTE PERKINS GILMAN, The Yellow Wallpaper 316 Writing about The Yellow Wallpaper: Critical Viewpoints 327 Elaine Hedges: The Initial Appearance and Early Reception 327 Charlotte Perkins Gilman: Autobiographical Insight 328 Barbara Ehrenreich and Deidre English: Historical and Political Stance 329 Loralee MacPike: New Critical, Psychological, Feminist Blend 332 Jean Kennard: Reader Response and Meta-Criticism 333 Judith Fetterley: Reader Response and Feminist Criticism 336 John Harvey Kellogg: Historical Materials 337 Janet Beer: Psychological Film Criticism 338 Richard Feldstein: Deconstruction 341 Douglas Tallack: Deconstructing Feminist Criticism 344 Reading O’Connor’s Revelation 345 FLANNERY O’CONNOR, Revelation 346 Writing about Revelation: Critical Viewpoints 360 C. Ralph Stevens: Biographical Sketch of O’Connor 360 Margaret Earley Whitt: The Biographical Context of Revelation 362 Flannery O’Connor: On the Genre of the Short Story 363 Margaret Turner: More Biographical Background 364 Flannery O’Connor: On Her Motivation 365 Anthony Di Renzo: Close Reading 366 Marshall Bruce Gentry: Close Reading and Textual Evidence 370 Richard Giannone: Historical and Biographical Materials 370 12. More Stories 373 HANAN AL-SHAYKH, The Keeper of the Virgins 374 JAMES BALDWIN, Sonny’s Blues 379 CLAUDIA SMITH BRINSON, Einstein’s Daughter 400 RAYMOND CARVER, Cathedral 408 xvi Detailed Contents KATE CHOPIN, The Storm 418 SANDRA CISNEROS, One Holy Night 422 AMANDA DAVIS, Louisiana Loses Its Cricket Hum 426 RITA DOVE, The Vibraphone 430 LOUISE ERDRICH, Wild Geese 441 F. SCOTT FITZGERALD, Babylon Revisited 444 ERNEST GAINES, Just Like a Tree 458 BRENDAN GILL, The Knife 475 JAMES JOYCE, Araby 478 GARRISON KEILLOR, Zeus the Lutheran 482 DORIS LESSING, A Woman on a Roof 493 ALICE MUNRO, How I Met My Husband 500 LESLIE NORRIS, Blackberries 511 JOYCE CAROL OATES, Nairobi 515 FRANK O’CONNOR, My Oedipus Complex 519 CYNTHIA OZICK, The Shawl 527 GRACE PALEY, A Conversation with My Father 531 KATHERINE ANNE PORTER, The Jilting of Granny Weatherall 534 JOHN STEINBECK, The Chrysanthemums 541 AMY TAN, Two Kinds 548 JAMES THURBER, The Catbird Seat 556 JOHN UPDIKE, Deaths of Distant Friends 562 Poetry 567 13. Elements of Poetry 569 Dealing with Difficulty 569 WILLIAM MERIDETH, A Major Work 570 The Nature of Poetry 571 MARK STRAND, Eating Poetry 572 Liechtenstein 573 This Is Just to Say 574 Poetry 574 How to Read a Poem 575 Words 576 EMILY DICKINSON, The Soul Selects Her Own Society 576 Sentences 578 ROBERT FRANCIS, Catch 578 A Sonnet Unfolded 579 WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, Sonnet 93 579 Recognizing Kinds 582 Detailed Contents xvii Stances: Apostrophe, Aubade, Carpe Diem, Elegy, Ode, and Pastoral 583 Forms: Narrative, Lyric, and Dramatic; Rhyme and Rhythm 584 Closed Versus Open Form 585 DENISE LEVERTOV, Advent 1966 586 ROBERT SOUTHWELL, The Burning Babe 589 Poems for Making Sense 590 WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, Sonnet 138 590 WILLIAM CARLOS WILLIAMS, The Red Wheelbarrow 591 ROBERT GRAVES, Down, Wanton, Down! 591 GARY SNYDER, Some Good Things to Be Said for the Iron Age 592 RICHARD WILBUR, A Late Aubade 592 14. Poetic Conversations 594 Two Stars 597 JOHN KEATS, Bright star! would I were steadfast as thou art 597 ROBERT FROST, Choose Something Like a Star 598 An Odd Couple? 599 BEN JONSON, Still To Be Neat 599 ROBERT HERRICK, Delight in Disorder 599 The First Couple 600 GENESIS 1:26–28, 2:7–10, 2:15–3:24 600 WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS, Adam’s Curse 602 STEVIE SMITH, How Cruel Is the Story of Eve 603 TED HUGHES, Theology 604 EDNA ST. VINCENT MILLAY, Never May the Fruit Be Plucked 605 LOUISE GLÜCK, The Apple Trees 606 THOMAS CAMPION, There Is a Garden in Her Face 606 JOHN MILTON, from Paradise Lost 607 Swine Songs 608 GALWAY KINNELL, Saint Francis and the Sow 608 SYLVIA PLATH, Sow 608 THOM GUNN, Moly 610 WILLIAM COWPER, The Love of the World Reproved 610 CHARLES TOMLINSON, On a Pig’s Head 611 RICHARD EBERHART, The Groundhog 612 PAUL MULDOON, Hedgehog 613 A Bowl of Plums for Wordsworth 614 WILLIAM WORDSWORTH, The World Is Too Much with Us 614 KENNETH KOCH, Variations on a Theme by William Carlos Williams 615 HELEN CHASIN, The Word Plum 615 xviii Detailed Contents DENISE LEVERTOV, O Taste and See 615 AMY CLAMPITT, Nothing Stays Put 616 God? 617 WILLIAM WORDSWORTH, Afterthought 617 STEPHEN CRANE, A Man Said to the Universe 618 THEODORE ROETHKE, Root Cellar 618 PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY, Ozymandias 618 JAMES FENTON, God, A Poem 619 THOMAS HARDY, The Oxen 619 WALLACE STEVENS, Anecdote of the Jar 620 MARK STRAND, Keeping Things Whole 620 GERARD MANLEY HOPKINS, God’s Grandeur 621 AMY CLAMPITT, Lindenbloom 621 Shorelines 622 ANTHONY HECHT, The Dover Bitch: A Criticism of Life 622 JOHN BREHM, Sea of Faith 623 FRED DINGS, Chains of Change 624 CATHY SONG, Waterwings 625 WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, Sonnet 60 626 ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON, Ulysses 626 Love among the Sheep 628 CHRISTOPHER MARLOWE, The Passionate Shepherd to His Love 628 SIR WALTER RALEIGH, The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd 628 JOHN DONNE, The Bait 629 ROBERT HERRICK, To Phillis to love, and live with him 630 C.
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