Turn Of The Screw Analysis
reader/response and psychoanalytical criticism in regards to turn of the screw -
1. Explain how you are understanding either of these or both of these. 300 -400 words
2. Use one of them and apply it to a story of your choice in Best American Short Stories. 300-400 words
Reader/response criticism is based on the reader's interpretation of a literary piece. That is, the words on the pages of a book are just that, words. However, they are words that enable the reader to make their own version of the plot; their own creative scenarios. Because every story can speak differently to each individual reader, it is hard to identify the “true” meaning behind a story, if any at all. In other words, reader/response criticism allows readers to explore the boundaries of the multiple meanings a story can have without there actually being one. For example, in the story The …show more content…
If we were to ask a reader from the late nineteenth century if James had all the intentions of writing a story with paranormal phenomena, they would more than likely agree. On the other hand, if the same question were to be asked to modern day readers, there would be a variety of different answers due to the reader/response criticism concept. There is no saying whether one interpretation is correct or not, rather an acknowledgement that literature has no limits in terms of what it may mean. In Peter G. Beidler edited version of the The Turn of the Screw, he writes that “the reader’s feelings and experiences provide a kind of reality check,” the story is meant to manipulate our emotions “as a way of testing the authenticity” (272). Was the governess going mad? Were the children corrupt? At first, reading the story without interpretations, I agreed that The Turn of the Screw was about ghosts.
1. Explain how you are understanding either of these or both of these. 300 -400 words
2. Use one of them and apply it to a story of your choice in Best American Short Stories. 300-400 words
Reader/response criticism is based on the reader's interpretation of a literary piece. That is, the words on the pages of a book are just that, words. However, they are words that enable the reader to make their own version of the plot; their own creative scenarios. Because every story can speak differently to each individual reader, it is hard to identify the “true” meaning behind a story, if any at all. In other words, reader/response criticism allows readers to explore the boundaries of the multiple meanings a story can have without there actually being one. For example, in the story The …show more content…
If we were to ask a reader from the late nineteenth century if James had all the intentions of writing a story with paranormal phenomena, they would more than likely agree. On the other hand, if the same question were to be asked to modern day readers, there would be a variety of different answers due to the reader/response criticism concept. There is no saying whether one interpretation is correct or not, rather an acknowledgement that literature has no limits in terms of what it may mean. In Peter G. Beidler edited version of the The Turn of the Screw, he writes that “the reader’s feelings and experiences provide a kind of reality check,” the story is meant to manipulate our emotions “as a way of testing the authenticity” (272). Was the governess going mad? Were the children corrupt? At first, reading the story without interpretations, I agreed that The Turn of the Screw was about ghosts.