What is literary criticism?
Your professor may require you to incorporate works of literary criticism into your research paper.
Watch this 3-minute definition of literary criticism. Then scroll down for examples and differences between literary criticism and reference information.
Literary criticism versus reference information
| Literary criticism | Reference works |
|---|---|
| Found in books, scholarly journal articles, library databases, and sometimes websites | Found in print encyclopedias, library databases, and some websites |
| Usually provides an opinion related to a theme, writing style, or historical/political context | Can provide thematic background, plot summaries, author biographies |
| Although the literary criticism examples below are in different formats, these resources are considered literary criticism because they analyze and focus on particular works or writings using a particular theory or lens. | These various sources below provide background, an overview, and other information related to a work of literature but they are not considered literary criticism as they do not include in depth analysis. |
Examples of literary criticism:
- A scholarly journal article that examines the book Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain through the lens of Critical Race Theory.
- An eBook that analyzes the political vision found in Toni Morrison’s writings.
- A print book that analyzes the novel Frankenstein.
Examples of reference works:
- An article in Credo Reference introducing the life and literary work of Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein.
- A plot summary of the novella “The Yellow Paper” from MagillOnLiterature Plus.
- A description in a print book of the different types of poetry stanzas.