Pragmatic Criticsm- found on page 7 of "What is Literature", I realized I don't actually know what this means. I've read it, heard it, and probably discussed it as if I knew, but alas, I don't. Hello, Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms! According to the famed text, pragmatic criticism is "a type of criticism...[which] emphasized the effect of a literary work on its audience. Pragmatic critics believe that authors structure works in such a way as to attain specific effects on and elicit certain responses from the reader or audience. These critics thus evaluate a work based on their perception of the success or failure of that work (or author) to achieve its objectives" (368).
Glad they could clear that up for me.
Murfin and Ray, Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms -- Jerz EL312 (Literary Criticism)
Posted by VanessaKolberg at January 29, 2007 8:11 PM | TrackBackSo, in other words, this type of critic looks at the way that the author is trying to get inside the audience's head - right?
Posted by: Diana Geleskie at February 1, 2007 12:05 PM