archetypal criticism in othello
Farewell / Commend me to my kind lord. Issues of genre, period, and language were ignored or subjected to gross generalization as Jung searched for universals in texts as disparate as the fourth-century Shepherd of Hermas, the Divine Comedy, Francesco Colonnas Hypnerotomachia Poliphili (1499), E. T. A. Hoffmans tales, Pierre Benoits LAtlantide (1919-20), and Henry Wadsworth Longfellows Hiawatha, as well as works by Carl Spitteler and William Blake. Archetypal critics are also interested in certain myths and rituals that recur in a wide variety of cultures. ("Literary Criticism.") Archetypal Literary Criticism. Iago leads Othello to suspect that love and devotion are shams disguising the basest of animalistic instincts. What makes Othello so unique structurally (and painful to witness) is that it is a tragedy built on a comic foundation. Analysis. Two publishing events at the beginning of the 1990s in the United States may signal the coming of age of this kind of archetypal criticism through its convergence with postmodern critical thought, along with a commensurate insistence on its roots in the depth psychology of Jung: the reissue of Morris Philipsons 1963 Outline of a Jungian Aesthetic and the appearance of Karin Barnaby and Pellegrino DAcerinos multidisciplinary, multicultural collection of essays, C. G. Jung and the Humanities: Toward a Hermeneutics of Culture. His demise was of his own doing. The young Venetian noblewoman, Desdemona, has eloped with the middle-aged Othello, the military commander of the armed forces of Venice. The patterns are the major intrinsic aspects of a work. And the 1980s saw a new, suggestive, and controversial direction in archetypal studies of literature: the feminist. The critical annotations are astute and, given their brevity, surprisingly thorough and suggestive. Sign up To date, the British Journal of Analytical Psychology and the retitled American Spring: A Journal of Archetype and Culture are the best resources for archetypal criticism of literature and the arts even though only a small percentage of their published articles treat such topics. In Shakespeare?s play Othello, Othello himself is the tragic hero. Joseph P. Strelka, 1976); Karin Barnaby and Pellegrino DAcerino, eds., C. G. Jung and the Humanities: Toward a Hermeneutics of Culture (1990); Martin Bickman, The Unsounded Centre: Jungian Studies in American Romanticism (1980); Maud Bodkin, Archetypal Patterns in Poetry: Psychological Studies in Imagination (1934); Northrop Frye, Anatomy of Criticism: Four Essays (1957); Albert Gelpi, The Tenth Muse: The Psyche of the American Poet (1975); Naomi Goldenberg, Archetypal Theory after Jung, Spring (1975); Julia Kristeva, Stabat Mater (1977, The Kristeva Reader, ed. The direction of Othello criticism will also be affected as literary criticism's longstanding commitment to cultural historicism comes under pressure from those who argue that explorations of context often come at the expense of literature's formal properties and affective registers, and as developments in the digital humanities enable fresh Because of that, it has generated a lot of literary criticism in the 400 years since it was written and first . His expression of his jealousy quickly devolves from the conventional"Farewell the tranquil mind"to the absurd: Farewell the plum'd troops and the big wars. Jung most frequently used myth (or mythologem) for the narrative expression, on the ethnological level (Collected 9, pt. They were built to defen the city of Nicosia during the Otto-man Venetian war. However, as the play progresses, jealousy clamps down his mind, and his decisions are colored with jealousy that Desdemona is betraying him, leading him to kill her and take his own life. In the beginning of the play, Othello is seen as content with his new bride: For know, Iago, But that I love the gentle Desdemona (1.2.24-25). Texts and Contexts: Writing About Literature with Critical Theory. A archethpes symbol or myth leads to the establishment of a general truth. To wronged Othellos service. Carl Jungs Contribution to Psychoanalytic Theory. The scene crowns love triumphant. Lon S. Roudiez, 1986); Estella Lauter and Carol Schreier Rupprecht, Feminist Archetypal Theory: Interdisciplinary Re-Visions of Jungian Thought (1985); Erich Neumann, Art and the Creative Unconscious: Four Essays (trans. The Fables of Identity: Studies in Poetic Mythology is a critical work published in 1963. Archetypal criticism, then, construed as that derived from Jungs theory and practice of archetypal (analytical) psychology, is a fledgling and much misconstrued field of inquiry with significant but still unrealized potential for the study of literature and of aesthetics in general. Archetypal Criticism Archetypal criticism argues that archetypes determine the form and function of literary works, . Further, myth critics, aligned with writers in comparative anthropology and philosophy, are said to include Frazer, Jessie Weston, Leslie Fiedler, Ernst Cassirer, Claude Lvi-Strauss, Richard Chase, Joseph Campbell, Philip Wheelwright, and Francis Fergusson. My soul hath content so absolute He interprets literature in the light of various rituals and myths. Othello decides the only way to right his wrong is to take his own life. He is the general of the Venetian army and a well respected man by the towns noble men. What hooks you? Shakespeare derived his plot from Giraldi Cinthios Tale of the Moor, in the story collection Hecatommithi (1565), reshaping Cinthios sensational tale of jealousy, intrigue, and murder in several key ways. After Othello returns from war at sea with the Turks, his fortune begins a downward spiral. Iago replies: Demand me nothing; what you know, you know: / From this time forth I never will speak word. By Iagos exiting the stage, closing access to his motives, the focus remains firmly on Othello, not as Iagos victim, but as his own. The essays in our library are intended to serve as content examples to inspire you as you write your own essay. 2. The three fundamental qualities of an archetype are: An archetype is a preconscious, instinctual expression of man's basic nature. His imagination is excited to intense activity, but it is the activity of concentration rather than dilation. Archetypal Criticism Archetypal theory and criticism, although often used synonymously with Myth theory and crticism, has a distinct history and process. Kibin. The formerly self-sufficient Othello has now staked his life to his faith in Desdemona and their union, and she has done the same. You elements that clip us round about, Not with vain thanks, but with acceptance bounteous, In archetypal criticism, under the reductive method of analysis, a critic, while elucidating a text, moves from the particular truth to the general truth. In Act 2, Scene 1 of Othello, Iago formulates his plan to drive Othello mad. An archetype is the original pattern or . The Women of Othello There are only three female characters in Othello, and each plays a critical role in Shakespeare's artfully crafted plot of jealousy and retribution. Literary Theory from 1900 to 1966: A-Z A Alexander Chirila First published: 24 December 2010 https://doi.org/10.1002/9781444337839.wbelctv1a009 Read the full text PDF Tools Share Abstract Archetypal criticism is a form of analysis based on the identification and study of recurring symbolic and mythic patterns. This preview is partially blurred. He turns to Iago, who has been brought before him to know the reason for his actions. . The tragic heros downfall, said Aristotle, was brought upon by some error of judgement. James Baird, Jungian Psychology in Criticism: Theoretical Problems, Literary Criticism and Psychology (ed. R. F. C. Hull, 2 vois., 1973-75). Literary Archetypes The Legend of Sleepy Hollow The Loved One The Magus The Making of Americans The Man in the High Castle The Mayor of Casterbridge The Member of the Wedding The Metamorphosis The Natural The Plague The Plot Against America The Portrait of a Lady The Power of Sympathy The Red Badge of Courage The Road The Road from Coorain This causes him to lose his ability to make good judgments and decisions. Archetypal theory then took shape principally in the multidisciplinary journal refounded by Hillman in 1970 in Zurich, Spring: An Annual of Archetypal Psychology and Jungian Thought. Each literary theory will examine the text through different lenses, resulting in different interpretations. Comparing the amount written about the two plays, people find Hamlet more interesting to discuss. As Othello came to his breaking point, desdemona foreshadows her own death and he lets jealousy take over. However, the Moor and Alfiero join forces to kill Disdemona, beating her to death with a stocking filled with sand before pulling down the ceiling on her dead body to conceal the crime as an accident. Frye's thesis in "The Archetypes of Literature" remains largely unchanged in Anatomy of Criticism. The romantic climax comes in the trial scene of act 1, in which Othello success-fully defends himself before the Venetian senate against Brabantios charge that Othello has beguiled his daughter, stoln from me, and corrupted / By spells and medicines bought of mountebanks. Calmly and courteously Othello recounts how, despite the differences of age, race, and background, he won Desdemonas heart by recounting the stories of his exotic life and adventures: She loved me for the dangers I had passed, / And I loved her that she did pity them. Wonder at Othellos heroic adventures and compassion for her sympathy have brought the two opposites togetherthe young, inexperienced Venetian woman and the brave, experienced outsider. When he realizes the grave mistake he had made by taking an honest Desdemona's life he can no longer live with himself. Now art thou my lieutenant. This last text explicitly named the movement and demonstrated its appropriation of archetypal theory for feminist ends in aesthetics, analysis, art, and religion, as well as in literature. Considered according to this definition, the concept becomes a useful tool for literary analysis that explores the synthesis of the universal and the particular, seeks to define the parameters of social construction of gender, and attempts to construct theories of language, of the imaginal, and of meaning that take gender into account. Act 3, one of the wonders of the stage, anatomizes Othellos psychic descent from perfect contentment in his new wife to complete loathing, from a worldview in which everything is as it appears to one in which nothing is as it seems. Othello also matches Aristotle's ideas of tragic hero because our Othello realizes the error of his ways, causing us to feel sympathy for him. From the theorists, dissertations, articles, and books, often traditionally academic in orientation, appeared; the productions of the practitioners are chronicled and critiqued in van Meurss bibliography. Due to the Moor, my lord. O, farewell! Desdemona on her deathbed, still defends her Lords actions. I know not ift be true; But I, for mere suspicion in that kind, Will do as if for surety (2.1. Thus, with the archetypal theorists multiplying across disciplines on the one hand and the clinically practicing followers serving as (generally inadequate) critics on the other, archetypal literary theory and criticism flourished in two independent streams in the 1960s and 1970s. The first two acts of the play enact the standard pattern of Shakespeares romantic comedies. 1: 4), but he distinguishes his concept and use of the term from that of philosophical idealism as being more empirical and less metaphysical, though most of his empirical data were dreams. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1994. http://www.kibin.com/essay-examples/an-archetype-criticism-of-othello-a-play-by-william-shakespeare-yJF4zltX Be sure to capitalize proper nouns (e.g. In. Despite this, Desdemona continued to stay true to Othello. The Critical Analysis Of A Novel: Atonement By Ian Mcewan Atonement by Ian McEwan is a literary masterpiece and a highly critically acclaimed novel. Archetypal criticism, then, construed as that derived from Jung's theory and practice of archetypal (analytical) psychology, is a fledgling and much misconstrued field of inquiry with significant but still unrealized potential for the study of literature and of aesthetics in general. A Christian Moor and general of the armies of Venice, Othello is an eloquent and physically powerful figure, respected by all those around him. And new theories increasingly give credence to the requirement, historically asserted by Jungian readers, that each text elicit a personal, affective, and not merely intellectual response. Patterns originate from the writer's . Key quotation (Aside) O, you are well tuned now!But I'll set down the pegs that make this music, As honest as I am. According to Hillman, that discourse was anticipated by Evangelos Christous Logos of the Soul (1963) and extended in religion (David L. Millers New Polytheism, 1974), philosophy (Edward Caseys Imagining: A Phenomenological Study, 1976), mythology (Rafael Lopez-Pedrazas Hermes and His Children, 1977), psycholinguistics (Paul Kuglers Alchemy of Discourse: An Archetypal Approach to Language, 1982), and the theory of analysis (Patricia Berrys Echos Subtle Body, 1982). In The Tragedy of Othello, Shakespeare details the story of a celebrated military hero who falls victim to the machinations of a conniving villain who goes by the name of Iago. Despite his deliberately selective focus on critical works written in English on literary texts that are, for the most part, also written in English, van Meurs, with the early assistance of John Kidd, has collected 902 entries, of which he identifies slightly over 80 as valid and valuable literary criticism. When Othello cant dismiss his suspicions of his wife being unfaithful any longer he starts to lose his morality . ukraine russia border live camera /; June 24, 2022 Indeed, the psychological resonances of the drama, along with its provocative racial and gender themes, have caused Othello, perhaps more than any other of Shakespeares plays, to reverberate the loudest with current audiences and commentators. What is a tragic hero and why is Othello considered one? Thus, all contrastive categorization would benefit from archetypal analysis. New theoretical approaches appear to legitimize orthodox Jungian ways of reading, sanction Jungs range of literary preferences from She to Faust, and support his highly affective reaction to Ulysses, which he himself identified (positively) as a subjective confession (i5:io9n). The archetypal characteris a simple character template recognizable to all readers. Othello is decisive, confident, and secure in his identity, duty, and place in the world. But Jung's theory of the archetypes of the collective unconscious differs . For more information on choosing credible sources for your paper, check out this blog post. Here are some ways our essay examples library can help you with your assignment: Read our Academic Honor Code for more information on how to use (and how not to use) our library. Thus criticism evolving from his work is more accurately named archetypal and is quite distinct from myth criticism. This article, then, treats the only form of literary theory and criticism consistent with and derived directly from the psychological principles advanced by Jung. Moreover, Shakespeare, by deliberately clouding the issue of Iagos motive, finds ever more sinister threats in such a characters apparently bottomless and unmerited hatred and capacity for evil. Frye's work helped displace New Criticism as the major mode of analyzing literary texts . In his major work, The Anatomy of Criticism, he states: 'I mean by an archetype a symbol which connects one poem with another and thereby helps to unify and integrate our . 1: 67), of the archetypes, which he described as patterns of psychic energy originating in the collective unconscious and finding their most common and most normal manifestation in dreams (8:287). Between William Shakespeares most expansive and philosophical tragediesHamlet and King Learis Othello, his most constricted and heart-breaking play. As Hillman puts it, Corbins insight that Jungs mundus archetypalis is also the mundus imaginalis that corresponds to the Islamic alam al-mithl (3) was an early move toward a reappraisal of psychology itself as an activity of poesis (24). However, Othello's words give a deeper insight into how he still misunderstands the situation. Othello was crafted at the dawn of the 17th century, shaped by complex social and geopolitical issues that new historicist critics, who seek to place literary works within a historical framework, have recently sought to unravel. As the handkercheif is stolen from Desdemona, Othello believes that she has become unfaithful to him, which leads him down a jealous path and eventually kill her. Othello, though, decides to kill her. In Shakespeare's Othello, Iago is one of the most compelling villains in English literature. The present essay, "Archetypes of Literature," is taken from the book. The example essays in Kibin's library were written by real students for real classes. That not another comfort like to this That such a man should unravel so completely, ushered by jealousy and hatred into a bestial worldview that cancels any claims of human virtue and self-less devotion, shocks and horrifies. Archetypal school of literary criticism is a type of literary criticism that is concerned with recurring myths and archetypes in symbols, characters, actions, and situations within literary pieces. "Who can control his fate?" The Shakespearean tragedy Othello contains a number of themes; their relative importance and priority is debated by literary critics. And concomitantly, on which of these levels was the reader affected? Iagos motivation is anything but explainable in conventional terms. (V.2.316, 323) It is beyond a doubt Othello's fault that all of this wreckage befalls him, and his still has not had a moment of recognition of his failures at reasoning and understanding. As mine own face.
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