Critical Approaches to Writing a Review/ Reaction Paper/Critique
A very important expository discourse that you must learn how to write is the reaction paper, review, or
critique. It is mainly written to communicate a fair assessment of situations, people, events, literary and
artistic works, and performances. Whether it’s a social commentary, or a critical judgment, it conveys
incisive insights into its analysis of events, its interpretation of the meaning or importance of a work or
artifact, or its appreciation of the moral or aesthetic values reflected in the work or performance. It may
include the main purpose of the event; the devices and strategies employed; an evaluation of its success or
failure; and an assessment of its significance and relevance, timeliness, or timelessness.
As a reviewer and critic, you must not simply rely on mere opinions; rather, you must use both proofs and
logical reasoning to substantiate your comments. You 1 must process ideas and theories, revisit and extend
ideas in a specific field of study and present an analytical response to the subject of your review.
The following critical approaches will guide you in writing your review, reaction paper or critique. These
approaches will help you focus on the more important aspects to examine, analyze and evaluate.
1. Formalism emphasizes the form of a literary work to determine its meaning, focusing on literary
elements and how they work to create meaning.
Focus on the elements, structure and principles that govern a certain text, artworks, movie, book,
poems, etc.
Poem (meter, figurative devices, imagery, theme)
Books/stories (setting, characters, plot)
Movies (sound effects, transition, shots)
Artistic expression (lines, colors, shapes, rhythm, texture, sound)
A Formalist Approach to Robert Frost’s The Road Not Taken
(An Excerpt)
Robert Frost also uses various of sound in this poem in order to emphasize some sections of the poem.
He uses alliteration, assonance, rhyme, rhythm. The alliteration which is the repeated of consonant
sounds can be seen in the poem with the use of “r,” “t,” and “s” in all stanza. In the first and third stanza
dominantly use alliteration “r” and “t,” in the second and fourth stanza use alliteration “r” and “s.” It
makes the sound of the poem rough.
2. Biographical Criticism emphasizes the importance of the author’s life and background into
account when analyzing a text.
Focus on the life and background of the writer/artist and connect it to the subject of your review or
critic.
How did the life of Dr. Jose Rizal affect his written works?
How did Pablo Picasso’s life experiences shape his painting style?
Biographical Approach to Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour”
(An Excerpt)
In Kate’s life, she had lost someone too, in 1855 to a train accident. A widow, Mrs. Mallard is sooner or
later, assumed to be a widow, but treaders will soon find out that Mr. Mallard is alive. In Kate’s life, his
father had widowed her mother. Both experienced having lost someone very special as well as being
widowed, but their responses to the loss may entirely be different. In the end, before she would have
learned about Brently’s return from the accident, Louise died of heart disease-of joy that kills. This
suggests that she had a monstrous joy, because it killed and consumed her to death.
Perhaps, Chopin would just let Louise die instead of seeing Brently again, wherein she will be living
like a prison again. Freedom for women in the “Story of An Hour”, Chopin has made no suggestion to
the readers that Mrs. Mallard was sorry for her husband’s loss. Instead, she has uttered over under her
breath: “Free, free, and free!”, which suggests how2 happy Mrs. Mallard is to have lost her husband,
because she has now freedom of herself. The joy she senses in possessing her freedom is something
which consumes her. In Kate’s life, she was used to write about resurgence of women’s rights.
3. Historical Criticism suggests that every literary work is the product of its time and its world.
Focus on the era and significant events that happened during the time the
text/movie/book/art/poem was produced.
How did Juan Luna’s ‘Spoliarium’ depict the happenings during the time it was painted?
How did Victor Hugo show the hardships and triumph during the French revolution in his
work ‘Les Miserables’?
Historical Criticism of "Theft" by Katherine Anne Porter
(An Excerpt)
The story of “Theft” written by Katherine Anne Porter takes place in New York City during the 1920’s.
This unnamed female protagonist discovers that her purse, made of gold cloth is missing. As the mid
20-year-old woman ponders, she realizes she had her purse when she came home from a party the night
before. As she recollects her thoughts, a glimpse of her life is told within a small story. She has 3
separate current “mates”, running into each of them back-to-back on her way home. These three men all
take something mentally from her: happiness, love, and hope. A historical point-of-view influences how
you read the text. Trends and societal views influence what were written and how it can be read.
When reflecting on the economic and cultural status of the protagonist, a historical knowledge is
beneficial. The 1920’s are also known as the roaring 20s. Within this era, the pattern of employment for
women was beginning to change. The great majority of women worked as a housewife. However, a
great increase of 25% women moved to working in the workplace a result of the hard work they had
undertaken throughout World War I, due to the absence of men. Within the text, the reader learns that
the protagonist has taken upon the role of writing reviews for acts, and as well as writing many small
acts she sells for an income period. During the time of the 1920’s, act writing and play business was
solely controlled by men. As stated in the text, the protagonist sells an act to the character of Bill, Bill
refuses to pay the protagonist, “’It’s no time to speak of it,’ she said, ‘but I’ve been hoping you would
have by now that fifty dollars you promised for my scene in the third act. Even if it doesn’t play. You
were to pay me for the work anyhow out of your advance.’” (Porter 185). “Bill said, ‘Do me a favor,
will you? Have another drink and forget about it. I can’t! If you pay, I’m in.’” (Porter 186), previously
Bill had given to the protagonist a small tour of the new expensive items he had purchased for the
wealth of his home. In this situation Bill has money, whether he admits it or not. There was no
sympathy for the unpaid protagonist, this was the generation’s way of life. Most men did not agree with
the presence of women.
4. Marxist Criticism emphasizes on how power, politics, and money play a role in literary texts and
amongst literary societies and characters.
Focus on how class, power, race and economic status affect the content and theme of a certain
work.
In what way did the story/movie reflect the socio-economic status of the characters?
The Communist Manifesto
(An Excerpt)
The communist manifesto reflects an attempt to explain the goals of Communism, as well as the theory
underlying this movement. It argues that class struggles, or the exploitation of one class by another, are
the motivating force behind all historical developments. Class relationships are defined by an era's means
of production. However, eventually these relationships cease to be compatible with the developing forces
of production. At this point, a revolution occurs and a new class emerges as the ruling one. This process
represents the "march of history" as driven by larger economic forces.
Modern Industrial society in specific is characterized by class conflict between the bourgeoisie and
proletariat. However, the productive forces of capitalism are quickly ceasing to be compatible with this
exploitative relationship. Thus, the proletariat will lead a revolution. However, this revolution will be of a
different character than all previous ones: previous revolutions simply reallocated property in favor of the
new ruling class. However, by the nature of their class, the members of the proletariat have no way of
appropriating property. Therefore, when they obtain control they will have to destroy all ownership of
private property, and classes themselves will disappear.
The Manifesto argues that this development is inevitable, and that capitalism is inherently unstable. The
Communists intend to promote this revolution, and will promote the parties and associations that are
moving history towards its natural conclusion. They argue that the elimination of social classes cannot
come about through reforms or changes in government. Rather, a revolution will be required.
5. Feminism emphasizes on the roles, positions, and influences of women within literary texts.
Focus on how women are portrayed in a certain literary work, in arts, in commercials, in movie,
etc.
Are women viewed as inferior beings in the movie?
How were they portrayed?
What aspect of the painting mirrors the patriarchal ideology in our society?
Josephine Donovan: 'Beyond the Net: Feminist Criticism as a Moral Criticism'
4
(An Excerpt)
While feminist criticism has diversified considerably in the past few years, I wish in this article to return
to the 'images of women' approach that dominated feminist literary studies in the early 1970s and is still
central to the pedagogy of Women's Studies in literature. Through the 'images of women' approach the
critic determines how women characters are presented in literature. Usually the critic discovers that the
images are other, and therefore that the literature is alien. The task may be labeled 'negative criticism' if
one wishes to adapt the dialectical terms of the Frankfurt school of Marxist criticism. It is 'negative'
because the critic is in effect saying 'no' to reified perceptions, structures, and models that have
historically denied full humanity to women. This means looking 'negatively' at much of Western
literature. Here I wish to set down a theoretical moral basis for this critique.
Feminist criticism is rooted in the fundamental a priori intuition that women are seats of consciousness:
are selves, not others.... Women in literature written by men are for the most part seen as other, as objects,
of interest only insofar as they serve or detract from the goals of the male protagonist. Such literature is
alien from a female point of view because it denies her essential selfhood.... The primary assumption a
critic in the 'images of women' school must make is an evaluation of the authenticity of the female
characters.
6. Reader-response criticism emphasizes that the meaning of a text is dependent upon the reader’s
response to it.
Focus on the meaning you created while reading a text, watching a movie or looking at a certain
object. It focuses on your personal connection with and understanding of the subject of your
review.
What emotion did you experience after reading the poem?
What is your interpretation of the painting?
Grace Peterson’s Reaction to the Poem "My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke
(An Excerpt)
Eventually, I put my first interpretation and my second interpretation together to form my final
thoughts. In “My Papa’s Waltz,” I believe Theodore Roethke intended the narrator to reminisce about
his father who is no longer living. This does seem to be a happy yet sad poem. Roethke intended to
portray fond memories. It seems as though Roethke utilizes a few literary devices in order to help the
reader better understand that there were some unideal attributes to the narrator’s father. I believe the
controversial traits the narrator sheds some light on is the dark or depressive tone that I came across in
my first reading. The narrator does seem to excuse or forgive these negative traits throughout the
poem. Through symbolism and a skillful use of meter and rhyme, Roethke shares this emotional
whirlwind with his readers.
