Literature's an Onion: It Has Layers - and Structure!

      Structuralist Theory perfectly captures literature's many faces - through structure, we can observe and analyze the patterns and deviants employed, and can understand the value of word choice and the emotions they evoke. Frye seeks to describe the importance of criticism with the quote: "The poet may of course have some critical ability of his own, and so be able to talk about his own work but...what he says has a peculiar interest, not a peculiar authority. It is generally accepted that a critic is a better judge of the value of a poem than its creator." Do you believe that this is true? Is there something unaccountable in the author's own interpretation, and that there is a dividing line between critic and writer?
     Beyond this dividing idea of judgment, what can we say of the value of Structuralism? From our class discussions, we found ourselves impressed by our better understanding of Sonnet 73 by breaking it down and valuing the diction and figurative language used by Shakespeare. What can we gain from having a Structuralist perspective? Does it help us to better understand, appreciate, and study the art of writing and all that it brings forth?

Structure and scaffolds can provide the foundation for something truly great.

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