Verma, Rajiva (1972) Concepts of myth and ritual, and criticism of Shakespeare, 1880-1970. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

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Abstract

This work is a study of the various concepts and theories of myth and
ritual as they are found in some non-literary disciplines, especially
anthropology, in literary theory, and in the criticism of Shakespeare.
It is divided into two parts. Part I discusses various theories of myth
and ritual and the relation of these theories to literature in general.
It consists of five chapters. Chapter 1 discusses the allegorical theory
of myth, and tries to show that the idea of myth as allegory persists in
literary criticism, even though it has generally been discarded in theory.
It suggests that the majority of criticism in terms of myth and ritual can,
in fact, be seen as the extension to literary material of the kind of
allegorical and typological exegesis that has been widely practised in
scriptural hermeneutic from very early times. This suggestion is
tested with reference to Shakespeare-criticism in Chapter 6 in Part II.
Chapter 2 discusses the idea of ritual and the specifically
anthropological theories concerning the connexions between myth, ritual,
and drama. It is suggested here that the idea of ritual as such, and a
psychological-cum-sociological extension of the concept of the scapegoat
may be critically more valuable than the mere tracing of the origins of
works of art in primitive rituals. Chapter 3 discusses ideas concerning
a special mythical mode of thought, emphasis being placed here on the
theory of Ernst Cassirer. Chapter 4 is concerned with the theories of
Northrop Frye and Levi-Strauss, who are both, in their very different
ways, interested in the 'structural' approach to myth. Chapter 5
surveys theories concerning the social role of myth and ritual and also
discusses the relation between myth and ideology. It is proposed here
that application of anthropological theories of myth and ritual in literary
criticism should logically lead to a sociological approach to the work of
art.
Part II is also divided into five chapters, each surveying the
existing 'myth' criticism of Shakespeare in the light of the theories
outlined in the corresponding chapter in Part I. It emerges from this
survey that contrary to the common impression, the influence of
anthropological theory, especially of the theories that come after Frazer
and the 'Cambridge' anthropologists, has been relatively slight where
actual criticism is concerned. In fact, we find that the overwhelming
majority of the criticism of Shakespeare in terms of myth is really an
extension of allegorical mythography to secular, literary works. In
such criticism there is usually an assumption that the work under consideration
is of mythical or scriptural status and hides some profound
and universal truth. Sometimes, however, such criticism may also be
seen as an attempt to raise the work of art to the status of myth.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Subjects:	P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN0080 Criticism
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Criticism, Myth in literature, Ritual in literature, Anthropology, Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Criticism and interpretation
Official Date:	September 1972
Dates:	Date Event September 1972 Submitted
Institution:	University of Warwick
Theses Department:	Department of English and Comparative Literary Studies
Thesis Type:	PhD
Publication Status:	Unpublished
Supervisor(s)/Advisor:	Hunter, G. K.
Extent:	332 p.
Language:	eng

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