Structuralist Criticism focuses on how we think, feel and act and what elements of the human experience determine those things.  

QUESTIONS THAT THE THEORY ASKS:

• What are the themes in the text?
• What is the language of the text implying?
• Does the text play on the “male gaze” if so how?
• How does the narrative relate to the structure?

-These are important questions because with looking at the themes of text a reader can interpret what the author is intending. For example, in a Rose for Emily the reader can look at the theme of age v. beauty and how the author compares and contrasts the two. When looking at what the language of the text is implying can help the reader further navigate a situation, is there a male character using language that makes him seem hostile? Is the male character sexualizing a female character, how so?  Though male gaze is typically referred to film, one can infer text to be written for a male audience vs. a female audience. An example of this could be that there’s a story set in a post apocalyptic world where there’s a male protagonist alone, vs. a coming of age story of how a young girl overcomes an eating disorder.  Looking at how narrative relates to structure is important as well because the reader is looking at the tone of the text, what each character is like and what they are experiencing, and how they are acting as a reaction to those experiences.