“To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a spark.” –Victor Hugo
This portfolio was designed to test my knowledge of several critical theories and my ability to withdraw clues from texts to act as evidence to the concepts. In the section marked “Critical Theory” are seven different modes of literary criticisms: Deconstruction, Psychoanalysis, Marxism, Feminism, Reader-Response, and Structuralism each accompanied with brief background information of the theory. Following the first section is “Application” where each theory is joined with an essay depicting my analysis skills applied to narratives as well as brief commentary on my task. In the final section marked, “Formal Writing” are two essays analyzing my favorite theory: Deconstruction. In these essays I connected Deconstruction to societal problems through two well-known novels, “Dracula” and “Wild Seed”. As a novice to critical theory I can say this learning experience has made my perception of narratives through reading and writing much more speculative.