Literary Theory Troubles

[Puzzled49]

Hey guys,

I'm a high-school student who's beginning to work on a class essay that's worth a pretty large portion of our final mark. I just recently finished reading Catch-22 by Joseph Heller (a pretty amusing book), and am having a little bit of trouble. Basically, within the essay I have to mention which literary theories appear in the book, and the role they play within it. From what I've worked out so far, I've figured I could mention both Historicism and Formalism. For Historicism I was planning on mentioning something about the book reflecting the opinion of war and bureaucracy at the time of writing, and for Formalism I was thinking I might be able to write something about how the events of the novel aren't neccesarily told in chronological order. I had difficulty deciding on a third theory, and my teacher suggested Structuralism, as it came about around the same time the novel was written.

My problem is I don't entirely understand what Structuralism is all about, and every time I try to research it I just get more and more confused. If anybody knows a little bit about Structualism, and could maybe explain how it applys to Catch-22, it would be greatly appreciated!

Not just concerning Structualism, but any insight on the literary theories I mentioned (Historicism, Formalism, and Structalism) would be greatly appreciated, whether they are related to the book or not!

With all the intelligent people on this board, I'm sure someone could shed some light on this topic for me!

Thanks for the help.

[LitNetIsGreat]

You need to get hold of a good 'basics' book. Try Peter Barry or Hans Bertens.

[kelby_lake]

I think Structuralism is basically a very in-depth study of the structure and exclusion of the novel's context in history, culture, or anything else.

[mal4mac]

You need to get hold of a good 'basics' book. Try Peter Barry or Hans Bertens.

Good advice. Have you any preference between these two, Neely?

[LitNetIsGreat]

I have them both and still return to them a fair bit. It is difficult to say which is best, from a practical view I would probably go for Peter Barry's Beginning Theory because of its handy structure and how it breaks things down into practical bullet points. The Hans Bertens reads better and you are a little more likely to get drawn into it on a pure reading level, but if I had to choose between them I think the Peter Barry is better value for those new or relatively new to theory. It represents a good solid foundation in which to build on with further study, and one that you are likely to return to time and time again. A pretty useful little book.

[hellsapoppin]

There was something very symbolic about the name Yossarian: it is Armenian which denotes a society that always fell victim to foreign invasion and occupation. The main character certainly is a victim in that very striking book!

[mal4mac]

The Hans Bertens reads better and you are a little more likely to get drawn into it on a pure reading level...

You're right! It reads well. I started reading it on Questia and lost a few hours. He explains Formalism and the early history of structuralism very well. Should be useful for the OP.