Introductory
Catherine Belsey's Critical Practice is all about the extraction of the meaning out of a given text. In this book, she does not tell a definite method for the extraction of meaning, but she explains theories being brought up through the different schools of thought which were set against the Common Sense view of Literature like New Criticism and Reader Power. Belsey was of the view that those theories were trapped in their own problems of Common Sense. She further claims that it was Post-Saussurean Linguistics which guided the literary and practical criticism to find out the meaning of a text, not in the author, text or reader but in the structure.
Common Sense
The common sense view of literature propounds that literature is a (true) reflection of one's everyday life. Literature is based on universal concepts. This is the reason behind the familiarity of the characters in a novel or a play to a reader as the characters are drawn from real life. Such literature is produced through the writers who take inspiration for their stories from the observation of their own society. Thus, a writer's age and his life play an important role in deducting the meaning of his works. The interpretation of these works do not require the knowledge of fancy theories as the events presented in them are already experienced by the readers. But it is worth noting that the Common Sense View of Literature is backed up by the theories of Imitation, Humanism and Romanticism. Expressive Realism is a critical practice based on Common Sense.
New Criticism
New Critics, a group consisting of Thomas Stearns Eliot, R. P. Warren, I. A. Richards, J. C. Ransom and Cleanth Brooks, sought to liberate the text out of the influence of the author. They claimed that the meaning of a work does not lie in the author, but in the text itself. Their version of criticism was limited to a close reading of the text and dissection of textual qualities like the use of literary and structural devices. Belsey rejected the practices of New Criticism as she claimed that it was not correct to claim text as the origin of meaning because the text is written in a language and every language has its own set of symbols which are used differently by different people. If the text was not conveying the intended meaning, then the actual meaning was stored in the mind of the author who wrote it. Thus, recognizing New Criticism an extension of Common Sense.
Reader Power Theory
Reader Response Theory recognizes the reader as a source of the meaning of the text he reads. According to the particular theory, a reader is an active agent who completes the meaning of a text through his already acquired knowledge, his emotions, his psyche and his day-to-day observation. This theory was also rejected as a reader was vulnerable to the false interpretation of a text which would lead to a meaning contrary to what the author intended.
Structuralism
Belsey asserts that the meaning of a work neither lies in the author, nor in the text or the reader, but in the structure of social formation. (This structure of social formation can be loosely termed as Structuralism). The Linguistic Theory of Ferdinand de Saussure who divided linguistic signs into Signifier and Signified (learn more about them through this link). A Signifier is either a spoken or a written symbol/image whereas a Signified is a concept linked directly to the concerned Signifier. For example, the image of "chair" is associated with a small piece of furniture with four legs and a back that is used for people to sit on it. The formation of the connection between Signifier and Signified is not controllable and is dependent on the culture of a specific time and place.
Langue is a system of rules for a specific language. Whereas Parole is a person's utilization of the rules specified by the Langue when he speaks or writes something. Similarly, a society functions on a specific set of rules, beliefs and customs which can be termed as the Langue of that society, and the thoughts and views of an individual person, a Parole dependent on Langue. The unconscious expression of an individual becomes a part of the overall belief of a society which Belsey calls an ideology. This is the reason behind the rejection of the individual as a source of meaning as the meaning is generated through the social formation. So, the quest of meaning of a work should revolve around the social, political and economic conditions of a society.
Methods for the Extraction of Meaning
Catherine Belsey has outlined two approaches to find out the meaning of a creative text.
Analytical Criticism
This version of criticism or the process of the extraction of meaning involves the image of a reader in the mind of a writer when he is developing his work. Thus, the first critic is the writer himself and as the text travels to the reader, he unconsciously becomes a critic too as he tries to fill in the gaps of meanings left by the author. But a writer also optimises his work on the basis of the society he is targeting. Thus, for a common reader to assess the meaning out of a writer's work, he has to make himself acquainted with the psychology and activities of the writer as well as the prominent themes of a literary work. Common Sense and Classical Realism are two notable movements representing Analytical Criticism.
Evaluating Criticism
This kind of criticism prioritizes text over a reader or a writer. It is based on the facts and content provided under text. The followers of this critical technique do not hold the importance of the personal life of an author or the image of a reader as they deem (the structure of) text as the only complete source of meaning. Catherine Belsey also seems to be favouring this technique as she advocates the dissection of a text over its lingual roots.
Conclusion
It is difficult to deny the significance of an author, his text or the reader he is writing when approaching for the meaning. Removal of one entity can result in a meaning which may lack individual, cultural or lingual strain in it.
