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Literature vocabulary · Criticism and Analysis

Formalism

Meaning in literature, with examples

nounAdvanced term

In literature, formalism means: An approach focusing on the literary devices and structures that shape a work.

In Turkish: biçimcilik

How it is used

Use for approaches prioritizing form and technique; specify the school when historical distinctions matter.

Example sentences

  1. The formalism of this reading directs attention to repeated sounds rather than the poet's childhood.

    The method selects textual organization as its main evidence.

  2. Our seminar on Russian formalism examined how narrative order changes an ordinary event.

    Rearranging events is treated as a device that creates literary effects.

Common collocations

  • Russian formalism
  • literary formalism
  • literary theoryThe study of the ideas and methods used to read and interpret literature, such as structuralism, Marxism, psychoanalysis, feminism and postcolonial theory.
  • figure of speechA use of words in a non-literal or unusual way to create a special effect or meaning, such as a metaphor, simile, hyperbole or personification.

More terms: Criticism and Analysis

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