Ackerman 1

Kevin Ackerman

Mrs. Cramer

Comp Pd. 8

5 March 2019

New Criticism Essay

I created a PowerPoint presentation and decided to format my presentation in a way that

my audience would be able to understand it. I included a clear, yet detailed definition of what

New Criticism is, as well as examples that my audience would be able to understand. I also

included background information on John Crowe Ransom, the developer of New Criticism. By

including the background information on the developer, my audience would be able to

understand his thought process while creating this literary theory.

To begin, the definition of New Criticism is closely analyzing a piece of literature to

better understand the meaning behind the writing, without using outside sources. By including

this definition in the beginning of my presentation, the audience will have an idea of what New

Criticism is, that way they will not be confused throughout the presentation. I also included

examples from different pieces of literature so the audience can understand what exactly it is and

what to look for when reading literature. I did not put an abundance of words or bullet points on

the slides but focused on key points that I could elaborate on while presenting. My handout goes

into more detail on what New Criticism is along with the examples so the audience will have all

the information they will need to pick up on this literary theory while reading literature. I plan to

prepare by making notecards that I can read off of while presenting that will help me elaborate

more and make more eye contact with my audience.

 Ackerman 2

Furthermore, now that the audience understands what the New Criticism theory is and

different examples to go along with it, it is something that they will now pick up on when

reviewing a piece of literature. It is a way to interpret literary devices in a more understanding

manner. By making my presentation very concise and containing only necessary information,

this allowed me to not overwhelm my audience with information on this new literary theory. I

could elaborate on the topic and connect with my audience while presenting. My handout

includes more detail and always allows the audience to have the information with them. Not only

is New Criticism a new way to view literature, they help you to better understand what you are

reading and interpreting just by reading the text.