The Archetypes of Literature - Northrop Frye

            The Archetypes of Literature - Northrop Frye

v Introduction 

Herman Northrop Frye was a professor of English at Victoria Collage at the University of Toronto. Frye published his first book, ‘Fearful Symmetry: A study of William Blake’ in 1947. The book is a highly original study of the poetry of Blake.

In literature, Literary writers always use some kind of symbols, which all have some kind of deep meaning that can be connected with nature, myths or any particular thing. Archetypal criticism is a type of critical theory that analysis a text by emphasising on recurring myths and archetypes in the narrative symbols, images and character types in literary work.

Ø  Northrope Frye’s Contribution to the Archetypal criticism.

Frye has given his valuable works “The Archetypes of Literature “in 1951 and the second one “Anotomy of criticism” in 1957. Most of the archetypal approaches are covered by Frye in his book “Anatomy of Criticism “that we can apply in the theory of literature and the practice of literary criticism.

In his work “Archetypes of Literature” he has given a basic theory of arts generally and then he gives more detail and developed “Anatomy of Criticism”. His two additions are to identify and classify the archetypes of literature.

Ø Frye’s definition

“In literary criticism the term archetype suggests narrative designs, patterns of action, character types, themes and images which are known to a wide verity of works of literature also to myths, dreams and even social rituals.”

                          “A kind of literary anthropology”

Carl. G. Jung has given a basic meaning of Archetypes according in “Collective unconscious that it is full of primordial images and psychic residue. And James.G.Frazer said that it is used to identify elemental patterns of myth and ritual. Myths are used by creative writers and critics analyze text is called archetypal criticism.

Ø Archetypal criticism as “A new poetics”

The ‘New Poetics’ is to be found in the theory of the mythological framework, which has come to be known as “archetypal Criticism”. It is through the lens of this structure, which is really a centrifugal progress of backing up from the text towards of literary criticism becomes clear. The learning of recurring structure pasterns grants students an emancipation distance from their own society, and gives theme vision of a higher human state the logician sublime.

In literary criticism the term archetype signifies recurrent narrative designs, patterns of action, character‐types, themes and images, so let’s check it out these terms.

·       Patterns of action:

This term is sometimes used in ethology to denote an natural behavioral cycle that is quite invariant within the species and almost certainly runs to completion. In depth analysis of behavioral chain since the term was first coined has meant the term is now largely replaced by phrases such as "behavior patterns" or "behavioral acts".

·       Character‐types:

          A character is a person in a narrative work of arts. A character that rises as representative of a particular class or group of people is known as a type. Types include both collection of characters and those which are more fully individualized.

·       Themes:

          A theme is the middle idea or ideas explored by a literary work. A work of literature may have more than one theme. Hamlet, for instance, deals with the themes of death, revenge and action. King Lear's themes include justice, reunion, madness, and betrayal.

·       Images:

A representation of the external form of a person or thing in art. Frye gives the season in his archetypal representation. Each season is attached with a literary genre like comedy with spring, romance with summer, tragedy with autumn, and satire or irony with winter..Now let’s check it out how seasons are connected with literary genres here by Frye.

v Frye use seasons in archetypal criticism

Ø Comedy:

It is united with spring because comedy suggests the birth of the hero, revival and rebirth. It also suggests the new creation as well as the power over the darkness. Spring also stands for the defeat of winter and darkness. In spring also there is the new creation in trees which symbolizes the similarities between comedy and spring.

Ø Romance:

It is connected with summer because summer is the end of life in the seasonal calendar, in  the western countries. Similarly romance, the genre, culminates with some type of success, particularly in a marriage.

Ø Autumn:

It is connected with tragedy. As autumn is the dying period in the seasonal calendar, similarly the genre, tragedy stands for the ‘fall of the hero or heroine or protagonist. Autumn itself symbolizes the fall and which is considered to be full of darkness.

Ø Satire :

Satire or Irony is like winter as they stands for the ‘dark’ genres. Satire is one type of disrespectful act. It is full of darkness, dissolution, and the return of chaos and the defeat of the heroic figure. Sometimes satire becomes very cruel and winter is also very cruel in western countries. Now Frye gives the context of a genre proves how a symbol an image is to be analysed. He gives five different views of different fields like human, animal, vegetation, mineral, and water.

Ø Human:

The comedic human world is representative of wish –fulfillment. In its category, the tragic human world is of loneliness, cruelty, and the hamartia. Thus, in different world, the roles of different humans can not be modify.

Ø Animals

The comedic animal world stands for the quiet and rural animals like cow, sheep etc. Whereas in the tragic animal world they are like hunters, greedy like wolves, leopard etc.

Ø Vegetation :

          The comedic land of vegetation is rural as well as gardens, parks also stands for roses and lotuses. And the tragic land of vegetation is like a wild forest or sometimes a barren place.

Ø Mineral:

The comedic mineral realm stands for cities, temples or precious stones. The tragic mineral realm represents desert, ruined places.

Ø Water:

In the end the comedic realm of water is stands for rivers. And in tragic realm by seas, particularly by floods. Thus from all these, we may say that structure approach is based on archetypes. There are two ways to proceed:

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v Inductive and Deductive Method

The word inductive stands for looking patterns, or, making educated guesses. The word deductive means to look for consequences look for reason and try to categories. So, in this way, this section deals with deductive way. In Inductive method simple we can say, That is from particular truths or the particular truth of the general truth. The Deductive Method means analysis proceeds to establish the meaning of work from the general truth to particular truth.

v Archetypes in Characters

Ø The Hero:

The Hero is a character who largely displays honesty and fight against evil in order to restore harmony and justice to the world. The traditional protagonist is the leading person of the story: the one who gives energy to the action. We like it and prays for its success. For example Dr faustus, Robinson Crusoe  etc.

Ø The outcast

He or she has been out casted from society. The outcast figure can oftentimes also be considered as a Christ figure. For example in Indian myths there are characters like Pandvas, Ram, Sita, Laxman, Sugreev, Vibhishan etc.

Ø The Scapegoat

A character that takes the responsibility of everything bad that happens. No one try to understand whether he or she is actually guilty or not. For example Tom Jones, Ophelia in “Hamlet”, etc.

v Situation or symbols

·       The quest:

The characters search for something whether consciously or unconsciously. Their act, thoughts, belief are centered around the goal of finishing this search. For example Rama’s search for Sita, NalDamyanti’s search for each other, Savitri’s search for Satyakam’s life.

·       The Task:

This demotes to a probably superhuman act that must be skilful in order to fulfill the crucial goal. For example, Frodo’s task to keep the ring safe in J.R.R. Tolkein’s “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy.

·       Water:

Water is required to life and development; it normally emerges as a birth or rebirth symbol. It is also strong life power. Symbolizes creation, purification and salvation also fruitfulness and development.

·       Sun:

It stands for creative energy like fire, thinking, illumination, knowledge, spiritual wisdom, faithfulness, dawn etc. Rising sun stands for birth, creation, explanation. While setting sun stands for  death.

Ø Colors:

ü Black: gloom, disorder, mystery, the anonymous, before existence, death, the lifeless, evil.

ü Red: blood, sacrifice, cruel enthusiasm, chaos, dawn, birth, fire, sentiment, wounds, death, feeling.

ü Green: hope, development, greed, Earth, fruitfulness, feeling, vegetation, water, nature, kindness.

ü White: light, spotlessness, harmony, purity, goodness, Spirit, morality, creative power, spiritual thinking.

ü Orange: fire, pride, ambition, selfishness, Venus.

ü Yellow: enlightenment, wisdom.

ü Blue: clear sky, the day, the sea, height, intensity, heaven, religious feeling.

Ø Conclusion

Archetypal criticism related with the theory of myth he differentiate many thing in archetypal. Archetypal is study of myth and myth is very important tool in literature so ‘every work of literature has its place within this scheme or myth, every piece of literature adds to the myth.