<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto"><div>I agree- new criticism (and historical criticism for valid context most of the time) are the most sound and applicable techniques.<br><br>I feel like the new critical approach would get the most out of Wolfe- meaning is reconstruction rather than deconstruction. For example, Reading e e cummings "anyone lived in a pretty how town" through that lens makes perfect sense, though words are used outside their normal parts of speech- meaning is reinforced rather than lost. Much of post modern thought is intentionally losing one self in a haze, getting trapped in the Cartesian circle with no egress in the absence of absolute parameters of signification. <br>Sent from my iPhone</div><div><br>On Apr 5, 2013, at 8:07 AM, DAVID STOCKHOFF <<a href="mailto:dstockhoff@verizon.net">dstockhoff@verizon.net</a>> wrote:<br><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; ">They have their own abstract methods, and while they try to make those methods concrete, they also make them inflexible and blind. </span></div><blockquote type="cite"><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:arial, helvetica, sans-serif;font-size:10pt"><div style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 13.3333px; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;"><span><br></span></div><div style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 13.3333px; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; background-color: transparent; font-style: normal;"><span>I always liked New Criticism because I could get my mind around a "perfect" but
"perfectly flawed" structure, where function transcends form. But the French guys always lost me at some point.<br></span></div><div><br><blockquote style="border-left: 2px solid rgb(16, 16, 255); margin-left: 5px; margin-top: 5px; padding-left: 5px;"> <div style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> <div style="font-family: times new roman, new york, times, serif; font-size: 12pt;"> <div dir="ltr"> <font face="Arial" size="2"> <hr size="1"> <br></font></div></div></div></blockquote></div></div></blockquote></body></html>