Principles of literary criticism

I. A. Richards

Principles of Literary Criticism by I. A. Richards is a groundbreaking study that transformed twentieth?century literary theory by linking the close reading of texts to psychology, semantics, and the reader's emotional response. First published in 1924 and still a touchstone for students and scholars, this influential work explains how meaning is generated, how ambiguity enriches poetry, and why literature matters as a powerful instrument for ordering human experience. Richards introduces key concepts—such as "synesthetic rhythm," "stock response," and the "communication triangle"—that continue to shape modern criticism, making this volume essential for anyone who wants to understand how language, thought, and feeling interact on the page.

Table of contents

• PRINCIPLES OF LITERARY CRITICISM
• CHAPTER I The Chaos of Critical Theories
• CHAPTER II The Phantom Æsthetic State
• CHAPTER III The Language of Criticism
• CHAPTER IV Communication and the Artist
• CHAPTER V The Critics’ Concern with Value
• CHAPTER VI Value as an Ultimate Idea
• CHAPTER VII A Psychological Theory of Value
• CHAPTER IX Actual and Possible Misapprehensions
• CHAPTER X Poetry for Poetry’s Sake
• CHAPTER XI A Sketch for a Psychology
• CHAPTER XIII Emotion and the Cœnesthesia
• CHAPTER XVI The Analysis of a Poem
• CHAPTER XVIII On Looking at a Picture
• CHAPTER XIX Sculpture and the Construction of Form
• CHAPTER XX The Impasse of Musical Theory
• CHAPTER XXI A Theory of Communication
• CHAPTER XXII The Availability of the Poet’s Experience
• CHAPTER XXIII Tolstoy’s Infection Theory
• CHAPTER XXIV The Normality of the Artist
• CHAPTER XXV Badness in Poetry
• CHAPTER XXVI Judgment and Divergent Readings
• CHAPTER XXVII Levels of Response and the Width of Appeal
• CHAPTER XXVIII The Allusiveness of Modern Poetry
• CHAPTER XXIX Permanence as a Criterion
• CHAPTER XXX The Definition of a Poem
• CHAPTER XXXI Art, Play, and Civilisation
• CHAPTER XXXIII Truth and Revelation Theories
• CHAPTER XXXIV The Two Uses of Language
• CHAPTER XXXV Poetry and Beliefs
• APPENDIX A. On Value