When you are reading a

book, watching a movie, or

scrutinizing a piece of art
how do you analyze and
evaluate the material?
Consider the following Scenarios:
Miya had to write a reaction paper on
the article the students just read in
class.
Layla watched a movie and wrote a
long post on her Facebook account to
say she liked it while analyzing the film
using a feminist perspective.
Karina is an art critic and she attended
an art exhibit at the Ormoc City
Aurora watched the new commercial
of a popular brand of soap and wrote
a critique and analysis of the
commercial, which was published in a
reputable journal.
Esmeralda attended a dance
competition with her friend; after the
event, they discussed how and why
the winning team’s performance did
not deserve the award.
 What common theme do
you find in all the
scenarios?
 All of them were involved in
evaluating something they
read or watched using their
observations, reactions or
opinions.
If you think writing a
reaction paper, review, and
critique is hard, think again:
CRITICAL APPROACHES IN
WRITING A CRITIQUE
Objective:
•Use appropriate critical approaches*
in writing a critique such as
formalism, feminism, etc.
*The learners will understand the
principles and uses of a reaction
paper/ review/ critique
*The learners are expected to
produce an objective assessment of an
Subtask:
1. Define reaction paper, review paper
and critique paper;
2. Identify the various approaches in
writing a critique;
3. Criticize texts using different
approaches of criticism; and
4. Apply the appropriate critical
approaches in writing a critique.
What are Reaction Papers, Reviews, and Critiques?
A reaction paper, a review, and a critique are
specialized forms of writing in which a reviewer or
reader evaluates any of the following:
a scholarly work (e.g., academic books and
articles)
a work of art (e.g., performance art, play, dance,
sports, film, exhibits)
designs (e.g., industrial designs, furniture,
fashion)
graphic designs (e.g., poster, billboards,
commercials, digital media)
What is a reaction
paper?
 A reaction paper is a great way
to explore your thoughts and
opinions in response to a piece of
work you’ve read, heard or seen.
The written paper, also known as
a response paper, requires
personal opinions and conclusions
to illustrate how well you
understand the topic and use your
 A reaction paper is a written
assignment that provides a personal
opinion regarding a given piece of
work. The paper should include a
summary of the work, but the main
focus is your thoughts, feelings and
rationalizations about the work. This
requires analysis of the given work
on your part, followed by a focused,
well-thought-out reaction backed by
Parts of your reaction
paper:
Part 1: The introduction and
summary
Part 2: Your thoughts,
feelings and opinions
Part 3: Your conclusion
What is a review
paper?
Review Paper – is a critical and
comprehensive reviews that provide
new insights or interpretation of a
subject through thorough and
systematic evaluation of available
evidence.
A review gives the reader a concise
summary of the content. This
includes a relevant description of the
 The purpose of a review paper is
to create a readable synthesis of the
best resources available in the
literature for an important research
question or a current area of
research and to succinctly review
recent progress in a particular topic.
Overall, the paper summarizes the
current state of knowledge of the
What is critique?
 In everyday talk, the most
common meaning of
criticism is something like
“finding fault”, and to be
critical is to be censorious.
But a critic can see
excellences as well as faults.
CRITIQUE /kri’tēk/
 is a detailed analysis and
assessment of something,
especially a literary,
philosophical, or political theory.
 is a genre of academic writing
that briefly summarizes and
critically evaluates a work or
concept.
 Critique is a formal
analysis and evaluation
of a text, production, or
performance —either
one's own (a self-
critique) or someone
else's.
 Critiques are important
rhetorical pattern in
academic writing as they
present a balanced view of
things. Critiques are based
not on personal perspective
but should be grounded on
Critiques can be used to
carefully analyze a variety of
works such as:
Creative works – novels,
exhibits, film, images, poetry
Research – monographs,
journal articles, systematic
reviews, theories
 Like an essay, a critique uses a formal,
academic writing style and has a clear
structure, that is, an introduction, body
and conclusion. However, the body of a
critique includes a summary of the work
and a detailed evaluation. The purpose
of
an evaluation is to gauge the usefulness
or impact of a work in a particular field.
Why do we write
critiques?
Writing a critique on a work helps us to
develop:
 A knowledge of the work’s subject
area or related works.
 An understanding of the work’s
purpose, intended audience,
development of
argument, structure of evidence or
creative style.
How to write a
critique?
Before you start writing, it is
important to have a thorough
understanding of
the work that will be critiqued.
 Study the work under
discussion.
 Make notes on key parts of the
work.
 Consider how the work relates
to a broader issue or context.
 Read about the critical
approaches. You can use these in
expressing your views.
Critical Approaches in
Writing a Critique
1. Formalism: This approach regards
literature as “a unique form of human
knowledge that needs to be examined on its
own terms.” All the elements necessary for
understanding the work are contained within
the work itself. Of particular interest to the
formalist critic are the elements of form—
style, structure, tone, imagery, etc.— that
are found within the text. A primary goal for
formalist critics is to determine how such
elements work together with the text’s
content to shape its effects upon readers.
Questions to be Asked for Formalistic Approach
A. How is the work’s structure unified?
B. How do various elements of the work reinforce its
meaning?
C. What recurring patterns (repeated or related words,
images, etc.) can you find?
D. What is the effect of these patterns or motifs?
E. How does repetition reinforce the theme(s)?
F. How does the writer’s diction reveal or reflect the
work’s meaning?
G. What is the effect of the plot, and what parts
specifically produce that effect?
H. What figures of speech are used? (metaphors, similes,
I. Note the writer’s use of paradox, irony, symbol,
plot, characterization, and style of narration.
J. What effects are produced? Do any of these
relate to one another or to the theme?
K. Is there a relationship between the beginning
and the end of the story?
L. What tone and mood are created at various
parts of the work?
M. How does the author create tone and mood?
What relationship is there between tone and mood
and the effect of the story?
N. How do the various elements interact to create
Formalist Criticism of “Dead Stars”, a
classic Filipino short story by Paz
Marquez Benitez
The title of the work already gives
an idea as to what it means. In
physics, it is stated that the light and
energy of the stars have to travel
light years to reach us. Since they
are millions of miles away and light
bright light we see at night actually
comes from a dead star.
In the story, this metaphor is used
to refer to Alfredo’s love for Julia, a
woman he meets and falls for one
fateful summer. Not only is the title
an indicator of what is to come, even
the fate of the characters in the
story can already be seen through
 indicated that Alfredo is a lawyer, a
person who counsels. Still, his name
denotes a certain irony; despite his
supposed wisdom, Alfredo’s actions,
especially his covert courtship with
Julia while being engaged to
another, are anything but sensible.
Julia’s name, on the other hand,
refers to someone who is youthful,
which is how Alfredo sees her for
2. Feminism (Feminist Criticism)
– focuses on how literature presents
women as subjects of socio-
political, psychological, and
economic oppression. It also reveals
how aspects of our culture are
patriarchal, i.e., how our culture
views men as superior and women
as inferior.
 It examines how sexual identity
influences the creation and reception
of literary works. Feminist critics
believe that culture has been so
completely dominated by men that
literature is full of unexamined
"male-produced" assumptions. They
see their criticism correcting this
imbalance by analyzing and
combating patriarchal attitudes.
Aspects looked into when using feminism are as
follows:
• How culture determines gender
• How gender equality (or the lack of it) is presented
in the text
• How gender issues are presented in literary works
and other aspects of human production and daily
life
• How women are socially, politically,
psychologically, and economically oppressed by
patriarchy
• How Patriarchal ideology is an overpowering
Feminist Criticism of “Dead Stars”
The story is a study of power imbalance
brought about by gender. In the beginning,
“Dead Stars” already clearly illustrates the
gender roles ingrained in Filipino society:
Don Julian and the judge are portrayed as
the male leaders of the household, taking
up lofty professions such as business and
law while the women are portrayed
accomplishing domestic tasks such as
tending to children and preparing food. The
display of imbalance in power, however,
lies on the central theme of Alfredo’s love
for Julia as simply a dead star. Eight years
after their forbidden love and after getting
married to another woman, Alfredo still
holds Julia as an object of affection, thus
creating a distance between him and his
wife, Esperanza. In their relationship as a
wedded couple, the power lies in Alfredo,
not only because patriarchal society
designates him as the head of the
household,
but also because he remains unreachable
to his wife by harboring feelings for another
woman. Moreover, the realization that his
love for Julia is simply a dead star is
brought about by his treatment of Julia as
simply an illusion and an object of affection,
and not as a woman. This gender
imbalance leads to a tragic epiphany for
the characters, but also a reflection of how
men are viewed to dominate not only in the
household, but also in their relationships
3. Reader Response Criticism –
is concerned with the reviewer’s
reaction as an audience of a work.
This approach claims that the
reader’s role cannot be separated
from the understanding of the
work; a text does not have
meaning until the reader reads it
and interprets it. Readers are
Aspects looked into when using
this criticism are as follows:
•Interaction between the reader
and the text in creating meaning
•The impact of reader’s delivery of
sound and visuals on enhancing
and changing meaning
Reader Response Criticism of “Dead Stars”
Despite being limited in length, “Dead
Stars” manages to evoke various feelings
which ultimately build up the ending. While
Alfredo is the center of the story, as a woman
reader, it is hard not to feel greatly for
Esperanza. Esperanza can only be seen
through the perspective of Alfredo. This does
a disservice to her, as we can only know
through Alfredo’s descriptions and his
unfaithfulness that Esperanza gains
sympathy from the reader.
During all the moments when Alfredo and
Julia are together, the thought of
Esperanza looms in the background –
does she know? How will she react? What
will happen now? The sympathy only
increases when they get married, for it is
clear that Alfredo is detached from her
and is still harboring feelings for Julia.
While the end certainly evokes a feeling of
loss at Alfredo’s epiphany, it is the feeling
of betrayal for Esperanza that stays.
4. Marxist Criticism – is
concerned with differences between
economic classes and implications
of a capitalist system, such as the
continuing conflicts between the
working class and the elite. Hence,
it attempts to reveal that the
ultimate source f people’s
experience is the socioeconomic
Aspects looked into when using
this criticism are as follows:
•Social class as represented in the
work
•Social class of the writer/creator
•Social class of the characters
•Conflicts and interactions
between economic classes
Marxist Criticism of “Dead Stars”
The imbalance societal power play is
evident in the short story in the form of
the treatment of the characters based on
their class. This is most easily evident in
the conversation between Alfredo and his
fiancée, Esperanza, about Calixta, their
note-carrier who grew up in the latter’s
family. The scene depicts a parallelism in
the circumstance of Alfredo and his new
love, Julia, and Calixta and her live-in
partner. However, while no one blatantly
frowns upon the budding relationship between
Alfredo and Julia, except for some whispered
rumors that reach Esperanza, Calixta is
dubbed “ungrateful” to her master for doing
such an act. Alfredo does not have to answer
to anyone for his unfaithfulness, but Calixta is
responsible not only for what her family might
think, but also for the members of her
master’s family. Despite the same
circumstances, the two people are regarded
differently based on their positions in life.
Assessment:
Read a book of your choice. Then,
write a critique of the book using the
appropriate critical approach in
writing a critique.
STRUCTURE and LANGUAGE OF
CRITIQUE
Introduction(5%) - ideas you want
to tackle.
Summary (10%) - concept
Review/Critique (75%) – cite
strengths and weaknesses
Conclusion (10%) -
Quiz: True or False (¼ sheet of
paper)

Write T if the statement is true and F if

false.
1. A review or critique involves
higher order thinking skills.

2. A review and critique generally

use the same organization of
ideas.

3. A critique must always be

4. Feminist criticism relates to
conflicts between classes.

5. Marxist criticism involves the

analysis of the intrinsic features of
a text.

6. More than half of a critique

7. The name of the author and
the title of the reviewed article
are placed at the end of the
review or critique.

8. The reviewer’s overall

impression of the material being
reviewed should be placed in the
9. When writing a critique, only
one perspective should be
used.

10. Writing a review or critique

is exclusive to scholars.