new criticism

American  

noun

1. (often initial capital letters) an approach to the critical study of literature that concentrates on textual explication and rejects historical and biographical study as irrelevant to an understanding of the total formal organization of a work.

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new criticism British  

noun

1. an approach to literary criticism through close analysis of the text

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• new critical
  adjective
• new critic
  noun
• New Critic
  noun

Etymology

Origin of new criticism

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

Michael Burry, the hedge-fund manager of “The Big Short” fame who is betting against two of the stock market’s favorite AI plays, is back with a new criticism of valuations in the sector.

From MarketWatch • Nov. 11, 2025

And that silence has been received as aloof or elitist, drawing new criticism, fomenting new anger.

From Slate • Feb. 7, 2025

But other aspects of his past, including his past relationships with women, became fodder for new criticism.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 23, 2024

Each day, he posts new criticism of government figures on Facebook.

From BBC • Feb. 13, 2024

The struggle between orthodoxy and the new criticism had got out of the control of the professional theologians and had permeated the laity.

From The New Nation by Dodd, William E.