How should we think about interpreting literature?

Encyclopedia of Opinion

Question: How should we think about interpreting literature?
Position‹3 of 4›: Psychoanalytic Criticism

This position presents psychoanalytic criticism as a way to interpret literature. Inspired by psychoanalysts such as Sigmund Freud, it investigates how the unconscious mind shapes a text—reading characters, symbols, and the author's hidden drives to uncover meaning beneath the surface.

Supporting arguments · 1

Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic interpretation
Freud introduced an approach to psychology that he called “psychoanalysis” as a way of analyzing and treating neuroses. He soon realized that psychoanalysis can be used to analyze many important aspects of human civilization, like religion, mythology, art, and literature.