Introduction (Sanskrit literary criticism)

Literary theory and literary criticism are an integral part of literary studies. Literary criticism is the concentrated judgement, study and interpretation of imaginative literature. It approaches a particular literary text in both thematic and structural way. It helps to bring forth the literary tradition, recent literary developments etc. in an exciting way. The practical approach of literary criticism helps to unravel the literary attitude of the audience concerning the past and contemporary literary tradition. Skilled critics provide their own views, ideas and conclusions about a literary composition. The ultimate aim of literary criticism should not be mere evaluation of literature. It should contribute something for the progress of society.

It is obvious that the idea of beauty is the source of all aesthetic theory. The beginning of western aesthetics was in ancient Greece with Plato and Aristotle. Aristotle opines that poet is a creator and not a mere imitator as supposed by Plato. Aristotle’s poetics starts with the definition of imitation. According to him, imitation is not just mimicry but it is reproduction through imagination. Longinus’s ‘On the sublime’ is one of the significant treatises of western literary criticism. In this text, he stresses the importance of the relation between nature and art. He opines that art is perfect when it seems to be nature, and nature hits the marks when she contains art hidden in her. Aim of both the western and eastern aestheticians is to examine the nature of literature, and the secret of its appeal.

Sanskrit literary criticism is generally referred to as alaṅkāraśāstra. It signifies the harmonious blend of aesthetics, poetics and rhetorics. A literary critic has the power of accurate judgement connected with an excellent literary taste. A critic should be aware of the exact aim of an artist too. Freud opines that an artist is free to choose and modify his images and form. The function of poetry is to provide pleasure along with moral instruction. The oblique beauty helps to increase the charm of imaginative world of a poet and produce inexplicable delight to sahṛdayas.