Grades 12

ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND

PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES
QUARTER 1 – WEEKS 7-8
LESSON 7 CRITICAL APPROACHES IN WRITING A TECHNIQUE
LESSON 8 OBJECTIVE/BALANCED REVIEW OR CRITIQUE OF A WORK OF ART,
AN EVENT OR A PROGRAM
TIME MOST ESSENTIAL LEARNING CS_EN11/12A-
ALLOTMENT COMPETENCIES EAPP-Id-f-18 Note: MODE OF DELIVERY
LEARNING TASKS
2 Hours Uses appropriate critical writing a
critique such as formalism,
• Answer Pretest (yellow paper) Modular Distance
feminism, etc. Learning
• Read the lecture notes
CS_EN11/12A-EAPP-Id-f-18 • Do Lesson 7 – Activity 1 (long bond
paper) Personal submission by
2 Hours Writes an objective/balanced review or
• Answer Posttest (yellow paper) the parent/guardian to
critique of a work of art, an event or a
• Read the lecture notes the teacher to the class
program.
• Do Lesson 7 – Performance Task 1 adviser every Friday.
(long bond paper)
For the LEARNING TASKS - Write your answers/outputs on yellow paper and long bond paper.
At the upper left corner of yellow paper and bond paper, kindly follow this format:
Name: (Class List Number, Last Name, First Name, MI)
Ex.: 5 – Dela Cruz, Juan A.
*You can find your class list number in your plastic envelope or you may ask your adviser for the copy of the class
list of your section.
Grade Level and Section: _____________
Subject: 12 – English for Academic and Professional Purposes
Quarter 1 - Week: _______
Lesson: (lesson number and name of the topic)

LESSON 7 – PRETEST
Read and answer each item carefully.

1. The New Critics were:

A. Feminist critics B. Formalist critics C. Marxist critics D. Psychological Critics

2. What approach to literary criticism requires the critic to know about the author's life and times?
A. Feminist B. Formalist C. Historical D. Mimetic

3. Formalist critics believe that the value of a work cannot be determined by the author's intention.
What term do they use when speaking of this belief?
A. The affective fallacy C. The objective correlative
B. The intentional fallacy D. The pathetic fallacy

4. Which poet popularized the term objective correlative, which is often used in formalist criticism? A. C.S.
Lewis B. Matthew Arnold C. T.S. Eliot D. Virginia Woolf

5. In a Freudian approach to literature, concave images are usually seen as:

A. Male symbols B. Oedipus symbols C. Phallic symbols D. Female symbols

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LECTURE NOTES
LESSON 7 CRITICAL APPROACHES IN WRITING A TECHNIQUE

What is critique?
A critique is a careful analysis of an argument to determine what is said, how well the points are
made, what assumptions underlie the argument, what issues are overlooked, and what implications are
drawn from such observations. It is a systematic, yet personal response and evaluation of what you read.

It is a genre of academic writing that briefly summarizes and critically evaluates a work or concept.

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
• Media – news reports, feature articles

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.
• A recognition of the strengths and weaknesses of the work.

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.
• Develop an understanding of the main argument or purpose being expressed in the work. 
Consider how the work relates to a broader issue or context.

Read about the critical approaches. You can highlight some important ideas. You can use these in
expressing your views.

The following are the different approaches in writing a critique:

1. Formalist: 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?

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 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, etc.)
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 a unified whole?

2. Gender Criticism: This approach “examines how sexual identity influences the creation and reception
of literary works.” Originally an offshoot of feminist movements, gender criticism today includes a
number of approaches, including the so-called “masculinist” approach recently advocated by poet
Robert Bly. The bulk of gender criticism, however, is feminist and takes as a central precept that the
patriarchal attitudes that have dominated western thought have resulted, consciously or unconsciously,
in literature “full of unexamined ‘male-produced’ assumptions.”

3. Feminist criticism attempts to correct this imbalance by analyzing and combatting such attitudes—by
questioning, for example, why none of the characters in Shakespeare’s play Othello ever challenge the
right of a husband to murder a wife accused of adultery. Other goals of feminist critics include “analyzing
how sexual identity influences the reader of a text” and “examining how the images of men and women
in imaginative literature reflect or reject the social forces that have historically kept the sexes from
achieving total equality.”

Feminist Criticism examines images of women and concepts of the feminine in myth and
literature; uses the psychological, archetypal, and sociological approaches; often focuses on female
characters who have been neglected in previous criticism. Feminist critics attempt to correct or
supplement what they regard as a predominantly male-dominated critical perspective.

Questions to be asked for Feministic Approach

A. How are women’s lives portrayed in the work?
B. Is the form and content of the work influenced by the writer’s gender?
C. How do male and female characters relate to one another? Are these relationships sources of
conflict? Are these conflicts resolved?
D. Does the work challenge or affirm traditional views of women?
E. How do the images of women in the story reflect patriarchal social forces that have impeded
women’s efforts to achieve full equality with men?
F. What marital expectations are imposed on the characters? What effect do these expectations
have?
G. What behavioral expectations are imposed on the characters? What effect do these
expectations have?
H. If a female character were male, how would the story be different (and vice versa)?
I. How does the marital status of a character affect her decisions or happiness?

4. Historical: This approach “seeks to understand a literary work by investigating the social, cultural, and
intellectual context that produced it—a context that necessarily includes the artist’s biography and
milieu.” A key goal for historical critics is to understand the effect of a literary work upon its original
readers.

Questions to be Asked for Formalistic Approach

A. How does it reflect the time in which it was written?

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 B. How accurately does the story depict the time in which it is set?
C. What literary or historical influences helped to shape the form and content of the work?
D. How does the story reflect the attitudes and beliefs of the time in which it was written or set?
(Consider beliefs and attitudes related to race, religion, politics, gender, society, philosophy,
etc.)
E. What other literary works may have influenced the writer?
F. What historical events or movements might have influenced this writer?
G. How would characters and events in this story have been viewed by the writer’s
contemporaries?
H. Does the story reveal or contradict the prevailing values of the time in which it was written?
Does it provide an opposing view of the period’s prevailing values?
I. How important is it the historical context (the work’s and the reader’s) to interpreting the work?

5. Reader-Response Criticism: This approach takes as a fundamental tenet that “literature” exists not as
an artifact upon a printed page but as a transaction between the physical text and the mind of a reader.
It attempts “to describe what happens in the reader’s mind while interpreting a text” and reflects that
reading, like writing, is a creative process.

6. Structuralism focused on how human behavior is determined by social, cultural and psychological
structures. It tended to offer a single unified approach to human life that would embrace all disciplines.
The essence of structuralism is the belief that “things cannot be understood in isolation, they have to be
seen in the context of larger structures which contain them. For example, the structuralist analysis of
Donne’s poem, Good Morrow, demands more focus on the relevant genre, the concept of courtly love,
rather than on the close reading of the formal elements of the text.

7. Sociological focuses on man’s relationship to others in society, politics, religion, and business.

Questions to be asked for Sociological Approach

A. What is the relationship between the characters and their society?
B. Does the story address societal issues, such as race, gender, and class?
C. How do social forces shape the power relationships between groups or classes of people in the
story? Who has the power, and who doesn’t? Why?
D. How does the story reflect the Great American Dream?
E. How does the story reflect urban, rural, or suburban values?
F. What does the work say about economic or social power? Who has it and who doesn’t? Any
Marxist leanings evident?
G. Does the story address issues of economic exploitation? What role does money play?
H. How do economic conditions determine the direction of the characters’ lives?
I. Does the work challenge or affirm the social order it depicts?
J. Can the protagonist’s struggle be seen as symbolic of a larger class struggle?
K. How does the microcosm (small world) of the story reflect the macrocosm (large world) of the
society in which it was composed?
L. Do any of the characters correspond to types of government, such as a dictatorship,
democracy, communism, socialism, fascism, etc.? What attitudes toward these political
structures/systems are expressed in the work?

LESSON 7 – ACTIVITY 1
Summarize what you have read by completing the table. Write your answers on a long bond paper.
APPROACHES WHAT IT IS (DEFINITION) HOW IT IS DONE
IN LITERARY (TECHNIQUE IN WRITING)
CRITICISM
Example: This approach regards literature as “a A primary goal for formalist critics is to determine how
1. Formalism unique form of human knowledge that elements of form (style, structure, tone, imagery, etc.)
needs to be examined on its own work together with the text’s content to shape its

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 terms.” effects upon readers.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

LESSON 7 – POST TEST

Read and answer each item carefully.

1. He was an influential force in archetypal criticism.

A. Freud B. Jung C. Richards D. Tate

2. Seven is an archetype associated with:

A. Astrology B. Birth C. Death D. Perfection

3. This feminist critic proposed that all female characters in literature are in at least one of the
following stages of development: the feminine, feminist, or female stage.
A. Elaine Showalter C. Mary Wolstencraft
B. Ellen Mores D. Virginia Woolf

4. A critic argues that in John Milton's "Samson Agonistes," the shearing of Samson's locks is
symbolic of his castration at the hands of Delilah. What kind of critical approach is this critic
using?
A. Formalist approach C. Mimetic approach
B. Historical approach D. Psychological approach

5. One archetype in literature is the scapegoat. Which of these literary characters serves that
purpose?
A. Billy Budd B. Captain Ahab C. Hamlet D. Ophelia

LECTURE NOTES
LESSON 8 OBJECTIVE/BALANCED REVIEW OR CRITIQUE OF A WORK OF ART,
AN EVENT OR A PROGRAM

A. What is balanced/objective review or criticism?

It is a system of interpreting, judging, and assessing a person, thing, or any work of art not influenced by
feelings or opinions in considering and presenting facts.
It is a systematic way of considering the truthfulness of a piece of work.

B. To have balanced/objective review of any piece of work, the following are considered:
1. Description. Pure description of the object, piece of work, art, event, etc. It answers the
questions:
a. artwork - "What do you see?" (description constitutes form of art, medium, size and
scale, elements or general shapes, color, texture of surface, and context of object).

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 b. piece of writing - "What do you see?" (form, structure, choice of words, length, genre,
etc)

2. Analysis. Determining what the features suggest and deciding why the artist or writers used
such features to convey specific ideas. It answers the questions:
a. artwork - "How did the artist do it?"
b. piece of writing-"How did the writer write it?"

The analysis constitutes the following: determination of subject matter, analysis of the
principles of design or composition, use of symbol and other elements, portrayal of movement and
how it is achieved, effect of particular medium, relationships of each part of the composition to the
whole and to each other part, and reaction to object.

3. Interpretation. Establishing the broader context for this type of art. It answers the questions:
a. artwork - "Why did the artist create it and what does it mean?
b. piece of writing - "Why did the write create it and what does it mean?

Remember: you shouldn’t make your interpretation too arbitrary! Provide evidence
and point out what exactly influenced your understanding of the artwork.

Here are the elements that you can include in your interpretation:
 How does this art object make you feel?
 What do you think of when you’re looking at the artwork?  What did the artist want
to tell you as a viewer?
 What do you think about the title of the work? Does it influence your interpretation?
 If you can’t understand a painting or a sculpture, don’t hurry to give a negative response
to it. Think of other critics who have provided a positive evaluation of the examined
artwork. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have your opinion! All you need is to find a good
way to express it.

E.g., in this painting, the artist wanted to show us the king’s personality and achievements.

The interpretation constitutes: (a) Main idea (overall meaning of the work), (b)
Interpretive Statement (Can I express what I think the artwork is about in one sentence), and
(c) Evidence (What evidence inside or outside the artwork supports my interpretation?).

4. Judgment. Judging a piece of work means giving it rank in relation to other works and of course
considering a very important aspect of the visual arts; its originality. It answers the questions
“Is it a good artwork?” Is it a good composition?

Here are some points that can help you write your judgment:
• How do you think: is the work successful or not?
• Does this art object seem original or not?
• What do you feel when looking at this piece of artwork?
• Go back to your first impression. Has anything changed? What did you learn?
• If nothing changed, explain your first reaction to the work.
• What have you learned from this work that you might apply to your own artwork or your
thinking?

In judging the piece of work, there must be:

a. Criteria (What criteria do I think are most appropriate for judging the artwork or writing?),

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 b. Evidence (What evidence inside or outside the artwork or piece of writing relate to each
criterion?)’ and
c. Judgment (Based on the criteria and evidence, what is my judgment about the quality of
the artwork or piece of writing?).
E.g., the artwork successfully conveys the atmosphere of a battle through its
composition and color scheme. Learning about its backstory helped me to appreciate
the painting even more.

C. How to Critique Different Art Forms

As you can imagine, all kinds of masterpieces are subject to art criticism. For example, you can
choose to write about paintings, drawings, sculptures, or even buildings. And, naturally, all these forms of
art have their specific features!

These tips will provide you with an art critique template for anything, be it an oil painting or a
cathedral.

1. Painting Critique. Paint is a medium that emphasizes light, colors, and space.
Example:
• What school of painting does it belong to? Is it typical or unusual for this particular school?
E.g., Monet’s Water Lilies is a typical Impressionist painting.
• Describe the way the artist applies paint. Are there broad paint strokes, small points of color,
or just a smooth surface? What effect does it help to achieve?
E.g., Van Gogh’s broad brush strokes help to create a sense of motion.
• Describe how the light is depicted. Where does the light come from? Is there a strong value
contrast? In what way does the shadow function? What, in your opinion, does it evoke?
E.g., strong contrast makes the central figures stand out.
• Speak about the handling of space in the picture. Does it look flat or three-dimensional?
What kind of perspective is used? (e.g., one-point perspective, or bird’s eye view?)
E.g., in this painting, Picasso uses multi-dimensional geometrical shapes.

2. Sculpture Critique. Similarly, many specific factors influence the overall impression of a sculpture.
Here are some things to pay attention to:
• Say if the material gives a particular texture to the statue. Is the surface smooth, or is it
uneven?
E.g., Rodin’s sculpture has an unusual earthy texture.
• The surrounding space is just as important as the sculpture itself. Describe the place (in the
museum, in a park, in front of a building) where it is situated. What does it add to the
sculpture?
E.g., the statue appears to walk along the road.
• Speak about the color of the sculpture. Is it painted? Does it rely on natural lights and
shadows?

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 E.g., the statue is white. A museum floodlight lights it from above, creating expressive
shadows.
• Describe the composition of the sculpture. What does it look like when you approach it? Did
the sculptor provide any instructions on how to position it?
E.g., the statue is enormous and can be viewed from all sides.

3. Architecture Critique. You can write art critiques on architecture, too!

Just bear in mind the following points:
• What architectural style does it belong to?
E.g., the cathedral is a typical Gothic building.
• Was it built with a purpose? Did a specific person request it?
E.g., the Palace of Versailles was requested by Louis IV as symbol of his monarchy.
• Did one architect complete the building, or were there any alterations? Why were they
made?
E.g., the spire was added to the cathedral much later. It became the integral part of its
image.
• What do the exterior and the interior look like? What effect do they produce? Is there a
contrast between them?
E.g., the building has a high ceiling painted like the sky. It also makes the organ music
sound louder.
• Are there statues or paintings on the walls? Discuss them as well!
E.g., statues on the cathedral’s facade illustrate scenes from the Bible.

4. Photography Critique. Analyzing a photograph is a lot like critiquing a painting.

Still, there are some unique features to consider:
• How does the photographer use focus? Is any part of the image blurry? What effect does it
produce?
E.g., the background is out-of-focus, which has a dreamy effect.
• Is the picture monochrome? If yes, describe its tone, contrast, and shadows. If no, describe
the use of color.
E.g., the picture is in black and white, with stark contrasts.
• If it’s a photo of a face, pay extra attention to the emotion it expresses. If it’s dynamic,
discuss the sense of motion.
E.g., the photograph conveys a sense of cheerfulness through the girl’s expression
and the use of light.

Example of review of artwork (painting) 1:

The Weeping Woman by Pablo Picasso in France, 1937

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 [Link]

[Link]

Describe:
The Weeping Woman is a painting finished by Pablo Picasso in France, 1937. This type of artwork
can be considered to be expressionism. There isn’t an actual background scene in the painting. The
background is completed with different lines and colors. The woman is the focus point of this painting. She
is wearing an accessory on top of her head which demonstrates her elegance. My first impression of the
artwork is that the face of the woman is not proportionate and is only painted with lines, no curves. The
main colors that are used in this painting are green, yellow, blue, purple, red and black. The painting is set
mainly of lined and little curves. The mood and visual effect that this painting portrays can be considered to
be suffering, and sadness.

Analyze:
The colors that the author uses can be considered to be quite different as each color conveys a
separate impression. The light purple that begins at the bottom top of the woman’s eyes can convey
sadness. The other half of the face is mainly covered in green and yellow; these can be said to interpret
other solid emotions that the painter must have towards this woman as she was a vital character in
Picasso’s life. The painting is created with mainly lines which can mean that the woman had strong
physical features or that her different emotions were felt passionately as lines are usually seen as strong
technical elements. The only curves that are being used are for her hair and eyes. The eyes look quite
down or depressive. This is because the woman is crying, which goes back to the main mood which is
suffering.

Judge:
Finally, the artist’s value may be to evoke pain, as mentioned previously. This is due to the colors that
Picasso used and the shapes that he draws; not only these technical elements but also the images that the
painter uses within the actual face of the woman. The painting relates to the entire female community. This
community can understand the painting and know what Picasso was trying to portray. Every woman is able
understand and comprehend the message behind this painting as we all feel the same way at one point in
our lives. I believe that this is a strong value in the painting. The weak value lies in the different colors that
the painter chooses. I found it confusing to interpret other areas of the face as the colors that were used
didn’t seem to match other locations of the face.

LESSON 8 – PERFORMANCE TASK 1

One of the Filipino cultures that we continuously preserved and practiced is “Bayanihan”. It is an
expression of spirit of communal unity or effort to achieve a particular objective.
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Directions: Below is the painting of “Bayanihan”; take a look at this, study, analyze, and write a
balanced/objective review of the painting considering the elements discussed. Write your review in
paragraph form in a long bond paper.

[Link]

RUBRIC IN ART REVIEW

Excellent 5 Good 4-3 Fair 2 Poor 1
points points points point
Introduction Introduction explains Introduction explains Introduction mentions Introduction does not
author’s selection of the author’s selection of the whre the author came present or does not
artwork in a thoughtful artwork and that caused across the artwork but explain how the author
manner. him to consider it further. does not put much effort selected the artwork.
into explaining what
attracted him to pursue it.
Description Author thoughtfully Author answers the Author somewhat Author does not
answers the question question What do I see? answers the question answer the question
What do I see? Discusses most of the What do I see? What do I see? Makes
Discusses the size, ff: size, medium, Discusses some of the ff: a weak attempt to
medium, process used process used and size, medium, process describe the artwork
and subject. Author subject. Author used and subject. A few describing very few
shows strong discusses most of the elements used in the elements in the work.
understanding of the elements: line, shape, work are discussed.
elements: line, shape, space, color, texture,
space, color, texture, and value.
and value.
Analysis Author answers the Author answers the Author somewhat answers Author does not answer
question: How is the question: How is the the question: the question:
work organized? work organized? How is the work How is the work
Thoroughly discusses Discusses the major organized? Discusses a organized? Makes a
the major principles of principles of art in the few of the principles of weak effort to mention
art in the work. work. art in the work. the major principles of
art in the work.
Interpretation Author thoroughly and Author answers: What Author somewhat Author does not
thoughtfully answers: is the artist trying to answers: What is the answer: What is the
What is the artist trying communicate? The artist trying to artist trying to
to communicate? The interpretation is based on communicate? The communicate? The
interpretation is based some visual facts and interpretation is based on interpretation is not
on visual facts and clues clues collected. a few visual facts and supported by visual
collected. clues collected. facts and clues
collected.
Conclusion Author concludes with an Author concludes with Author concludes with a Author concludes with
engaging and an interesting point somewhat interesting a shallow reaction to
interesting point about about his reaction to the point about his reaction to the art work.
his reaction to the art art work. the art work.
work.

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 Mechanics No errors in punctuation, A few minor errors in A few minor errors in Distracting and major
spelling, grammar or punctuation, spelling, punctuation, spelling, errors in spelling,
capitalization. Uses grammar or grammar or capitalization grammar or
APA style, capitalization but they that while distracting, the capitalization. Header
doublespacing and 12 do not distract the overall meaning can still be and footer are not
point meaning of the discerned. Some APA correct. There are
font. Header and title essay. Uses APA style, style, double-spacing mistakes in spacing
format are correct. double-spacing and 12 and 12 point font. and font. Paper is less
Paper is at least 3-4 point font. Header and Header and title format than 3 pages.
pages. title format are correct. may not be correct.
Paper is at least 3-4 Paper is not 3 pages.
pages.

REFERENCES:
• Laurel, M., Lucero, A., Bumatay-Cruz, R.. English for Academic and Professional Purposes Teacher’s Guide. Pasig City: DepEd-BLR.
2016
• Laurel, M., Lucero, A., Bumatay-Cruz, R.. English for Academic and Professional Purposes Reader. Pasig City: DepEd-BLR. 2016
Online Sources
• [Link]
• [Link]
• [Link]
• [Link]
• [Link]
• [Link]
• [Link]
• [Link]
• [Link]
• [Link]
• [Link]  [Link]
writing

.A 5 .D 4 .A 3 .C 2 .B 1 .D 5 .C 4 .B 3 .C 2 .A 1
Post test Lesson
– 7 Pretest Lesson
– 7
ANSWER KEY

Submitted by:

AUFRIC ALMA N. NAVARRO

-GONONG JOE O. PAZ JEN CHRISTINE G. BAHIA
Teacher III Teacher III Teacher I

Validated by:

RACHEL ANNE R. HUNAS JINNY VI P. BUMANLAG, Ed D

Master Teacher I Head Teacher VI

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