Graphic Criticism analyzes the semantic families of one hundred Anglophone novels written between 1719 and 1997. The analysis demonstrates that these novels embed a code for semantic distribution, and that code is the way that cultural values are transmitted. The longitudinal aspect of the analysis illuminates what T.S. Eliot called "tradition." Graphic Criticism also zooms in on the particulars of a variety of the corpus texts to reveal Eliot's "individual talent." Thus while the corpus indicates that the proportion of any semantic feature is consistent across time, each writer creatively works and plays with that feature in his or her own style.
"Graphic Criticism presents an innovative methodology for visualizing and analyzing semantic networks in novels, offering a data-driven approach to literary analysis. Using a digital concordancer and a bottom-up lexicographical approach to categorization, Gliserman graphically represents semantic patterns across one hundred Anglophone novels over three centuries. Horizontal bar charts compare patterns of word usage suggesting a shared unconscious in the brain that allows the conscious mind to write stories. Mind maps use branching tree graphics for rewarding micro-analyses of word families in individual novels-KILL (Robinson Crusoe), SKIN (Fanny Hill and African American novels), BROKE (The Great Gatsby), WINDOW (Passing), VOICE (Invisible Man), and HEART (Beloved). Drawing on this sophisticated text mining, Gliserman uses the results for rich analyses of characters' thoughts, actions and emotions. Graphic Criticism will provide welcome inspiration for a new generation of scholars. A necessary addition to collections in Anglophone literature and digital humanities." -Daniel Rubey, Professor Emeritus and former Dean of Library & Information Services, Hofstra University
"Graphic Criticism presents an innovative methodology for visualizing and analyzing semantic networks in novels, offering a data-driven approach to literary analysis. Using a digital concordancer and a bottom-up lexicographical approach to categorization, Gliserman graphically represents semantic patterns across one hundred Anglophone novels over three centuries. Horizontal bar charts compare patterns of word usage suggesting a shared unconscious in the brain that allows the conscious mind to write stories. Mind maps use branching tree graphics for rewarding micro-analyses of word families in individual novels-KILL (Robinson Crusoe), SKIN (Fanny Hill and African American novels), BROKE (The Great Gatsby), WINDOW (Passing), VOICE (Invisible Man), and HEART (Beloved). Drawing on this sophisticated text mining, Gliserman uses the results for rich analyses of characters' thoughts, actions and emotions. Graphic Criticism will provide welcome inspiration for a new generation of scholars. A necessary addition to collections in Anglophone literature and digital humanities." -Daniel Rubey, Professor Emeritus and former Dean of Library & Information Services, Hofstra University