Question

Which line would most likely be written by a reader analyzing Hamlet through a formalist lens?

Answer 1

The play includes repeated references to death and decay.

Answer 2

Correct option: C

A Formalist analysis of Hamlet would include the study of the repeated references to death and decay.

Formalism is a school of literary criticism that states that the analysis of a text can be scientific and objective. The main focus is placed on the form of the text, and the context and the content are not important. When analysing a text from the point of view of this literary theory, one seeks to understand the form of text, the latter involves literary devices, and identifying the patterns and elements that are repeated. This is the reason why the correct answer is letter C, since trying to identify the repeated references to death and decay, is part of understanding the form of the text and the repetition of these themes.