Criticizing and Rethinking of Periodization in Literary History

In historical and literary studies، periodization is a regulative idea for classifying the literary and historical information in diachronic axis but its application in literary history has been subject to some critiques. This article is to study the critical debates about periodization in literary history and the rethinking of the concept. We can divide these critical debates in two groups: some critics call the very notion into question and refer to as invalid concept. Instead، others engage in rethinking and revising the concept for appropriate application in literary history. Imposition of a static framework on cultural and literary dynamics، averaging effect and contrast with uniqueness of literary works، combining histories of different literary genres، lack of conformity with reality، artificial homogeneity and consistency of change and evolution schemas، problems of terminology and descriptive، anachronism، lost years and centuries، ignoring the distance between literary production and literary reading، logical sequence، ignoring ethnic and gender groups and dominance of period concepts on critical thought are some critiques against periodization and its application in literary history. Rethinking of periodization، being based upon new historical and literary findings and sometimes focusing on redefinition of temporal limits of periods، is current in different frameworks: feminist approaches، according to ethnic and gender groups، and redefinition of literary periods based on new critical concepts. Keywords: literary history، theory of literary history، periodization، literary criticism، literary theory.