Analysis: Shoplifting From American Apparel

Justin Tang
Prof. Ben Jahn ENGL-002B-3274 12 May 2023

Critical Theory in Text

Critical theory plays a role in the analysis of literary texts, providing insight into a variety of literature through different lenses. We will explore three different texts focusing on the critical positions used in Tao Lin’s book “Shoplifting from American Apparel”, Solmaz Sharif’s poem “Soldier, Home Early, Surprises his wife at Chick Fil-A”, and Kate Braverman’s short story “Tall Tales from the Mekong Delta”. In Tao Lin's "Shoplifting from American Apparel”, we see how reader-response criticism is applied to through a rather short and underwhelming story allowing for readers to interpret the story differently. While in the poem “Soldiers, Home Early, Surprises

The story follows an unknown female protagonist who is currently a recovering addict. She encounters a man named “Lenny”, who is really a part of her subconscious. Braverman writes that the character has been sober for five months, working out at the gym, and attending AA meetings. However, when “Lenny” appears she slowly starts slipping into old habits and the character’s conflict begins, which leads to her character being persuaded by “Lenny” to pick up her old habits. The text does have a specific social agenda, which in the story highlights the temptation of addiction and the potential for relapse, even when recovery looks foreseeable for the addict. For instance in the line “When this glass was finished she would pour another. When the bottle was empty, she would buy another.” (Braverman 107), we see how her desire for being sober is gone and her addiction is back, which highlights the issue of addicts picking up their old habits very easily. One example of psychoanalytic criticism is the psychological motives of the reader. Some readers may interpret the story differently based on their own understanding of addiction, recovery, and psychological conflicts. While some readers may empathize with the protagonist’s struggle, others can be critical of her behavior and her self control. The narrative structure in the short story allows readers to understand “Lenny” is a prominent word in the text. It is a way to add critical thinking in the text so it can be used for readers to understand even with outside help such as the AA meetings or going to the gym, the subconscious is what gets you through addiction and her subconscious “Lenny” knows that isn’t what she wants. So with “Lenny” he knows what the protagonist wants and tempts her into slowly falling back to her old habits. The use