muodollismi

Muodollismi is a concept primarily associated with art and literary criticism, emphasizing the form and style of a work over its content or subject matter. In art, this means focusing on elements like line, color, shape, texture, and composition as the primary drivers of aesthetic experience. The subject depicted, if any, becomes secondary to how it is represented. A purely formalist painting might prioritize the arrangement of abstract shapes and colors for their own sake, disregarding any narrative or symbolic meaning.

In literature, a formalist approach examines the structure of a text, its narrative techniques, sentence construction, rhythm, and use of language. The meaning of a literary work is understood to arise from the interplay of these formal elements, rather than from external social, historical, or psychological contexts. This perspective seeks to analyze how the words on the page are arranged and the effect this arrangement has on the reader.

The term "formalism" can also be used more broadly to describe an excessive adherence to established rules, conventions, or procedures, often at the expense of substance or practical outcomes. This can be seen in bureaucratic or institutional settings where following protocols becomes more important than achieving the intended goal. In this sense, it implies rigidity and a lack of innovation. The key idea across these different applications is the prioritization of the "how" – the method, structure, or style – over the "what" – the content, message, or purpose.