piece of writing, written material, writing - the work of a writer; anything expressed in letters of the alphabet (especially when considered from the point of view of style and effect); "the writing in her novels is excellent"; "that editorial was a fine piece of writing"

explication de texte - a method of literary criticism that analyzes details of a text in order to reveal its structure and meaning

textual criticism - comparison of a particular text with related materials in order to establish authenticity

new criticism - literary criticism based on close analysis of the text

analysis - a form of literary criticism in which the structure of a piece of writing is analyzed

critical review, critique, review article, review - an essay or article that gives a critical evaluation (as of a book or play)

literary study - the humanistic study of literature