Having an understanding of philosophy can help in this process and allow people to better understand each perspective to take when studying literature and literary criticism . Wimsatt and Beardsley, The Intentional Fallacy 1. Authorial intention should not be an area discussed in literary criticism. A. What he intended to write should not be part of the formula critics use to make sense of the work. b. Intention is defined as the conception or plan in the author's mind, and this intention is present because no one creates a literary work without intention. c. However, when a critic judges a work, he must look only at the structure and characteristics of the text to develop its meaning. 2. Getting caught in the “intentional fallacy” trap means that the critic focuses on understanding the work based on what the author meant instead of thinking about what the work actually means to him or her. A. This way of thinking can prevent a critic from fully understanding the meaning of the text. b. When we try to judge a work using this fallacy, we miss the depth of the feelings, meanings and tones of the work.