Which approach to literary criticism would analyze the first line of "April Showers" as text within text?

Deconstructionism focuses on how texts can be interpreted in multiple ways, often exploring the inherent contradictions and ambiguities within the text itself. In this view, analyzing a line of poetry, like the first line of "April Showers," as "text within text" allows for an examination of how language interacts with itself, revealing various meanings and interpretations that go beyond the surface. This approach emphasizes the instability of meaning and how the context and structure of language contribute to its interpretation.

In contrast, New Historicism tends to look at a text in relation to the historical and cultural context in which it was created, focusing less on the internal relationships within the text itself. Formalism, while it does investigate the structure and form of a text, often prioritizes the text itself over external influences, which means it might analyze literary devices rather than the interplay of texts. Structuralism seeks to understand literature through the broader structures that govern language and systems of meaning, often aiming for a more systematic overview rather than a nuanced examination of textual relationships. All of these approaches have their merits, but deconstructionism specifically addresses the complexities within the text, making it the most appropriate choice for analyzing the first line of "April Showers" in this way.