Defamiliarization, or "ostranenie," is a critical concept introduced by Russian formalist literary theorist Viktor Shklovsky in his 1917 essay "Art as Technique." This theory posits that art's primary function is to make the familiar strange, rejuvenating our perception of the mundane and enabling us to engage with the world in a fresh and meaningful way.
Shklovsky argues that through defamiliarization, artists can disrupt the habitual ways of