EN
The present survey, which focuses on selected methods of quantitative corpus analysis applied to literary texts, asks to what extent it is useful to employ quantification and statistics in literary studies. The study discusses two basic ways in which quantitative corpus methods might be utilized. The first of these is macroanalysis, a method employing research into a large base of material. Its results provide empirical data about the macrostructural behaviour of predominantly the developmental tendencies and characteristics of a given literary category. The second is microanalysis, which focuses on smaller textual units, for instance, a group of texts by the same author. Its aim is to analyze empirically structural patterns within these texts. The research questions posed in studies using both methods include issues related to theme, authorship, narrative discourse, or gender. The study stresses the importance of employing these methods critically. Quantification must always be accompanied by relevant interpretation, based on appropriate methods of literary criticism.