Tendenz

In higher criticism, the Tendenz of a literary work is its drift or bias, sometimes also the actual authorial intent. Tendenzkritik is the analysis of a work to determine its aim or purpose.^[1] The term comes from the German for "tendency" (itself derived from English or French) and was coined in the 19th century.^[2] It is especially associated with the biblical criticism of F. C. Baur.^[3]