Which of the following is true in the context of New Criticism?

The correct option is: The distinctive procedure for a New Critic is explication.

Explanation:

New Criticism is a prominent school of 20th-century literary theory that emphasizes close reading and the analysis of the text itself, independent of external factors such as the author's biography, historical context, or reader responses.

Within this critical framework, the primary method used to analyze a literary work is close, detailed, and line-by-line examination of the text. This procedure of close textual analysis is formally referred to as "explication" or "close reading." Through explication, a New Critic examines the relationships between the words, images, symbols, and structures within the text to reveal its organic unity and meaning.

Let's look at why the other options are incorrect in the context of New Criticism:
1. "It follows the tradition of Historical Criticism." - This is incorrect because New Criticism explicitly rejected historical criticism, arguing that a text should be evaluated as an autonomous object separate from its historical context.
2. "The main law of New Criticism is that it should be subjective analysis." - This is incorrect because New Criticism aimed for objective analysis, focusing on the text's formal elements rather than subjective reader impressions.
3. "The distinction between literary genres does play an essential role in New Criticism." - This is incorrect because New Criticism prioritized the internal, organic unity and structural elements of individual texts over rigid classifications of genre.