Author: Susan Rowland
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317202295
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 410
Book Description
In Jungian Literary Criticism: the essential guide, Susan Rowland demonstrates how ideas such as archetypes, the anima and animus, the unconscious and synchronicity can be applied to the analysis of literature. Jung’s emphasis on creativity was central to his own work, and here Rowland illustrates how his concepts can be applied to novels, poetry, myth and epic, allowing a reader to see their personal, psychological and historical contribution. This multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary approach challenges the notion that Jungian ideas cannot be applied to literary studies, exploring Jungian themes in canonical texts by authors including Shakespeare, Jane Austen and W. B. Yeats as well as works by twenty-first century writers, such as in digital literary art. Rowland argues that Jung’s works encapsulate realities beyond narrow definitions of what a single academic discipline ought to do, and through using case studies alongside Jung’s work she demonstrates how both disciplines find a home in one another. Interweaving Jungian analysis with literature, Jungian Literary Criticism explores concepts from the shadow to contemporary issues of ecocriticism and climate change in relation to literary works, and emphasises the importance of a reciprocal relationship. Each chapter concludes with key definitions, themes and further reading, and the book encourages the reader to examine how worldviews change when disciplines combine. The accessible approach of Jungian Literary Criticism: the essential guide will appeal to academics and students of literary studies, Jungian and post-Jungian studies, literary theory, environmental humanities and ecocentrism. It will also be of interest to Jungian analysts and therapists in training and in practice.
Jungian Literary Criticism
Author: Susan Rowland
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317202295
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 410
Book Description
In Jungian Literary Criticism: the essential guide, Susan Rowland demonstrates how ideas such as archetypes, the anima and animus, the unconscious and synchronicity can be applied to the analysis of literature. Jung’s emphasis on creativity was central to his own work, and here Rowland illustrates how his concepts can be applied to novels, poetry, myth and epic, allowing a reader to see their personal, psychological and historical contribution. This multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary approach challenges the notion that Jungian ideas cannot be applied to literary studies, exploring Jungian themes in canonical texts by authors including Shakespeare, Jane Austen and W. B. Yeats as well as works by twenty-first century writers, such as in digital literary art. Rowland argues that Jung’s works encapsulate realities beyond narrow definitions of what a single academic discipline ought to do, and through using case studies alongside Jung’s work she demonstrates how both disciplines find a home in one another. Interweaving Jungian analysis with literature, Jungian Literary Criticism explores concepts from the shadow to contemporary issues of ecocriticism and climate change in relation to literary works, and emphasises the importance of a reciprocal relationship. Each chapter concludes with key definitions, themes and further reading, and the book encourages the reader to examine how worldviews change when disciplines combine. The accessible approach of Jungian Literary Criticism: the essential guide will appeal to academics and students of literary studies, Jungian and post-Jungian studies, literary theory, environmental humanities and ecocentrism. It will also be of interest to Jungian analysts and therapists in training and in practice.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317202295
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 410
Book Description
In Jungian Literary Criticism: the essential guide, Susan Rowland demonstrates how ideas such as archetypes, the anima and animus, the unconscious and synchronicity can be applied to the analysis of literature. Jung’s emphasis on creativity was central to his own work, and here Rowland illustrates how his concepts can be applied to novels, poetry, myth and epic, allowing a reader to see their personal, psychological and historical contribution. This multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary approach challenges the notion that Jungian ideas cannot be applied to literary studies, exploring Jungian themes in canonical texts by authors including Shakespeare, Jane Austen and W. B. Yeats as well as works by twenty-first century writers, such as in digital literary art. Rowland argues that Jung’s works encapsulate realities beyond narrow definitions of what a single academic discipline ought to do, and through using case studies alongside Jung’s work she demonstrates how both disciplines find a home in one another. Interweaving Jungian analysis with literature, Jungian Literary Criticism explores concepts from the shadow to contemporary issues of ecocriticism and climate change in relation to literary works, and emphasises the importance of a reciprocal relationship. Each chapter concludes with key definitions, themes and further reading, and the book encourages the reader to examine how worldviews change when disciplines combine. The accessible approach of Jungian Literary Criticism: the essential guide will appeal to academics and students of literary studies, Jungian and post-Jungian studies, literary theory, environmental humanities and ecocentrism. It will also be of interest to Jungian analysts and therapists in training and in practice.
Jungian Literary Criticism
Author: Richard P. Sugg
Publisher: Northwestern University Press
ISBN: 9780810110175
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 474
Book Description
Publisher: Northwestern University Press
ISBN: 9780810110175
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 474
Book Description
Thresholds and Pathways Between Jung and Lacan
Author: Ann Casement
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 100019146X
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 455
Book Description
This groundbreaking book was seeded by the first-ever joint Jung–Lacan conference on the notion of the sublime held at Cambridge, England, against the backdrop of the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the Great War. It provides a fascinating range of in-depth psychological perspectives on aspects of creativity and destruction inherent in the monstrous, awe-inspiring sublime. The chapters include some of the outcrop of academic and clinical papers given at this conference, with the addition of new contributions that explore similarities and differences between Jungian and Lacanian thinking on key topics such as language and linguistics, literature, religion, self and subject, science, mathematics and philosophy. The overall objective of this vitalizing volume is the development and dissemination of new ideas that will be of interest to practising psychoanalysts, psychotherapists and academics in the field, as well as to all those who are captivated by the still-revolutionary thinking of Jung and Lacan.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 100019146X
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 455
Book Description
This groundbreaking book was seeded by the first-ever joint Jung–Lacan conference on the notion of the sublime held at Cambridge, England, against the backdrop of the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the Great War. It provides a fascinating range of in-depth psychological perspectives on aspects of creativity and destruction inherent in the monstrous, awe-inspiring sublime. The chapters include some of the outcrop of academic and clinical papers given at this conference, with the addition of new contributions that explore similarities and differences between Jungian and Lacanian thinking on key topics such as language and linguistics, literature, religion, self and subject, science, mathematics and philosophy. The overall objective of this vitalizing volume is the development and dissemination of new ideas that will be of interest to practising psychoanalysts, psychotherapists and academics in the field, as well as to all those who are captivated by the still-revolutionary thinking of Jung and Lacan.
Jungian Metaphor in Modernist Literature
Author: Roula-Maria Dib
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 0429603126
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 362
Book Description
Jungian Metaphor in Modernist Literature argues for the centrality of Carl Jung’s theory of individuation and alchemy in modernist poetics. Through analysis of the uses of a mythic method in modernist literary works, the book develops a related alchemical model which serves to expand understanding of modernist uses of language. The book is an innovative exploration of modernist literary creativity under a Jungian lens, spanning both the literary and scholarly Jungian field. The literary works of Hilda Doolittle, James Joyce and W.B Yeats are read in the light of Jung’s central theme of an ‘alchemical marriage’ with attempts at developing a related alchemical model, a Jungian poetics, which serves to expand a reader’s understanding of modernist uses of language. This provides a fresh new lens through which modernist literature is viewed and seeks to revaluate the role of Jung in the humanities, namely in the field of modernist literature, an area from which Jung has long been shunned. This book will be of great interest for academics, researchers and post-graduate students in the fields of literature, modernism, psychoanalysis, gender studies, Jungian psychology, depth psychology, literary theory, and cultural studies. .
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 0429603126
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 362
Book Description
Jungian Metaphor in Modernist Literature argues for the centrality of Carl Jung’s theory of individuation and alchemy in modernist poetics. Through analysis of the uses of a mythic method in modernist literary works, the book develops a related alchemical model which serves to expand understanding of modernist uses of language. The book is an innovative exploration of modernist literary creativity under a Jungian lens, spanning both the literary and scholarly Jungian field. The literary works of Hilda Doolittle, James Joyce and W.B Yeats are read in the light of Jung’s central theme of an ‘alchemical marriage’ with attempts at developing a related alchemical model, a Jungian poetics, which serves to expand a reader’s understanding of modernist uses of language. This provides a fresh new lens through which modernist literature is viewed and seeks to revaluate the role of Jung in the humanities, namely in the field of modernist literature, an area from which Jung has long been shunned. This book will be of great interest for academics, researchers and post-graduate students in the fields of literature, modernism, psychoanalysis, gender studies, Jungian psychology, depth psychology, literary theory, and cultural studies. .
Jung as a Writer
Author: Susan Rowland
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317710479
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 244
Book Description
Jung as a Writer traces a relationship between Jung and literature by analysing his texts using the methodology of literary theory. This investigation serves to illuminate the literary nature of Jung’s writing in order to shed new light on his psychology and its relationship with literature as a cultural practice. Jung employed literary devices throughout his writing, including direct and indirect argument, anecdote, fantasy, myth, epic, textual analysis and metaphor. Susan Rowland examines Jung’s use of literary techniques in several of his works, including Anima and Animus, On the Nature of the Psyche, Psychology and Alchemy and Synchronicity and describes Jung’s need for literature in order to capture in writing his ideas about the unconscious. Jung as a Writer succeeds in demonstrating Jung’s contribution to literary and cultural theory in autobiography, gender studies, postmodernism, feminism, deconstruction and hermeneutics and concludes by giving a new culturally-orientated Jungian criticism. The application of literary theory to Jung’s works provides a new perspective on Jungian Psychology that will be of interest to anyone involved in the study of Jung, Psychoanalysis, literary theory and cultural studies.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317710479
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 244
Book Description
Jung as a Writer traces a relationship between Jung and literature by analysing his texts using the methodology of literary theory. This investigation serves to illuminate the literary nature of Jung’s writing in order to shed new light on his psychology and its relationship with literature as a cultural practice. Jung employed literary devices throughout his writing, including direct and indirect argument, anecdote, fantasy, myth, epic, textual analysis and metaphor. Susan Rowland examines Jung’s use of literary techniques in several of his works, including Anima and Animus, On the Nature of the Psyche, Psychology and Alchemy and Synchronicity and describes Jung’s need for literature in order to capture in writing his ideas about the unconscious. Jung as a Writer succeeds in demonstrating Jung’s contribution to literary and cultural theory in autobiography, gender studies, postmodernism, feminism, deconstruction and hermeneutics and concludes by giving a new culturally-orientated Jungian criticism. The application of literary theory to Jung’s works provides a new perspective on Jungian Psychology that will be of interest to anyone involved in the study of Jung, Psychoanalysis, literary theory and cultural studies.
The Interpretation of Fairy Tales
Author: Marie-Louise von Franz
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 0834840847
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 224
Book Description
A Jungian psychologist argues how careful analyses of fairy tales like Beauty and the Beast can lead to a deeper understanding of human psychology Of the various types of mythological literature, fairy tales are the simplest and purest expressions of the collective unconscious and thus offer the clearest understanding of the basic patterns of the human psyche. Every people or nation has its own way of experiencing this psychic reality, and so a study of the world's fairy tales yields a wealth of insights into the archetypal experiences of humankind. Perhaps the foremost authority on the psychological interpretation of fairy tales is Marie-Louise von Franz. In this book—originally published as An Introduction to the Interpretation of Fairy Tales —she describes the steps involved in analyzing and illustrates them with a variety of European tales, from Beauty and the Beast to The Robber Bridegroom. Dr. von Franz begins with a history of the study of fairy tales and the various theories of interpretation. By way of illustration, she presents a detailed examination of a simple Grimm’s tale, The Three Feathers, followed by a comprehensive discussion of motifs related to Jung’s concept of the shadow, the anima, and the animus. This revised edition has been corrected and updated by the author.
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 0834840847
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 224
Book Description
A Jungian psychologist argues how careful analyses of fairy tales like Beauty and the Beast can lead to a deeper understanding of human psychology Of the various types of mythological literature, fairy tales are the simplest and purest expressions of the collective unconscious and thus offer the clearest understanding of the basic patterns of the human psyche. Every people or nation has its own way of experiencing this psychic reality, and so a study of the world's fairy tales yields a wealth of insights into the archetypal experiences of humankind. Perhaps the foremost authority on the psychological interpretation of fairy tales is Marie-Louise von Franz. In this book—originally published as An Introduction to the Interpretation of Fairy Tales —she describes the steps involved in analyzing and illustrates them with a variety of European tales, from Beauty and the Beast to The Robber Bridegroom. Dr. von Franz begins with a history of the study of fairy tales and the various theories of interpretation. By way of illustration, she presents a detailed examination of a simple Grimm’s tale, The Three Feathers, followed by a comprehensive discussion of motifs related to Jung’s concept of the shadow, the anima, and the animus. This revised edition has been corrected and updated by the author.
Four Novels in Jung's 1925 Seminar
Author: Matthew Fike
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 9780367420659
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
C. G. Jung believed that popular fiction often conveyed unvarnished psychological truths. In this volume, Matthew A. Fike skillfully analyzes the novels under consideration in Jung's 1925 seminar on analytical psychology, critiques the discussion, corrects Jung's ill-informed perspectives, and sheds light on a neglected area of Jungian literary studies. Jung originally planned to discuss several novels about the anima--Henry Rider Haggard's She, Pierre Beno t's L'Atlantide, and Gustav Meyrink's The Green Face. At the request of his participants, he dropped Meyrink and included a text about the animus, Marie Hay's The Evil Vineyard. Fike demonstrates that Haggard's She and Beno t's L'Atlantide portray anima possession, the visionary and psychological modes, and traditional versus Jungian approaches to history. Meyrink's smorgasbord of Jungian theory and religion makes The Green Face a fictional counterpart to The Red Book, and both Meyrink and Hay depict states of higher consciousness that transcend the archetypes. The distinction between archetypal and spiritual possession demonstrates that The Evil Vineyard is a ghost story, and the study concludes with Hay's dozens of allusions, which provide important meta-commentary. Four Novels in Jung's 1925 Seminar, the first comprehensive study of all four texts, complements seminal works by Cornelia Brunner and Barbara Hannah, critiques the seminar discussion recorded in William McGuire's edition of Analytical Psychology: Notes of the Seminar Given in 1925 by C. G. Jung, and incorporates Jung's own comments on the four novels in The Collected Works. Thus, it provides an essential addition to Jungian literary studies and will appeal both to students and practitioners of Jungian analytical psychology and to scholars of British, French, and German literature.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 9780367420659
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 0
Book Description
C. G. Jung believed that popular fiction often conveyed unvarnished psychological truths. In this volume, Matthew A. Fike skillfully analyzes the novels under consideration in Jung's 1925 seminar on analytical psychology, critiques the discussion, corrects Jung's ill-informed perspectives, and sheds light on a neglected area of Jungian literary studies. Jung originally planned to discuss several novels about the anima--Henry Rider Haggard's She, Pierre Beno t's L'Atlantide, and Gustav Meyrink's The Green Face. At the request of his participants, he dropped Meyrink and included a text about the animus, Marie Hay's The Evil Vineyard. Fike demonstrates that Haggard's She and Beno t's L'Atlantide portray anima possession, the visionary and psychological modes, and traditional versus Jungian approaches to history. Meyrink's smorgasbord of Jungian theory and religion makes The Green Face a fictional counterpart to The Red Book, and both Meyrink and Hay depict states of higher consciousness that transcend the archetypes. The distinction between archetypal and spiritual possession demonstrates that The Evil Vineyard is a ghost story, and the study concludes with Hay's dozens of allusions, which provide important meta-commentary. Four Novels in Jung's 1925 Seminar, the first comprehensive study of all four texts, complements seminal works by Cornelia Brunner and Barbara Hannah, critiques the seminar discussion recorded in William McGuire's edition of Analytical Psychology: Notes of the Seminar Given in 1925 by C. G. Jung, and incorporates Jung's own comments on the four novels in The Collected Works. Thus, it provides an essential addition to Jungian literary studies and will appeal both to students and practitioners of Jungian analytical psychology and to scholars of British, French, and German literature.
Where the Shadows Lie
Author: Pia Skogemann
Publisher: Chiron Publications
ISBN: 1888602457
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 233
Book Description
Where the Shadows Lie takes the reader on a journey through Tolkien's Middle-earth, following the hobbits, their companions, and the characters they encounter on their quest. Along the way, Skogemann reveals the deep symbolic layers that are the source of joy and enchantment that many find in reading The Lord of the Rings. Aragorn, with the aid of Gandalf, Legolas, and Gimli, ascends to the throne and becomes the center of a great, unified kingdom--a symbol of the collective Self. The four hobbits, representing individual ego-consciousness, are transformed by the quest and acquire the psychological tools they need to renew the Shire--the small domain enfolded in the great. Jung's theories of the collective unconscious and the archetypes provide a key to understanding the forces of fantasy that are so powerful in Tolkien's masterpiece--and thereby a key to understanding ourselves and the events of the outside world in our modern times.
Publisher: Chiron Publications
ISBN: 1888602457
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 233
Book Description
Where the Shadows Lie takes the reader on a journey through Tolkien's Middle-earth, following the hobbits, their companions, and the characters they encounter on their quest. Along the way, Skogemann reveals the deep symbolic layers that are the source of joy and enchantment that many find in reading The Lord of the Rings. Aragorn, with the aid of Gandalf, Legolas, and Gimli, ascends to the throne and becomes the center of a great, unified kingdom--a symbol of the collective Self. The four hobbits, representing individual ego-consciousness, are transformed by the quest and acquire the psychological tools they need to renew the Shire--the small domain enfolded in the great. Jung's theories of the collective unconscious and the archetypes provide a key to understanding the forces of fantasy that are so powerful in Tolkien's masterpiece--and thereby a key to understanding ourselves and the events of the outside world in our modern times.
Post-Jungian Psychology and the Short Stories of Ray Bradbury and Kurt Vonnegut
Author: Steve Gronert Ellerhoff
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 131738492X
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 236
Book Description
In this book, Steve Gronert Ellerhoff explores short stories by Ray Bradbury and Kurt Vonnegut, written between 1943 and 1968, with a post-Jungian approach. Drawing upon archetypal theories of myth from Joseph Campbell, James Hillman and their forbearer C. G. Jung, Ellerhoff demonstrates how short fiction follows archetypal patterns that can illuminate our understanding of the authors, their times, and their culture. In practice, a post-Jungian ‘mythodology’ is shown to yield great insights for the literary criticism of short fiction. Chapters in this volume carefully contextualise and historicize each story, including Bradbury and Vonnegut’s earliest and most imaginatively fantastic works. The archetypal constellations shaping Vonnegut’s early works are shown to be war and fragmentation, while those in Bradbury’s are family and the wholeness of the sun. Analysis is complemented by the explored significance of illustrations that featured alongside the stories in their first publications. By uncovering the ways these popular writers redressed old myths in new tropes—and coined new narrative elements for hopes and fears born of their era—the book reveals a fresh method which can be applied to all imaginative short stories, increasing understanding and critical engagement. Post-Jungian Psychology and the Short Stories of Ray Bradbury and Kurt Vonnegut is an important text for a number of fields, from Jungian and Post-Jungian studies to short story theoriesand American studies to Bradbury and Vonnegut studies. Scholars and students of literature will come away with a renewed appreciation for an archetypal approach to criticism, while the book will also be of great interest to practising depth psychologists seeking to incorporate short stories into therapy.
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 131738492X
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 236
Book Description
In this book, Steve Gronert Ellerhoff explores short stories by Ray Bradbury and Kurt Vonnegut, written between 1943 and 1968, with a post-Jungian approach. Drawing upon archetypal theories of myth from Joseph Campbell, James Hillman and their forbearer C. G. Jung, Ellerhoff demonstrates how short fiction follows archetypal patterns that can illuminate our understanding of the authors, their times, and their culture. In practice, a post-Jungian ‘mythodology’ is shown to yield great insights for the literary criticism of short fiction. Chapters in this volume carefully contextualise and historicize each story, including Bradbury and Vonnegut’s earliest and most imaginatively fantastic works. The archetypal constellations shaping Vonnegut’s early works are shown to be war and fragmentation, while those in Bradbury’s are family and the wholeness of the sun. Analysis is complemented by the explored significance of illustrations that featured alongside the stories in their first publications. By uncovering the ways these popular writers redressed old myths in new tropes—and coined new narrative elements for hopes and fears born of their era—the book reveals a fresh method which can be applied to all imaginative short stories, increasing understanding and critical engagement. Post-Jungian Psychology and the Short Stories of Ray Bradbury and Kurt Vonnegut is an important text for a number of fields, from Jungian and Post-Jungian studies to short story theoriesand American studies to Bradbury and Vonnegut studies. Scholars and students of literature will come away with a renewed appreciation for an archetypal approach to criticism, while the book will also be of great interest to practising depth psychologists seeking to incorporate short stories into therapy.
A Companion to Literary Theory
Author: David H. Richter
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 111895873X
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 498
Book Description
Introduces readers to the modes of literary and cultural study of the previous half century A Companion to Literary Theory is a collection of 36 original essays, all by noted scholars in their field, designed to introduce the modes and ideas of contemporary literary and cultural theory. Arranged by topic rather than chronology, in order to highlight the relationships between earlier and most recent theoretical developments, the book groups its chapters into seven convenient sections: I. Literary Form: Narrative and Poetry; II. The Task of Reading; III. Literary Locations and Cultural Studies; IV. The Politics of Literature; V. Identities; VI. Bodies and Their Minds; and VII. Scientific Inflections. Allotting proper space to all areas of theory most relevant today, this comprehensive volume features three dozen masterfully written chapters covering such subjects as: Anglo-American New Criticism; Chicago Formalism; Russian Formalism; Derrida and Deconstruction; Empathy/Affect Studies; Foucault and Poststructuralism; Marx and Marxist Literary Theory; Postcolonial Studies; Ethnic Studies; Gender Theory; Freudian Psychoanalytic Criticism; Cognitive Literary Theory; Evolutionary Literary Theory; Cybernetics and Posthumanism; and much more. Features 36 essays by noted scholars in the field Fills a growing need for companion books that can guide readers through the thicket of ideas, systems, and terminologies Presents important contemporary literary theory while examining those of the past The Wiley-Blackwell Companion to Literary Theory will be welcomed by college and university students seeking an accessible and authoritative guide to the complex and often intimidating modes of literary and cultural study of the previous half century.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 111895873X
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 498
Book Description
Introduces readers to the modes of literary and cultural study of the previous half century A Companion to Literary Theory is a collection of 36 original essays, all by noted scholars in their field, designed to introduce the modes and ideas of contemporary literary and cultural theory. Arranged by topic rather than chronology, in order to highlight the relationships between earlier and most recent theoretical developments, the book groups its chapters into seven convenient sections: I. Literary Form: Narrative and Poetry; II. The Task of Reading; III. Literary Locations and Cultural Studies; IV. The Politics of Literature; V. Identities; VI. Bodies and Their Minds; and VII. Scientific Inflections. Allotting proper space to all areas of theory most relevant today, this comprehensive volume features three dozen masterfully written chapters covering such subjects as: Anglo-American New Criticism; Chicago Formalism; Russian Formalism; Derrida and Deconstruction; Empathy/Affect Studies; Foucault and Poststructuralism; Marx and Marxist Literary Theory; Postcolonial Studies; Ethnic Studies; Gender Theory; Freudian Psychoanalytic Criticism; Cognitive Literary Theory; Evolutionary Literary Theory; Cybernetics and Posthumanism; and much more. Features 36 essays by noted scholars in the field Fills a growing need for companion books that can guide readers through the thicket of ideas, systems, and terminologies Presents important contemporary literary theory while examining those of the past The Wiley-Blackwell Companion to Literary Theory will be welcomed by college and university students seeking an accessible and authoritative guide to the complex and often intimidating modes of literary and cultural study of the previous half century.