You may find some of these books useful. See your reading list for the required and recommended reading for your module.
Beginning Theory by
Beginning theory has been helping students navigate through the thickets of literary and cultural theory for well over a decade now. This new and expanded third edition continues to offer students and readers the best one-volume introduction to the field. The bewildering variety of approaches, theorists and technical language is lucidly and expertly unravelled. Unlike many books which assume certain positions about the critics and the theories they represent, Peter Barry allows readers to develop their own ideas once first principles and conceptshave been grasped. The book has been updated and includes two new chapters, one of which (Literary theory - a history in ten events) innovatively surveys the course of theory, while the other (Theory after "Theory") maps the arrival of new "isms" since the second edition appeared in 2002. Liberal humanism - Structuralism - Post-structuralism and deconstruction - Postmodernism - Psychoanalytic criticism - Feminist criticism - Lesbian/gay criticism - Marxist criticism - New historicism and cultural materialism - Postcolonial criticism - Stylistics - Narratology - Ecocriticism -Presentism/Transversal poetics/ New aestheticism/Historical formalism/Cognitive poetics.
Critical Practice - Ed2 by
What is poststructuralist theory, and what difference does it make to literary criticism? Where do we find the meaning of the text: in the author's head? in the reader's? Or do we, instead, make meaning in the practice of reading itself? If so, what part do our own values play in the process of interpretation? And what is the role of the text? Catherine Belsey considers these and other questions concerning the relations between human beings and language, readers and texts, writing and cultural politics. Assuming no prior knowledge of poststructuralism, Critical Practice guides the reader confidently through the maze of contemporary theory. It simply and lucidly explains the views of key figures such as Louis Althusser, Roland Barthes, Jacques Lacan and Jacques Derrida, and shows their theories at work in readings of familiar literary texts. Critical Practice argues that theory matters, because it makes a difference to what we do when we read, opening up new possibilities for literary and cultural analysis. Poststructuralism, in conjunction with psychoanalysis and deconstruction, makes radical change to the way we read both a priority and a possibility. With a new chapter, updated guidance on further reading and revisions throughout, this second edition of Critical Practice is the ideal guide to the present and future of literary studies.
An Introduction to Literature, Criticism and Theory by
Provides an introduction to literary studies. This edition includes chapters on: creative writing, literature and film, war, monsters, mutants and the inhuman.
Literary Theory by
Written in 1982, this work appeared, as Professor Eagleton explains, at the watershed of two very different decades. It could not anticipate what was to come after, neither could it grasp what had happened in literary theory in the light of where it was to lead.
The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism by
The most comprehensive anthology of theory and criticism, now up-to-date and global. The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism is the gold standard for anyone who wishes to understand the development and current state of literary theory. Offering 185 pieces (31 of them new) by 148 authors (18 of them new), The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism, Second Edition, is more comprehensive, and more varied, in its selection than any other anthology. New selections from non-western theory and a thoroughly updated twentieth century selection make the book even more diverse and authoritative.
Modern Literary Theory by
Covering the key theoretical approaches in modern literary theory, the text includes essays and documents that are essential reading for students of literature and critical theory. The original structure of the book has been improved and new material has been added, including extracts from the writings of Marx, Freud, and de Beauvoir, and a new section devoted to contemporary critical debates and issues.
Literary Theory: an anthology by
This anthology of classic and cutting-edge statements in literary theory has now been updated to include recent influential texts in the areas of Ethnic Studies, Postcolonialism and International Studies A definitive collection of classic statements in criticism and new theoretical work from the past few decades All the major schools and methods that make up the dynamic field of literary theory are represented, from Formalism to Postcolonialism Enables students to familiarise themselves with the most recent developments in literary theory and with the traditions from which these new theories derive
Connect to the platform with your Exeter IT login, and create a free account to save and organise journals and articles.
Use the resources below to find commentary, criticism, summary, analysis, interpretation or review of literary works from any period or movement.
See the guides on this page for help with searching these resources.
It has been designed as the foremost platform for conducting Literary Research and incorporates Literature Online.
It contains 3 million literature citations from thousands of journals, monographs, dissertations, and more than 500,000 primary works – including rare and obscure texts, multiple versions, and non-traditional sources like comics, theatre performances, and author readings.
Enter your terms into the search box, e.g. romanticism AND byron.
Your results are displayed divided into content type.
For example, if you would like to locate the works of Geoffrey Chaucer.
Select Author Pages option from above the search box
Enter Geoffrey Chaucer in the search box this should give search options as shown below. Select "Chaucer, Geoffrey, d. 1400" or select the Go Directly to option.
The Author Pages provides a short biography of the author, links to the primary texts, recent criticism, criticism over time and reference works.
For example, you are searching for texts related to war and death that were published between WW1 and WW2.
The Texts list of results page will be displayed, listing the author, the title of the work containing the selected words and the line(s) containing the words.
For example, you are looking for occurrences of the word "jealousy" Literature Online will include old spellings as well for many keyword.
You can see the variants of Jealousy highlighted below:
For example, you are searching for reference material on the works of Scott Fitzgerald.
The results list will display all relevant materials.
For example, you would like to hear Jayne Cortez reading her own works.
Or, you would like to listen to a Shakespearean Play.
Here you can listen to the full play or select the relevant act.
For example, you are interested in learning more about poet Ezra Pound and hope to locate some of his poems.
JSTOR is a valuable research resource for secondary resources. You can use it to search and find the full text of published books and journal articles.
Use the How to Search JSTOR LibGuide for an introduction to the service or take a look at JSTOR's Vimeo channel for educational and instructional videos.
Enter your search
You can use the Basic search box that appears at login.
Alternatively, select the Advanced Search option for additional options.
The example below shows a basic search for book and article content that includes reference to marlowe and shakespeare and ambiguity
View your search results
You can refine your results if you find too many as a result of your initial search.
You may find it useful to select the Show Snippets option. This will highlight the appearance of your search terms:
Click on the title of the journal article/book/book chapter to view the item. You can also download the item.
You can also see how many times your search terms appear across the article and link through to the pages where the terms appear, via the View Results link.
Understanding Shakespeare is a collaborative project between JSTOR Labs and the Folger Shakespeare Library.
Click next to any line of text in a Shakespeare play, and relevant articles from the JSTOR archive immediately load.
Explore the collection here.
Here is an example from Richard III. There are 17 articles within JSTOR with reference to the first line of the play:
The Text Analyzer is another useful research tool:
Find out more about it here, and this brief introductory video will give you an overview of the tool.
The MLA has developed an online course to teach students how to use the MLA International Bibliography.
There are five modules in the course. The fifth module is 'Literary topics' which provides guidance on performing searches on specific literary works and authors as well as on broad topics.
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The MLA provide short tutorial videos to help you use the resource.
There are more tutorials available at https://www.mla.org/Publications/MLA-International-Bibliography/Tutorial-Videos
Oxford handbooks contain in-depth articles by experts in the field.
Browse by subject; choose Literature.
You will then see the articles and books available to you. Refine your search by entering search terms and by narrowing the date range using the left hand menu.
Use the Quick start guide if you need further help using this resource.
You can choose to search across all of the content in Gale Literature using the main search box.
Alternatively, choose which part to search by clicking on the What's Inside link on the toolbar.
This will show you a list of all of the databases that make up Gale Literature. See the following tabs for more information about these.
If you know the name of the person or literary work that you need, you can choose the Person Search or Works Search links on the toolbar:
Modern and historical literary commentary and criticism. The collection includes:
Browse criticism collated into topic areas such as health, feminism, literary movements, censorship, folklore and many more.
Here you can find introductions to the topics, explore relevant critical essays and articles, and link through to related topics, themes, works and authors.
Biographies, overviews, full-text criticisms, audio interviews, and reviews on writers from all eras.
Access literary works and authors throughout history, including full-text poems, plays, short stories and speeches.
You can also choose Works Search from the toolbar on the main page of Gale Literature.
Use the following resources to find out about authors and influential literary figures.
Biographies and bibliographies of thousands of U.S. and international authors.
Explore the lives, works, and careers of the world's most influential literary figures from all eras and genres.
Browse original scholarly essays on authors from around the world.
Examine the lives and works of children and young adult authors and illustrators.
In-depth critical introductions to the lives and works of major writers. Includes influences of literary movements.
You can also choose Person Search from the toolbar on the main Gale Literature page:
