A reference guide to the work of 115 modern British and American critics.

Each age has its value system of literary criticism whose construction is inseparable from the mainstream ideology of the society. In contemporary China, the mainstream ideology is inevitably Marxism. This book is composed of two parts. The first part studies literary criticism in contemporary China whose development is closely related to the popularization of Marxism and the unavoidable collisions between Marxism and other theories. It also introduces some relevant critical debates, such as the debate on the criticism of Yu Pingbo, a representative and one of the authoritative scholars studying The Dream of the Red Chamber. In the second part, the author expounds the history of Chinese literature from a macro-level perspective, involving works, genres, ideologies, schools, etc. He also discusses the challenges facing Chinese literature under the background of economic globalization. Will politics, cultures, including literature and arts, be globalized? In addition, the author puts forward that a dynamic concept is needed for a better understanding of Chinese culture and gives his suggestions about the "adjustments" Chinese people should make for the present. This book will attract scholars and students of literary criticism studies and Chinese literary studies. People who are interested in Chinese literature and thought will also benefit from this book.

The last half of the twentieth century has seen the emergence of literary theory as a new discipline. As with any body of scholarship, various schools of thought exist, and sometimes conflict, within it. I.R. Makaryk has compiled a welcome guide to the field. Accessible and jargon-free, the Encyclopedia of Contemporary Literary Theory provides lucid, concise explanations of myriad approaches to literature that have arisen over the past forty years. Some 170 scholars from around the world have contributed their expertise to this volume. Their work is organized into three parts. In Part I, forty evaluative essays examine the historical and cultural context out of which new schools of and approaches to literature arose. The essays also discuss the uses and limitations of the various schools, and the key issues they address. Part II focuses on individual theorists. It provides a more detailed picture of the network of scholars not always easily pigeonholed into the categories of Part I. This second section analyses the individual achievements, as well as the influence, of specific scholars, and places them in a larger critical context. Part III deals with the vocabulary of literary theory. It identifies significant, complex terms, places them in context, and explains their origins and use. Accessibility is a key feature of the work. By avoiding jargon, providing mini-bibliographies, and cross-referencing throughout, Makaryk has provided an indispensable tool for literary theorists and historians and for all scholars and students of contemporary criticism and culture.

This book, first published in 1980, is a history of modern Chinese literary criticism between the years 1917 and 1930. It examines its development within the overall frame of reference of Chinese national literature from the beginnings of the Chinese literary revolution in 1917 until the end of the first efforts at a revolutionary proletarian literature in 1930. Chinese literary criticism is also analysed within the framework of world literature, of world literary thought, especially of the impact of the progressive literary criticism.

Advanced Students Of Literary Criticism Would Definitely Find This Book Stimulating As Well As Illuminating As It Presents A Penetrating Analysis Of The Major Theories And Practices Of All The Dominant Groups Of Literacy Critics Of Our Times. In The Course Of The Critical Survey Of The Critical Principles And Methods Of All The Major Cities, The Chicago Critics Attempt A Critique Of Contemporary Criticism In Their Monumental Work, Critics And Criticism: Essays In Method Of The Chicago Critics. Hence, The Focus Of This Book Is On The Pluralistic Approach Of These Critics Who Were Aware Of The Powers And Limitations Of All The Critical Methods. Each Critical Method, Even The Aristotelian Method For Which They Developed A Bias, Addresses A Certain Range Of Questions Beyond Which It Loses Its Utility. No Critical Method, As They Point Out, Is All Embracing Critical System Of Critical Philosophy. Critics Having Exclusive Commitment To A Particular Critical System Are Bound To Be Partial Critics. So A Pluralistic Approach Should Be The Ideal One But, In Order To Be A Pluralistic Critic, A Student Of Literary Criticism Must Be Conversant With All The Major Critical Approaches. The Present Book Is Significant In The Sense That It Has The Capacity To Train Teachers And Students Of Literature In The Art Of Literary Appreciation That Enhances The Enjoyment Of Literary Works. Since Every Literary Piece Is A Constructed Whole, Aristotle S Method Provides Clues To Its Specific Constructive Principle Through A Process Of Regressive Reasoning The Aposteriori Approach. The Special Discussion Of The Chicago Method In This Book Explains The Aristotelian Bias Of The Chicago Critics Who Were Actually Neo-Aristotelians In A Limited Sense. They Began Where Aristotle Left Off To Pursue Similar Lines Of Study In The Poetics Of Modern Literature.As The Chicago School Of Criticism Is A Brilliant Exercise In Remedial Criticism, This Book May Serve As Materia Medica Of Critical Theories And Practices For Students And Teachers Of Literary Criticism.

Contemporary Literary and Cultural Theory: The Johns Hopkins Guide is a clear, accessible, and detailed overview of the most important thinkers and topics in the field. Written by specialists from across disciplines, its entries cover contemporary theory from Adorno to ?i?ek, providing an informative and reliable introduction to a vast, challenging area of inquiry. Materials include newly commissioned articles along with essays drawn from The Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory and Criticism, known as the definitive resource for students and scholars of literary theory and for philosophical reflection on literature and culture.

This is a comprehensive 1997 account of the history of literary criticism in Britain and Europe between 1660 and 1800. Unlike previous histories, it is not just a chronological survey of critical writing, but a multidisciplinary investigation of how the understanding of literature and its various genres was transformed, at the start of the modern era, by developments in philosophy, psychology, the natural sciences, linguistics, and other disciplines, as well as in society at large. In the process, modern literary theory - at first often implicit in literary texts themselves - emancipated itself from classical poetics and rhetoric, and literary criticism emerged as a full-time professional activity catering for an expanding literate public. The volume is international both in coverage and in authorship. Extensive bibliographies provide guidance for further specialised study.

American Literary Criticism Since the 1930s fully updates Vincent B. Leitch’s classic book, American Literary Criticism from the 30s to the 80s following the development of the American academy right up to the present day. Updated throughout and with a brand new chapter, this second edition: provides a critical history of American literary theory and practice, discussing the impact of major schools and movements examines the social and cultural background to literary research, considering the role of key theories and practices provides profiles of major figures and influential texts, outlining the connections among theorists presents a new chapter on developments since the 1980s, including discussions of feminist, queer, postcolonial and ethnic criticism. Comprehensive and engaging, this book offers a crucial overview of the development of literary studies in American universities, and a springboard to further research for all those interested in the development and study of Literature.

Modern Tibetan Literature and Social Change is the first systematic and detailed overview of modern Tibetan literature, which has burgeoned only in the last thirty years. This comprehensive collection brings together fourteen pioneering scholars in the nascent field of Tibetan literary studies, including authors who are active in the Tibetan literary world itself. These scholars examine the literary output of Tibetan authors writing in Tibetan, Chinese, and English, both in Tibet and in the Tibetan diaspora. The contributors explore the circumstances that led to the development of modern Tibetan literature, its continuities and breaks with classical Tibetan literary forms, and the ways that writers use forms such as magical realism, satire, and humor to negotiate literary freedom within the People’s Republic of China. They provide crucial information about Tibetan writers’ lives in China and abroad, the social and political contexts in which they write, and the literary merits of their oeuvre. Along with deep social, cultural, and political analysis, this wealth of information clarifies the complex circumstances that Tibetan writers face in the PRC and the diaspora. The contributors consider not only poetry, short stories, and novels but also other forms of cultural production—such as literary magazines, films, and Web sites—that provide a public forum in the Tibetan areas of the PRC, where censorship and restrictions on public gatherings remain the norm. Modern Tibetan Literature and Social Change includes a previously unavailable list of modern Tibetan works translated into Western languages and a comprehensive English-language index of names, subjects, and terms. Contributors: Pema Bhum, Howard Y. F. Choy, Yangdon Dhondup, Lauran R. Hartley, Hortsang Jigme, Matthew T. Kapstein, Nancy G. Lin, Lara Maconi, Françoise Robin, Patricia Schiaffini-Vedani, Ronald D. Schwartz, Tsering Shakya, Sangye Gyatso (aka Gangzhün), Steven J. Venturino, Riika Virtanen