The Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory and Criticism

This text is a reference designed to serve as an international, encyclopaedic guide to the important figures, schools, and movements in the influential and expanding area of literary theory and criticism. While concentrating on the explosion of contemporary critical and theoretical works, the guide provides a comprehensive historical survey of ideas and individuals ranging from Plato and Aristotle to 20th-century scholars. It includes nearly 200 alphabetically arranged entries on critics and theorists, critical schools and movements, and the critical and theoretical innovations of specific countries and historical periods. It also examines developments in other disciplines which have shaped literary theory and criticism. Each entry provides an original and authoritative overview of its subject and includes a selected primary and secondary bibliography. The guide's two indexes - "Names" and "Topics" - should make it easy to locate critics, major terms, and significant concepts discussed within the titled entries. The preface, together with a foreword by Richard Macksey, considers the role and form of theory in literary studies. With coverage of the varied subjects that literary theory and criticism have come to encompass, the Guide should be a valuable resource for scholars, students, and other readers who want essential facts about particular critics and schools.