David Copperfield and Great Expectations are among Charles Dickens's most famous novels. In both books, the hero tells the vivid and absorbing tale of his education by life, presents a rich range of characters and scenes, and tackles profound moral, social and psychological themes. Part I of this essential study: - Provides lucid and penetrating analyses of key passages - Discusses the crucial topics of patriarchy, class, obsession, eccentricity, death, breakdown and recovery - Summarizes the methods of analysis and offers suggestions for further work Part II supplies key background material, including: - An account of Dickens's life and works - A survey of historical, cultural and literary contexts - Samples of significant criticism Also featuring a valuable Further Reading section, this volume provides readers with the critical and analytical skills which will enable them to enjoy and explore both novels for themselves.
The Great Gatsby (1925) is a classic of modern American literature and is often seen as the quintessential novel of 'the jazz age'. This guide to The Great Gatsby explores the style, structure, themes, critical reputation and literary influence of F. Scott Fitzgerald's most famous novel and also discusses its stage, screen and opera versions. It includes points for discussion, suggestions for further study and an annotated guide to relevant reading.
This guide provides a survey of the wide range of responses to Macbeth, as well as the key debates and developments from the 17th century to the present day. Chronologically structured, the guide summarizes and assesses key interpretations, sets them in context and supplies extracts from criticism which exemplify critical positions.
A stimulating and comprehensive critical survey of the responses to A Midsummer Night's Dream, as well as the key debates and developments, from the seventeenth century to the present day. Leading the reader through material chronologically, the Guide explores the main themes and interpretations and draws on a rich range of critical writings.
The Great Gatsby and Tender is the Night are F. Scott Fitzgerald's best-known novels. They draw on Fitzgerald's own vivid experiences in the 1920s but transform them into art. This stimulating introductory guide analyses their accomplished style and their concern with the promise and perplexity of modern life. Part I of this indispensable study: - Provides interesting and informed close readings of key passages - Examines how each novel starts and ends - Discusses key themes of society, money, gender and trauma - Outlines the methods of analysis and offers suggestions for further work. Part II supplies essential background material, including: - An account of Fitzgerald's life - A survey of historical, cultural and literary contexts - Samples of significant criticism Also featuring a helpful Further Reading section, this volume equips readers with the critical and analytical skills which will enable them to enjoy and explore both novels for themselves.
Novelist and cultural commentator C.P. Snow was a large and controversial presence in his lifetime but his work has been largely neglected since his death in 1980. This is the first 21st-century book to offer a clear, informed and sympathetic survey of all his novels and major non-fiction books and to affirm their importance for the world today.
Ten years ago, it could seem that B. S. Johnson had fallen into obscurity. Indeed, when the first edition of Fighting Fictions appeared in 2000, no other book on Johnson had been published. Since then, however, Johnson has enjoyed something of a revival. Four books about him have appeared, including the biography Like a Fiery Elephant by Jonathan Coe. With the first edition of Fighting Fictions now sold out, Nicolas Tredell has taken the opportunity to update the opening chapter and the anti-conclusion and to make a range of amendments in other parts of the book.His study argues 'that the so-called experimental aspects of Johnson's novels are as valuable as their realistic ones, sometimes more so, and that his work continues to pose major challenges for writers and readers in the twenty-first century. His novels are fighting fictions in two main senses: they contest conventional realism and, even more radically, they question whether fiction has any value at all'.
This Reader's Guide analyses the critical history of two of Hardy's major tragic novels, from the time of their publication to the present. Simon Avery traces the changing critical fortunes of the texts and explores the diverse range of interpretations produced by different theoretical approaches.
This guide provides a survey of the wide range of responses to Macbeth, as well as the key debates and developments from the 17th century to the present day. Chronologically structured, the guide summarizes and assesses key interpretations, sets them in context and supplies extracts from criticism which exemplify critical positions.
This Reader's Guide brings together, in an approachable form, the range of review and critical material on the novels of Jeanette Winterson. Covering all of Winterson's work, from Oranges are Not the Only Fruit to The PowerBook, Merja Makinen traces the early review reception of each novel on its publication and considers it alongside the larger critical debates that have subsequently evolved. Makinen follows the controversial critical analysis of Winterson as a lesbian writer, and develops the examination of the postmodern aspects of her work, whether as postmodern or post-Modern. Including a brief discussion of Winterson's most recent novel, Lighthouse Keeping, this is an indispensable guide for anyone studying, or simply interested in, the work of one of Britain's most successful contemporary authors.
Reader's Guides provide a comprehensive starting point for any advanced student, giving an overview of the context, criticism and influence of key works. Each guide also offers students fresh critical insights and provides a practical introduction to close reading and to analysing literary language and form. They provide up-to-date, authoritative but accessible guides to the most commonly studied classic texts. The Great Gatsby (1925) is a classic of modern American literature and is often seen as the quintessential novel of 'the jazz age'. This is the ideal guide to the text, setting The Great Gatsby in its historical, intellectual and cultural contexts, offering analyses of its themes, style and structure, providing exemplary close readings, presenting an up-to-date account of its critical reception and examining its afterlife in literature, film and popular culture. It includes points for discussion, suggestions for further study and an annotated guide to relevant reading.
A stimulating and comprehensive critical survey of the responses to A Midsummer Night's Dream, as well as the key debates and developments, from the seventeenth century to the present day. Leading the reader through material chronologically, the Guide explores the main themes and interpretations and draws on a rich range of critical writings.
Shakespeare's tragedies are among the greatest works of tragic art and have attracted a rich range of commentary and interpretation from leading creative and critical minds. This Reader's Guide offers a comprehensive survey of the key criticism on the tragedies, from the 17th century through to the present day. In this book, Nicolas Tredell: - Introduces essential concepts, themes and debates. - Relates Shakespeare's tragedies to fi elds of study including psychoanalysis, gender, race, ecology and philosophy. - Summarises major critical texts from Dryden and Dr Johnson to Janet Adelman and Julia Reinhard Lupton, and covers influential critical movements such as New Criticism, New Historicism and poststructuralism. - Demonstrates how key critical approaches work in practice, with close reference to Shakespeare's texts. Informed and incisive, this is an indispensable guide for anyone interested in how the category of Shakespeare's tragedies has been constructed, contested and changed over the years.
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