Beginning Theory: An Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory

Introduction: about this book approaching stop and think - reviewing your study of literature to date. Part 1 Theory before theory - liberal humanism: the history of English studies ten tenets of liberal-humanism literary theorising from Aristotle to Leavis - some key moments liberal humanism in practice selected reading the transition to theory some recurrent ideas in critical theory. Part 2 Structuralism: structuralist chickens and liberal-humanist eggs signs of the fathers - Saussure the scope of structuralism what structuralist critics do structuralist criticism - examples - selected reading. Part 3 Poststructuralism and deconstruction: some theoretical differences between structuralism and poststructuralism post-structuralisms - life life on a decentred planet structuralism and poststructuralism - some practical differences what poststructuralist critics do deconstruction - an example selected reading. Part 4 Postmodernism: what is postmodernism/what was modernism? Landmarks in postmodernism - Habermas and Baudrillard what postmodernist critics do postmodernist criticism - an example selected reading. Part 5 Psychoanalytic criticism: introduction how Freudian interpretation works Freud and evidence what Freudian psychoanalytic critics do Freudian criticism - examples Lacan what Lacanian critics do Lacanian criticism - an example selected reading. Part 6 Feminist criticism: feminism and feminist criticism feminist criticism and the role of feminist criticism and language feminist criticism and psychoanalysis what feminist critics do feminist criticism - an example selected reading. Part 7 Lesbian/gay criticism: lesbian and gay lesbian feminism queer what lesbian/gay critics do lesbian/gay criticism - an example selected reading. Part 8 Marxist criticism: beginnings and basics of Marxism Marxist literary criticism - general Leninist Marxist criticism Engelsian Marxist criticism the present - the influence of Althusser what Marxist critics do Marxist criticism - an example selected reading. Part 9 New historicism and cultural materialism: new historicism new and old historicisms - some differences new historicism and Foucault advantages and disadvantages what new historicists do new historicism - an example cultural materialism how is cultural materialism different from new historicism? what cultural materialist critics do cultural materialism - an example selected reading. Part 10 Postcolonial criticism: background postcolonial reading what postcolonialist critics do postcolonialist criticism - an example selected reading. Part 11 Stylistics: stylistics, a or a practice? a brief history - from Rhetoric to The New Stylistics how does stylistics differ from close reading? the ambitions of stylistics what stylisticians do stylistics - examples selected reading.