REFERENCE RESOURCES
LITERATURE CRITICISMS
ARTICLE DATABASES
THESES & DISSERTATIONS
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The Norton Anthology of English Literature: Victorian Age, vol. E by
Firmly grounded by the hallmark strengths of all Norton Anthologies--thorough and helpful introductory matter, judicious annotation, complete texts wherever possible--The Norton Anthology of English Literature has been revitalized in this Eighth Edition through the collaboration between six new editors and six seasoned ones. Under the direction of Stephen Greenblatt, General Editor, the editors have reconsidered all aspects of the anthology to make it an even better teaching tool.
Encyclopedia of the Victorian Era by
- Correlates with standards and benchmarks in World History and Social Studies - Valuable for a wide range of courses, including history; literature; art history; social studies; gender studies; science, technology, and society; social movements; economics; political science; and religion and philosophy - Offers an interdisciplinary approach to a major historical era - Discusses and analyzes often-studied topics such as industralization, social thought and reform, colonial expansion, and cultural identity - International in scope: focus is on Britain, but articles cover British influence in the United States, Europe, Ireland, and the British Empire, including special attention to India, Australia, and Africa - Selected primary sources, with commentary, offer documentary evidence of major themes of the era - Provides coverage of all aspects of everyday life, domestic life, and social conditions - Articles are written in a clear, concise, and engaging manner by scholars and experts in their fields
Edwardian and Georgian Fiction by 
The Victorian Novel by
Victorian England produced some of the greatest novelists in Western history, including Charles Dickens, Thomas Hardy, and George Eliot. Critical analysis focuses on the development of the Victorian novel though the second half of the 19th century.
Victorian Poets (Bloom's Modern Critical Views) by
The American and British poets of the Victorian period balanced tradition and innovation, paving the way for the stylistic departures of modernism. The poets featured in this title include Alfred, Lord Tennyson; Elizabeth Barrett Browning; Robert Browning; Rudyard Kipling; Christina Rossetti; Gerard Manley Hopkins; and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Students studying this period in literature will find this selection of critical essays helpful in understanding these poets and their works. An introductory essay by Harold Bloom, a bibliography, a chronology, and an index add to this volume.
Critical Insights: Coming of Age by
Great starting point for students seeking an introduction to the theme and the critical discussions surrounding it. Coming of age has been one of the great themes of literature for over two thousand years. From the maturation of Telemachus in The Odyssey to the stunted adolescence of Holden Caufield in The Catcher in the Rye, it has spanned eras, countries, and cultures. It is the theme of every young person's life, and adolescence a time many adults look back on as one of the most formative periods of their lives. Edited by Kent Baxter, Associate Professor of English at California State University, Northridge, this volume in the Critical Insights series presents a variety of new essays on the perennial theme. For readers who are studying it for the first time, a four essays survey the critical conversation regarding the theme, explore its cultural and historical contexts, and offer close and comparative readings of key texts in the genre. Readers seeking a deeper understanding of the theme can then move on to other essays that explore it in depth through a variety of critical approaches. Works discussed include Romeo and Juliet; Little Women; The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn; A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man; ...and the earth did not devour him; Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian; Jane Eyre; The Catcher in the Rye; and The Odyssesy. Among the contributors are Vincent Cheng, Gregory Eiselein, Jane Hedley, Heather James, and Steven Mintz. Rounding out the volume are a list of literary works not mentioned in the book that concern the theme of coming of age and as well as a bibliography of critical sources for readers seeking to study this timeless theme in greater depth.
Critical Insights: Gender, Sex and Sexuality by
So much of great literature centres on explorations of gender, sex, and sexuality. What does it mean to be a proper man or woman; what if one cannot be properly called either? Should one wield one's sexual power politically? What is the relation between law, divine or secular, and sexuality? What does it mean to fail at doing gender? These are just some of the questions that this volume, edited by Margaret Breen, Professor of English and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at University of Connecticut, examines. Essays will consider a range of texts, including Murasaki Shikibu's Tale of Genji, John Milton's Paradise Lost, Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and Alison Bechdel's Are You My Mother?, in light of issues of gender, sex, and sexuality, and their interplay.
Critical Insights: Good and Evil by
Great starting point for students seeking an introduction to the theme and the critical discussions surrounding it. Good and evil have existed throughout human history, and humanity has been attempting to come to grips with the idea of them for just as long. From allegorical morality tales to cathartic horror stories to all-to-real personal narratives of unspeakable events, literature has always provided an especially powerful medium for the study of good and evil. Profoundly concerned with the making and remaking of meaning, literature allows for the questioning, resisting, and refiguring of good and evil, and it does so on the levels of content and form. Literature's effects resonate: they are not only intellectual but also sensuous, and they can be immediate as well as long-lasting; unexpected and surprising. Literature engages us with ourselves, with each other, and with the world beyond us, and even when other means for understanding experience cannot. Accordingly, literature can provide a forum in which individuals can grapple with their personal questions on good and evil, experiencing them in scenes and characters they might never physically encounter. Literature - the telling of stories - also provides a crucial vehicle for memory, advocacy, and resilience. It can empower marginalised and oppressed groups, whose voices may well be silenced within other cultural and social contexts, with a crucial vehicle for the articulation of social justice issues. Edited by Margaret Breen, Professor of English and Associate Department Head at University of Connecticut, Storrs, this volume in the Critical Insights series presents a variety of new essays on the perennial theme. For readers who are studying it for the first time, a four essays survey the critical conversation regarding the theme, explore its cultural and historical contexts, and offer close and comparative readings of key texts in the genre. Readers seeking a deeper understanding of the theme can then move on to other essays that explore it in depth through a variety of critical approaches. Works discussed include King Lear; Paradise Lost; Maus; The Scarlet Letter; Jane Eyre; The Picture of Dorian Gray; The Farming of Bones; Train to Pakistan; Harry Potter and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Rounding out the volume are a list of literary works not mentioned in the book that concern the theme of good and evil and as well as a bibliography of critical sources for readers seeking to study this timeless theme in greater depth.
Critical Survey of Long Fiction: English Novelists
This work offers profiles of major writers of long fiction throughout history and the world, including analyses of their significant novels and novellas. It discusses the novel in overview essays by time period, country, ethnicity, and genre, and provides valuable resource material. Originally published in 1983 & 1984 and revised in 2000, ""Critical Survey of Long Fiction"" offers 678 profiles of major writers of long fiction throughout history and the world, including analyses of their significant novels and novellas. Overview essays discuss the novel and other long fiction by time period, country, ethnicity, and genre. This new edition includes all 581 original author essays as well as 97 new ones, expanding the set to ten volumes and covering more than 60 countries and the literary fiction from the 10th century to the 21st. All the original essays were evaluated for their currency, and 130 of them were replaced or substantially revised, in some cases by the original contributors. The sections 'Other Literary Forms', 'Achievements', 'Biography', and 'Analysis' were updated to include recent developments: new titles or awards, changes in residence or employment, and alterations in critical and popular reception. For these essays, one or more sections on specific novels or novellas were added. This edition also provides 61 informative overviews in volume 10 organized under the categories 'Long Fiction in History', 'World Long Fiction', 'North American Long Fiction', and 'Genre overviews'; eight of the essays are new. The essays are arranged alphabetically by author. Each essay begins with full data on dates and places of birth and death, and a list of the author's 'Principal Long Fiction'. A brief overview of 'Other Literary Forms' places the author in a larger literary context. Two longer sections, 'Achievements' and 'Biography', follow. 'Analysis', the heart of the essay, describes the author's work in the long fiction form and examines it in terms of themes, typical concerns, characters, and motifs; several subsections on the author's most important works illustrate these themes. Finally, a 'Further Readings' section lists authoritative, up-to-date resources. Volume 10 contains a number of useful resource aids, including a general Bibliography, a Time Line, a list of Major Awards, a Chronological List of Authors, and Category, Geographical and General Subject Indexes.
Critical Survey of Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature by
The new edition of Critical Survey of Science Fiction & Fantasy Literature, previously published as Magill's Survey of Science Fiction & Fantasy Literature and Classics of Science Fiction & Fantasy Literature, provides descriptions of hundreds of famous and well-regarded works of science fiction and fantasy, summarizing plots and analyyzing the works in terms of their contributions to literature. Organization & Format Each article discusses an individual book or series and often comments on other works by the same author. Individual articles open with basic information in a ready-reference format: author's name, his or her birth and death dates, identification of the work as either science fiction or fantasy, subgenre, type of work (such as drama, novel, novella, series, or story), time and location of plot, and date of first publication. The main body of each essay contains two sections: ""The Story"" offersa brief summary of the work's plot and identifies major characters, while ""Analysis"" offers a critical interpretation of the title and identifies the literary devices and themes used in the work. Works featured in this compilation include essays on such classics as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The War of the Worlds, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, and the Lord of the Rings trilogy, as well as entirely new articles on recent titles such as American Gods, Singularity Sky, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, Cloud Atlas, Boneshaker, Area X: The Southern Reach Trilogy, City of Stairs, and many more.
Critical Survey of Short Fiction: British, Irish and Commonwealth Writers by
All the original author essays were evaluated for their currency, and 145 of them were given substantial revision, in some cases by the original contributor. The sections "Other literary forms," "Achievements," "Biography," and "Analysis" were updated to include recent developments: new titles or awards, changes in residence or employment, and alterations in critical and popular reception. For these essays, material on one or more specific stories or collections was added. This edition adds 145 new writers. A significant effort was made to add more women; they include such notable figures as Michelle Cliff, Edwidge Danticat, Anita Desai, Judith Ortiz Cofer, Carol Shields, and Christa Wolf. Many important authors from around the world are featured for the first time in this edition; those with works in English translation include such as Daniel Alarcon, J. M. G. Le Clézio, Haruki Murakami, and Mario Vargas Llosa.
Critical Survey of Short Fiction: Topical Essays by
Essays in this set are organised into three categories: Theories, Themes & Types, History of Short Fiction, and Short Fiction Around the World. New overviews include Experimental Short Fiction, Twenty-first Century Short Fiction, and Spanish Short Fiction.
Critical Survey of World Literature, 6 Volume Set by
A unique combination of biography and critical analysis, covering major writers from outside the United States and their significant works in fiction, drama, poetry, and nonfiction. A companion to the award-winning Critical Survey of American Literature, this comprehensive, six-volume set profiles major authors of fiction, drama, poetry, and essays, each with sections on biography, general analysis, and analysis of the author's most important works-novels, short stories, poems, and works of nonfiction. The completely updated edition covers 400 writers at the heart of literary studies, and now, volumes will be arranged by world region. This edition includes new coverage of contemporary authors from around the globe. Among the new authors profiled in this set are such well-known authors as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Aravind Adiga, Reinaldo Arenas, J.G. Ballard, Alberto Fuguet, Marlon James, Yann Martel, Patrick Modiano, Orhan Pamuk, Will Self and Jorge Volpi. The literary scope of this reference work is remarkable. Plus, many original essays have been revised. The Biography, Analysis, and Summary sections are updated to include recent developments, and essays have newly updated bibliographies to provide readers with the latest information on the author's works and sources for further consultation. All essays include Discussion Topics, provocative questions that will prompt classroom debates on the writer's body of work, specific works, or life as it relates to his or her literature. Aimed at students, teachers, and members of reading groups, they can be used as paper topics or conversation points. In addition, phonetic pronunciation is provided for an author's foreign-language or unusual last name, and a Pronunciation Key appears at the beginning of all six volumes. Five helpful features can be found at the end of each volume: a Glossary; a Category List that groups authors by genre, country, gender, and ethnic identity; an Author Index that lists all authors covered in the set along with their works; a Title Index of all works covered in the set; and a Geographical List which groups the authors by country.
Cyclopedia of Literary Characters by
This comprehensive edition combines the characters profiled in the first three editions of Cyclopedia of Literary Characters (1963, 1990, 1998) along with brand new coverage of characters that appeared in works of fiction published between 2000 and 2012. This series offers readers the opportunity to become familiar with both famous and less well-known personalities from classic fiction. These character descriptions can be used alone to begin researching character development and motivation in a novel. They also can be used as a starting place for analysing an epic play or novel and its author's writing style and technique. Articles are arranged alphabetically by book title and begin with ready-reference top matter information about the author and the book, including each book's title, foreign title if originally published in a language other than English, author's name with birth and death years, date of first publication, genre, locale, time of action, and plot type. The characters are arranged by order of importance within each article. The central or key characters receive lengthy descriptions; supporting and minor figures receive less extensive treatment. Books by a given author that commonly are studied together are treated in a single article, allowing the user to study character development across the books. Heavily cross-referenced indexes allow easy access to all title covered. Pronunciation guides are provided for character names that are most likely to be mispronounced. Three indexes are found at the back of volume 5, and are designed to help the user more readily access the text. First, there is a complete list of titles, including cross-references. Second, an Author Index lists titles by author; again cross-references are included. Finally, the alphabetical Character Index lists the more than 29,000 characters described, using last names if those appear in the original works, or using first names or descriptions. The Character Index is a valuable aid in locating the author and work or works with which a particular character is associated.
Cyclopedia of Literary Places by
This brand-new edition analyzes the use of place in over 1,300 literary works. Joining the Masterplots family of literary reference, it completes the foundation of sources for the three primary approaches to literary criticism: story (Masterplots, Masterplots II), character (Cyclopedia of Literary Characters), and setting. This set contains articles on over 1,300 literary works selected titles covered in Masterplots. The selected titles are those that best lend themselves to meaningful discussion of place as a literary device. The articles contain more than 6,000 separate place entries. Each article provides a full title, author's name and vital dates, type of work, type of plot, time of plot, and date of original publication. A brief introductory paragraph explains where the work is set and comments on themes and patterns in the work's use of place. Discussions within the entries focus on how places are used as literary devices within the novels, plays, or poems in which they appear. Articles are arranged alphabetically by book title and begin with ready-reference top matter information about the author and the book, including each book's title, foreign title if originally published in a language other than English, author's name with birth and death years, date of first publication, genre, locale, time of action, and plot type. The characters are arranged by order of importance within each article. The central or key characters receive lengthy descriptions; supporting and minor figures receive less extensive treatment. Books by a given author that commonly are studied together are treated in a single article, allowing the user to study character development across the books. Heavily cross-referenced indexes allow easy access to all title covered. Pronunciation guides are provided for character names that are most likely to be mispronounced. This second edition of Cyclopedia of Literary Places focuses on such memorable works as: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne; Going After Cacciato by Tim O'Brien; No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy; M. Butterfly by David Henry Hwang; Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood; and many, many more. With so many descriptions of thousands of literary settings all in one easy-to-use reference guide, this updated edition of Cyclopedia of Literary Places is a must-have for academic libraries and literature programs around the country.
Defining Documents in World History: Nationalism and Populism by
These volumes investigate important historical documents from influential nationalist and populist movements from countries and territories around the globe. Readers will find in-depth analysis of a broad range of historical documents, historic events and speeches from leaders that shaped these ideas and movements, combined with documents that define Nationalism and Populism in today's society and how they affect politics, ethnic relations, democracy and international tensions. Nationalism & Populism provides detailed, thought-provoking analysis of: Napoleonic Code; Ottoman Constitution; William Gladstone: Irish Home Rule Speech; Chiang Kai-shek: China Cannot be Conquered; Freedom Charter of South Africa. Each in-depth chapter guides readers with historical insight and comprehension. Written by historians and teachers, several elements explain the document's historical impact and provide thoughtful critical analysis, including a Summary Overview, Defining Moment, Author Biography, Document Analysis, and Essential Themes. Plus, an historical timeline and bibliography of important supplemental readings will support readers in understanding the broader historical events covered. From the rise of Nationalism around the world in the 19th Century to the Populist themes that pervade the 2016 American Presidential election, these volumes provide thoughtful analysis of documents and speeches allowing readers to gain a better understanding of the history and current state of these movements. An important resource for the history collections of high schools, undergraduate libraries, and public libraries.
Great Lives From History: The 19th Century, 1801-1900 by
In this expanded four-volume set of the ""Great Lives from History"" series, the lives of important men and women in all areas of achievement who flourished between 1801 and 1900 are profiled in extended biographical essays. The lengthy essays provide in-depth coverage and annotated bibliographic resources with worldwide focus including strong coverage of non-Europeans and women. A total of 737 essays covering 757 major figures comprise the set, including 123 women. Among the 189 sidebars, quotations from primary source documents supplement the text throughout. Both the geographic and the occupational scope of the individuals covered in ""Great Lives from History: The 19th Century, 1801-1900"" are intentionally broad, with a view to including influential individuals worldwide. Coverage is broad in areas of achievement as well as geography, while at the same time including the recognized shapers of history essential in any liberal arts curriculum. Major world leaders appear here, as well as the giants of religious faith who were central to the century: monarchs, presidents, popes, philosophers, writers, social reformers, educators, artists, scientists, and military leaders who left their imprint on political, cultural, and spiritual institutions. Also, however, the set includes figures who have received little attention in the past, from American educator and science writer Elizabeth Cabot Agassiz to Chinese statesman and military leader Zeng Guofan. By category, the contents include figures whose achievements fall into one or more of the following areas: agriculture, architecture, art, astronomy, biology, business, chemistry, church government, communications, crime, diplomacy, economics, education, engineering, entertainment, exploration, geography, geology, government and politics, historiography, journalism, law, linguistics, literature, mathematics, medicine, military, music, patronage of the arts, philanthropy, philosophy, photography, physics, psychology, religion and theology, scholarship, science and technology, social reform, sociology, sports, theater, warfare and conquest, and women's rights. Each essay ranges from 1,500 to 3,000 words in length (roughly 3 to 5 pages) and displays standard ready-reference top matter offering easy access to biographical information. Several features distinguish this series as a whole from other biographical reference works. The front matter includes a complete list of contents; a key to pronunciation; a list of maps and sidebars. The front matter of each volume contains a section of maps displaying major regions of the world during the 19th century. There are 4 volumes; 2,944 pages; 189 sidebars, primary source quotes; 350 photographs; 737 biographies, 120 new; regional and world maps; rulers and heads of state list; pronunciation guide; cross-references; chronological list of entries; category index; geographical index; personages index; and, subject index.
Introduction to Literary Context: English Literature by
Introduction to Literary Context: English Literature provides richly detailed essays on significant works of English Literature. Coverage includes the most studied works of English Literature, both historical and contemporary, in high school and undergraduate college literature programs. Each 8-10 page concise essay examines both novels and works of short fiction through the following categories: Content Synopsis Societal Context Scientific and Technological Context Biographical Context This volume includes discussion of over 30 novels and works of short fiction, including: Utopia (Thomas More); Robinson Crusoe (Daniel Defoe); Frankenstein (Mary Shelley); Oliver Twist (Charles Dickens); The Frozen Deep (Wilkie Collins); Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (Robert Louis Stevenson); The Time Machine (H.G. Wells); (Joseph Conrad); Howard's End (E.M. Forster); And Then There Were None (Agatha Christie); The Fellowship of the Ring (J.R.R. Tolkien); The Remains of the Day (Kazuo Ishiguro); Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone (J.K. Rowling); The Man Who Would Be King (Rudyard Kipling) and The Golden Compass (Phillip Pullman). The essays in Introduction to Literary Context: English Literature also include a list of Additional Contemporary Novels, Discussion Questions, and Essay Ideas to help students get the most out of their study of these important works. This new Series will be a must-have addition to all high school and undergraduate literature departments.
Introduction to Literary Context: World Literature by
Introduction to Literary Context: World Literature provides richly detailed essays on significant works of literature from around the world that are studied by high school and undergraduate college students. With coverage of both novels and works of short fiction, the essays provide an in-depth examination of the most studied, historical and contemporary works of literature from around the world. Each 8-10 page concise essay examines each work through the following categories: Content Synopsis Societal Context Scientific & Technological Context Biographical Context This volume includes discussion of over 40 novels and works of short fiction, including:The Picture of Dorian Gray(Oscar Wilde); Out of Africa (Isak Dinesen); The Year of Living Dangerously (Christopher Koch); Schindler's List (Thomas Keneally); Ulysses and Dubliners (James Joyce); The Twyborn Affair (Patrick White); The House of Spirits (Isabel Allende); At Swim-Two-Birds (Flann O'Brien); The Metamorphis (Franz Kafka); The God of Small Things (Arundhati Roy) and Candide, Or, Optimism (Volatire). The essays in Introduction to Literary Context: World Literature also include a list of Additional Contemporary Novels, Discussion Questions, and Essay Ideas to help students get the most out of their study of these works.
