Covering the key theoretical approaches in modern literary theory, this book offers an authoritative selection of essays and documents with helpful introductory commentary. It includes texts which do not deal directly with literature yet have a fundamental importance to the discipline from thinkers including Marx, Freud and de Beauvoir.

This book covers the key theoretical approches in modern literary theory, and includes essays and texts that are essential reading for any student of critical theory. It includes sections on Formalism and Structuralism, Feminism, Marxism, Postmodernism, and Postcolonialism, and for the first time, includes works by authors such as de Beauvoir and Freud, who although not focusing specifically on literature, make a significant contribution to the landscape of literary theory.