The American theorists Henry James, Lionel Trilling and Wayne C. Booth have revolutionized our understanding of narrative or story-telling, and have each championed the novel as an art form. Concepts from their work have become part of the fabric of novel criticism today, influencing theorists, authors and readers alike.
Emphasizing the crucial relationship between the work of these three critics, Peter Rawlings explores their understanding of the novel form, and investigates their ideas on:

For readers encountering Gramsci for the first time, Steve Jones covers key elements of his thought through detailed discussion and studies the historical context of the theorist's thought, offers examples of putting Gramsci's ideas into practice in the analysis of contemporary culture and evaluates responses to his work.

Including British, European and American examples, key topics covered here include:

* culture
* hegemony
* intellectuals
* crisis
* Americanization.

Gramsci's work invites people to think beyond simplistic oppositions by recasting...

David Bell's volume will introduce key ideas and concerns within cybertheory, then move on to discuss the major concepts developed by the three theorists --Donna Haraway, Sherry Turkle and Sean Cubitt, covering Haraway's foundational work on cyborgs, Sherry Turkle's contribution to debates about identity in cyberspace, and Sean Cubitt's development of cybertheory into the realm of aesthetics and visual culture.

Feminist film theory has been one of the, if not the, most important strands within film theory. Shohini Chaudhuri's book will focus on the work of three leading feminist film theorists - Laura Mulvey, Kaja Silverman and Teresa De Lauretis, whose working (in keeping with the format for generic RCT volumes) represents key schools of thought or emphases within feminist film theory. Key ideas explored through a discussion of the work of these three thinkers include the male gaze, the female voice, technologies of gender, fantasy and body horror, and masculinity in crisis.

Best known for his theories of ideology and its impact on politics and culture, Louis Althusser revolutionized Marxist theory. His writing changed the face of literary and cultural studies, and continues to influence political modes of criticism such as feminism, postcolonialism and queer theory. Beginning with an introduction to the context of Marxist theory, this book goes on to explain: - how Althusser interpreted and developed Marx's work - the political implications of reading - ideology and its significance for culture and criticism - Althusser's aesthetic criticism of literature,...

Homi K. Bhabha is one of the most highly renowned figures in contemporary post-colonial studies. This volume explores his writings and their influence on postcolonial theory, introducing in clear and accessible language the key concepts of his work, such as "ambivalence," "mimicry," "hybridity" and "translation." David Huddart draws examples from a range of fields including cultural theory, film and literary studies in order to illustrate the practical application of Bhabha's thought. Offering a starting point for readers new to this crucial theorist's sometimes complex texts, or support for...

This clear, student-friendly guidebook considers Fanon's key texts and theories, looking at: postcolonial theory's appropriation of psychoanalysis; anxieties around cultural nationalisms and the rise of native consciousness; postcoloniality's relationship with violence and separatism.

Since the publication of his mammoth work, Being and Time, Martin Heidegger has remained one of the most influential figures in contemporary thought, and is a key influence for modern literary and cultural theory. This guidebook provides an ideal entry-point for readers new to Heidegger, outlining such issues and concepts as: the limits of 'theory' the history of being the origin of the work of art language the literary work poetry and the political Heidegger's involvement with Nazism. Fully updated throughout and featuring a new section on enviromental thought and ecocriticism, this...

Paul Gilroy has been a controversial force at the forefront of debates around race, nation, and diaspora. Working across a broad range of disciplines, Gilroy has argued that racial identities are historically constructed, formed by colonization, slavery, nationalist philosophies, and consumer capitalism.

Paul Williams introduces Gilroy s key themes and ideas, including:

• the essential concepts, including ethnic absolutism, civilizationism, postcolonial melancholia, iconization, and the black Atlantic
• analysis of Gilroy s...