The widely divergent voices in this collection are united by their common interest in the American literary heritage and by their intention to redefine that heritage by altering our angle of vision or forcing us to re-examine some traditional values. Unabashedly eclectic in methodology, subject matter, and technique, the essays collected in "Value and Vision in American Literature" nonetheless share a common intention to recover the neglected, reassess the familiar, or challenge the orthodox.
Through their various (and sometimes contrasting) critical points of view, these essays call...

While over the past four hundred years numerous opinions have been voiced as to Shakespeare's identity, these eleven essays widen the scope of the investigation by regarding Shakespeare, his world, and his works in their interaction with one another. Instead of restricting the search for bits and pieces of evidence from his works that seem to match what he may have experienced, these essays focus on the contemporary milieu--political developments, social and theater history, and cultural and religious pressures--as well as the domestic conditions within Shakespeare's family that shaped his...

While over the past four hundred years numerous opinions have been voiced as to Shakespeare's identity, these eleven essays widen the scope of the investigation by regarding Shakespeare, his world, and his works in their interaction with one another. Instead of restricting the search for bits and pieces of evidence from his works that seem to match what he may have experienced, these essays focus on the contemporary milieu--political developments, social and theater history, and cultural and religious pressures--as well as the domestic conditions within Shakespeare's family that shaped his...