One of the most exciting developments in recent literary studies bases interpretation on a new understanding of bodily aspects of text. Contributors Mary Carruthers, Michael Camille, Seth Lerer, and Carolyn Dinshaw bring various disciplinary perspectives to this intriguing subject.

The method employed here views the body as a text to be read. Though the approaches of these essays are widely varied, three concerns figure and refigure themselves throughout the book: the gendered body and the copied book as locus of pain, pleasure, and desire. They will be of immense interest to...