Product Description: Featuring summaries of postmodernism's greatest literary, cultural, and political champions written by a diverse group of scholars, Postmodernism: The Key Figures captures the dominance of a theoretical paradigm that has done nothing less than re-define the very terms of our knowledge and experience...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Tackling literary theory for the first time can seem a daunting task, but it is also one of the most rewarding. This accessible guide provides the ideal first step in understanding theory, as the author: * leads you through the major approaches to literature which are signaled by the term "literary theory" * places each critical movement in its historical (and often political) context * illustrates theory in practice with examples from much-read texts * suggests further reading for those especially interested in a particular critical approaches * shows not only that theory can make sense but that it can radically change the way you read. Covering all the basics and much more, this is the ideal book for anyone interested in how we read and why that matters. (view table of contents)

Product Description: Most of the essays collected in this volume deal with theoretical issues that dominate the international debate on Postmodernism, issues such as the shifting nature of the concept, the problem of periodization and the problem of historicity...read more