Literary Theory: An Anthology

by Julie Rivkin (Editor), Michael Ryan (Editor)

The new edition of this bestselling literary theory anthology has been thoroughly updated to include influential texts from innovative new areas, including disability studies, eco-criticism, and ethics.

Covers all the major schools and methods that make up the dynamic field of literary theory, from Formalism to Postcolonialism Expanded to include work from Stuart Hall, Sara Ahmed, and Lauren Berlant. Pedagogically enhanced with detailed editorial introductions and a comprehensive glossary of terms

Genres: Nonfiction, Theory, Reference, Literary Criticism, Literature, Philosophy, Anthologies

1648 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Julie H. Rivkin is an American literary critic and professor of English at Connecticut College since 1982. She received her B.A. and PhD from Yale University.

Rivkin is best known for her publications on literary theory and Henry James, and has published several works on both subjects.

Reviews

[Craig Smillie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I HAVE read this cover to cover. I picked it up on my daughter's shelf and started looking - and was amazed to find I could barely understand a single sentence! As an English teacher I was surprised to find a whole other way of looking at text since my University days. I was horrified that none of my lecturers had even referenced any of this material in the seventies. So... I self-educated myself - struggling through all the material - and then just started going to the original sources.Fascinating stuff - but yeah - a struggle.

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ya, can anyone ever say that they've read a monstrous anthology like this? OK, I've not read all of it. And I have already forgotten half of what I read. But I know I spent more than 100 hours in this book, and what I read changed how I read—mostly for the better. Is that good enough?

[Jodi Lu · Rating 1 out of 5]

Everyone needs to get over themselves here. And when that's done, can someone explain the stupid postmodern cover art to me?

[Max Cannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I climbed this mountain, okay? I did not stop for the views however, and was carried on backs stronger than mine at points. I was told I made it to the top and then was carried on a stretcher all the way down. But I will—for the rest of my life—tell everyone that I climbed that damned mountain.

[Ty · Rating 1 out of 5]

Poorly edited by people who don’t seem to understand theory in the first place, this selection of resources is plagued by haphazard and ill-chosen redactions, which are not even indicated by ellipses. One would be better served by buying the Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism and just reading selections of theorists in each section.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This anthology is a pretty good introduction to the basic concepts of literary theory and the diverse schools of thought on the subject. It contains excerpts from some of the most famous essays/speeches on the topic, abridged for the purposes of the text and the course. At times, the language of the individual writers is confusing, so I found myself reading and re-reading several chapters to make sure I took away everything I needed to learn. This one's a tough read, but offers a lot of helpful info to any new literary theorist or student.

[Arleigh Rodgers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely did not read this whole thing cover to cover but for the sake of keeping track of my reading this year I’m including it heheh

[Sola Ogunbayo]

Great book

[Jake Schroeder · Rating 1 out of 5]

I guess it’s not the editors’ fault that most theory is written by people who hate literature. Brutal.

[Sarah Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I challenged myself to read this cover to cover for the sake of improving my teaching, I thought I'd really struggle with boredom (at times, I did). But overall this is informative, interesting, and surprisingly fascinating at times. I've never been a fan of literary theory, but I am slowly being converted. However, the language is often very difficult to understand due to its overly scholarly tone.

[Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

I must admit, I have only read about 85% of this anthology. It comprises a collection of essays and excerpts from various philosophers of literature or theorists who touched on literature (like Marx, Freud, etc.) It is the one non-scriptural book that has brought me the most satisfaction through life (in the short-term and long-term). The ideas contained therein are near sacred to myself since they are now part of me in many senses. I have often thought this book is one that any intelligent person should read before embarking on any career that involves making decisions that affect society. Literary theory is brilliant because it acts as a lens giving insight into our nature since it analyses what we extol as great literature by asking why. That practice is abundantly revelatory and one that I love. Sometimes complex but always rewarding.

[Ad Astra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really good collection of essays, whose scope bends beyond just literary theory, but many of the emerging thoughts and ideas that surrounded the beginning of this field. Although I haven't necessarily finished it, I've read a lot of the portions in here for discussion and class. Some of the essays are incredibly dense and it takes me about 2 or 3 times to read something to form ideas and comprehend what is being said. Definitely worth checking out some of the Derrida or Lacan about power structures or the nature of words and writing.

[Cait Cordova · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the finest anthologies I have ever had the pleasure of perusing. Not only is it a perfectly balanced collection of stories, biographies, excerpts, and factoids, it's eclectic nature allows all of these different pieces to compliment each other as the reader learns and reads more. From Achebe to Derrida, this anthology is a wonderful introduction to anyone interested in the ever changing world of literary theory.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a handy volume to have around, except for being actually physically handy. It weighs in at pretty hefty, but it's packed with the seminal works of theory that have informed all the major schools, from formalism to reader response to gender studies. Sooo helpful, and there are still a handful of pieces we didn't read for class that I'll have to go back to and check out.

[melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basically reading this damn thing cover to cover for my grad class on lit theory. Using in tandem with the Norton Theory and Criticism anthology.

It's not a horrible anthology, but there were too many so-called seminal pieces that I had to read in the Norton. The chapter introductions were usually useful.

[S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Covers a wide breadth of theories. I haven't read this cover-to-cover, but went through quite a bit for ENGL 251B. At times it's challenging to read, but it was one of my favourite textbooks and I sometimes reference it years later.

[Faye Hollidaye · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beast of a book, for sure. It can be very dry at times, but there are quite a few more-than-simply-interesting inclusions. I recommend if you’re looking to expand your horizons of literary interpretation.

[Monica · Rating 1 out of 5]

I hate that you can't simple unclick the 'currently reading' button on this website. I'm not going to start this book because its a heffer, and im lazy.
That is all.

[Daniel Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

9/10 made me hate everyone and everything.

[Joseph Spence Sr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author: Multiple
Editors: Julie Rivkin and Michael Ryan
Title: Literary Theory An Anthology
Country Published: USA
Page Length: 1640 Pages
Copyright: 2017
Date Published: Feb. 2017
Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell, 3rd Edition
Language: English
Sold by: Amazon
ISBN: 398-1118707852
Paperback Cost: $31:20
eBook Cost: $62:60

Reviewer: His Excellency, Ambassador, Commissioner, Professor, Dr. Joseph S. Spence Sr., the USA (Epulaeryu Master)!

This is an exciting literary book. I love the essence of the articles and the teaching points. It’s very inspiring and draws the reading into the lines for a deep understanding. The historical context is very educational. I especially love the section on “Defamiliarization” by Russian author Viktor Shklovsky. It’s very enlightening. The comparative analysis in the section regarding “Formalism” by Julie Rivkin and Michael Ryan is very excellent. I love the analysis and difference between the English lexicon and poetry. They are completely opposite, which many are not knowledgeable about and presume that English and poetry are the same. This chapter is a literary awakening. The “Tools for Reading Poetry” section by Herman Rapaport is very inspiring. The variety of tools and methods available for reading and understanding poetry are just phenomenal. The only section I had some difficulty reading is ��Colonization.” It shows the brutality of slavery and others' conquest against their will and things imposed upon them. This book is truly remarkable in Literary Theory and Culture.

Reviewer:

His Excellency, Ambassador, Commissioner, Honorable, Professor Dr. Joseph S. Spence, Sr, (Epulaeryu Master), authored ten poetry books and over 200 peer-reviewed articles. His writings appeared globally. He has membership in various international honor societies. He taught at Bryant and Stratton University and Marquette University. He retired from the U. S. Army as an officer and is a Goodwill Ambassador for Arkansas, USA (Commissioned by former United States President William Jefferson Clinton). He created “Epulaeryu,” “Linking Pin Sonnet,” and “Seventh Heaven” poetry forms while studying English literature, creative writing, African Diaspora, Japanese linguistics, and poetry at the University of Wisconsin. He has received numerous poetry awards worldwide.

Some of his poems are published in Chinese, French, Polish, Spanish, Japanese, Arabic, Jamaikan Patwa/Patios, Scottish Gaelic, Nigerian Yoruba, Bengali, Assam, Hindi, Croatian, and Rastafari languages. He is a life member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Golden Key International Honour Society, and other organizations, and resides in Wisconsin, USA.

[Mark Patterson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a decent anthology for someone's first foray into critical theory. The usefulness of this text would be elevated, however, if they were to update the reading selections for some of the critical theories. Gender studies/queer theory is the field where I have the most knowledge, so that's where my critique will focus, but classmates and colleagues have also expressed dissatisfaction with the post-colonial, critical race, and ecocritical selections as well.

Although I recognize that feminist and gender/queer studies do have considerable overlap in some areas, the delineation of these theoretical approaches was not well done in regard to the separation of readings for these areas*. That aside, the most problematic issue with the gender/queer studies section was that it was lacking in diversity and fairly out of date. If memory serves, all the essays in the queer studies section were 20-30 years old (one of the complaints common to my colleagues' critiques of other theories as well). While the anthology does include foundational texts from Butler, Halbertsam, Sedgwick, and others, these readings give a somewhat inaccurate idea of the direction the field has moved since these texts were first published; in fact, some of these authors have published newer works that update and augment their original arguments. Diversity is also missing from the queer reading selections. The selected essays primarily address matters related gay and lesbian identity while failing to cover genderqueer, bisexual, or transgender (among others) issues. Of course, the included essays critique the idea of gendered and sexual binaries, but updated and more diverse readings would be especially beneficial to undergrads, newcomers to queer studies, or anyone seeking to quickly gain a broad survey of queer theoretical approaches.

Despite my strong critiques, this anthology is still much better than several other anthologies I have used and surveyed. One particular strength of this text is its organization. (See "*" above for the exception.) I also appreciated Rivkin & Ryan's introductory notes in each section; the notes not only give the needed context for the selected excerpts, but they also gave helpful insight to challenging essays.

[sophie]

holy @!?$ 1200+ pages over the span of twelve weeks.

so many different theories, so many thinkers, so many ways of looking at literature, art, culture, and meaning of language.

probably wont be able to read the same ever again as my brain is FRIED and full of thoughts. And I probably didn’t fully grasp a good CHUNK of it lol.

some of my favourite chapters/ideas:

-Jacques Derrida’s différance,

-Butler’s idea about the performance of gender,

- Freud’s (dkm) theories on the Uncanny (mostly with the idea of animism, the double, and familiar becoming unfamiliar. maaaaaybe not the castration complex call me crazy, i know!),

-Toni Morrison’’s essay,

- Deconstruction,

- Roland Barthes’ “Mythologies” and especially “Death of the Author”,

-Hinrichsen’s “Trauma Studies and the Literature of the US South”

thank god for ebooks because lugging this THING around to class every week would have been the end for me.

[Carmen Tudor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great intro to lit theory for those who need access to a little bit of everything and everyone all at once. I read it alongside the newer edition with the black cover as my white-cover version has a slightly reduced TOC. A word to the wise: if you happen to peruse it late at night as bedtime reading, the white version will hurt less when you drop it on your face. So I hear.

My only criticism is that Rivkin & Ryan's section chapters occasionally get lost in some convoluted language choices when they should be elucidating the concepts for those new to theory (as I assume the main readership is). A few times I ended up shouting 'What are you trying to say?' at the book and heading to Google for insight. Otherwise, it contains all the best known articles you're likely to need for introductory studies in lit theory.

[Becky Filipek · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not read this entire book, but I read about 30 of the contained essays for an online graduate level Literary Theory course.

Most of the essays did not immediately connect to literature for me, and many of them seemed to be overly scholarly and difficult to understand. Maybe if the class had focused on more theories than just psychoanalysis, feminism, Marxism, and postmodernism, then I would possibly have enjoyed and understood what I read better than I did.

[libremilia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can sort of appreciate these 1300 pages of theoretical essays, currently sitting like a brick on my desk. The Russian Formalism essays, new criticism essays, and historicism essays are such good stuff, but then the French Triumvirate (Foucault, Derrida, and Lacan) comes in with some lavish nonsensical ideas. I am, unfortunately, put off by the tedious word games and anti-intellectual gibberish of some of this. I mean, it's theory, so . . .

[Sky Hull · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are an English major, minor, or English Ed major --- PURCHASE THIS BOOK! I have the Third Edition and it is one of my pride and joys. Literary Theory is a hard course and subject matter to wrap your brain around, but this resource is literally so incredible. It has gotten me through college and the writing of my senior thesis. I love this big ol' book with my whole heart. It also just has some really great essays to read in it. Would highly recommend.

[Madison · Rating 3 out of 5]

A semi-decent anthology, however no appendix?? Also I am not sure I agreed wih all the statements in their introduction chapters before introducing grouos of theory. Specifically as their femonist sections was limited to a specific time period. Felt like some useful theorists were missing. But my theory class is over and I survived with this so.

[Derrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

At just over 1,000 pages or so, this anthology does a pretty good job at summarizing the lit theory landscape. Not all the essays contained are great, but almost none are ‘bad.’

My MAJOR complaint is the complete void of Native American lit theory. No Erdrich v.s. Silko commentary? No Vizenor postmodern works? Not even Womack’s Red on Red?!?!

[Maddy · Rating 3 out of 5]

DNF. I read about 150 pages for one of my grad classes on Literary Theory. I might eventually read the entire book, but literary theory is not my favorite genre for free reading so rest of these articles will probably be put aside for a later date.

Some of the articles I read were incredibly thought provoking while others weren't, so as with most collections, it varies.

[Stephen]

It is a comprehensive collection of ideas and essays of leftist thought from the 20th century. Many of the works lack references but that is not the fault of the editors of this anthology. It could be described as the ultimate rabbit hole of abstract ideas very distant from reality as well as many grievances that may or may not be authentic.