An Introduction to Critical Theory

Surveys key theorists in twentieth-century literary, cultural and historical theory.



Each chapter considers different theoretical movements within the corpus of Critical Theory. The text covers the following key critical theories with detailed explications of key texts in each area: Russian Formalism, Structuralism, Semiotics, Post-structuralism and Deconstruction, Psychoanalysis, Cultural Studies and Postcolonial Theory. Each chapter provides an overview of a critical movement and contextualizes its practitioners within a particular historical and social context. Each chapter also provides a detailed explication of several seminal texts, including lengthy explication of key passages and ideas.