Literary Theory A Reintroduction

Literary Theory: A Reintroduction introduces the current state of theory by placing it in its social, historical, and institutional contexts. Focuses on the period preceding the 'theory movement' of the 1970s and 1980s as well as the aftermath Asks questions about how and why literary theory evolved in the 20th century Discusses key figures such as F.R. Leavis, Raymond Williams, Jacques Derrida, Michel Foucault, Judith Butler and Alain Badiou Examines the influence of a wide range of topics in the field, from the Cold War to the culture wars

David Ayers is Reader in Modernism and Critical Theory, and Director of the Centre for Modern Poetry at the University of Kent. His publications include Wyndham Lewis and Western Man (1992), English Literature of the 1920s (1999), and Modernism: A Short Introduction (2004).