Watter idee sal blindes van 'n olifant he? Miskien dink hulle dis 'n muur, 'n pilaar of 'n slang. Dit is di? analogie wat uitgebuit word in hierdie eerste Afrikaanse inleidende handboek tot die literatuurwetenskap. Die letterkunde is immers ook 'n omvattende verskynsel en die algemene literatuurwetenskap 'n veelsydige dissipline. Die letterkunde word dus vanuit verskillende teoretiese hoeke beskou. Moderne teoretiese sienings (bv. New Criticism, Nuwe Historisme en Postkolonialisme) word verduidelik deur 'n klassieke teks, Jan Rabie se Droogte, deurlopend m.b.v. hierdie teoriee te belig. Gerigte vrae oor ander Suid-Afrikaanse kortverhale help verder om hierdie nuwer teoriee vir plaaslike lesers bruikbaar te maak. Daarna word basiese vrae oor die literatuurwetenskap behandel. Die boek is 'n onontbeerlike hulpmiddel vir elke ernstige letterkundestudent en 'n moet vir elke onderwyser en dosent wat op hoogte wil bly met ontwikkelinge in die literatuurstudie.

In the barrio of Fresno, California, the Molina family is living out the Chicano version of the American Dream. Father William works on an assembly line while his wife, the well-bred beauty Rachel, stays at home to care for their three children--and to keep them off the streets. But when William is offered an opportunity to enter the ranks of the middle class, he quits his job, packs up the Ford Maverick, and transports the Molinas to a brand-new world: the small town of Medford, Oregon. So begins the dramatic transformation of youngest son and aspiring actor Joey, who assumes the role of a vato loco gang member in order to win the respect and fear of his gringo classmates. While Joey tries to make himself popular with tall tales of guns and glory, his father embarks on a bitter struggle to develop his career and combat age-old cultural stereotypes. How William's extraordinary efforts and deepening despair affect the lives of his loved ones is at the heart of this haunting and incandescent novel--one destined to become a classic in Chicano-American literature.

Construction of identity has constituted a vigorous source of debate in the Caribbean from the early days of colonization to the present, and under the varying guises of independence, departmentalization, dictatorship, overseas collectivity and occupation. Given the strictures and structures of colonialism long imposed upon the colonized subject, the (re)makings of identity have proven anything but evident when it comes to determining authentic expressions and perceptions of the postcolonial self. By way of close readings of both constructions in literature and the construction of literature, Architextual Authenticity: Constructing Literature and Literary Identity in the French Caribbean proposes an original, informative frame of reference for understanding the long and ever-evolving struggle for social, cultural, historical and political autonomy in the region. Taking as its point of focus diverse canonical and lesser-known texts from Guadeloupe, Martinique and Haiti published between 1958 and 2013, this book examines the trope of the house (architecture) and the meta-textual construction of texts (architexture) as a means of conceptualizing and articulating how authentic means of expression are and have been created in French-Caribbean literature over the greater part of the past half-century-whether it be in the context of the years leading up to or following the departmentalization of France's overseas colonies in the 1940's, the wrath of Hurricane Hugo in 1989, or the devastating Haiti earthquake of 2010.

An Open Access edition of this book is available on the Liverpool University Press website and through Knowledge Unlatched. The Argentine Jorge Luis Borges, one of the most sophisticated writers of the twentieth century, suffered from sexual impotence. This emotionally overwhelming condition shaped his literary experience in ways that have not been understood. Until now Borges has largely been considered an asexual author who could not read, think, or write about desire and sex, but in this book historian Ariel de la Fuente shows that sexuality was a major preoccupation for him, both as a reader and as an author. De la Fuente has conducted an extensive literary investigation in Borges's figurative erotic library and presents for the first time a study of the relationship between Borges's sexual biography, his erotic readings, and the writing of desire and sex in his work. The author explores relevant literary questions while employing a historical method and the book is truly an interdisciplinary study at the intersection of history with Latin American, European, and Eastern literatures, poetry, philosophy, and sexuality. Argued with clarity, Borges, Desire, and Sex offers an unexpected perspective on the literature and figure of a world-wide influential author.

Die mens se kommer oor die omgewing is een van die dominante temas van die laaste dekades van die 20ste eeu. In die Weste (en in Europa) het omgewingsbewustheid wyd posgevat en selfs 'n modeverskynsel geword. Ofskoon daar in bree verband nog nie genoeg begrip vir die mens se bydrae tot die krisis en sy reaksie op die globale veranderinge is nie, geniet hierdie kwessies toenemend aandag in die kunste. Ook in die letterkunde kan die "groen gesprek" as 'n belangrike groeipunt beskou word.

Hierdie title gee 'n basiese inleiding tot die moderne dramateorie asook praktiese riglyne oor hoe om 'n dramateks te analiseer, en is 'n gids vir dosente en studente. Die invloed van die opvoeringsgerigtheid van 'n drama op aspekte soos die karakters, die tyd en ruimte asook die drama se struktuur, word behandel. Die teorie word deurgaans verduidelik en geillustreer aan die hand van voorbeelde uit meer as 30 bekende Afrikaanse dramas.

Both lecturers and students will find this book useful as it gives a basic introduction to modern drama theory as well as practical guidelines on the analysis of a play. The influence of the performance orientation of a play on aspects such as the characters, time and space, as well as the play's structure, is dealt with. The theory is constantly explained and illustrated by means of examples taken from more than 30 well-known English South African plays.

The classic reference work--an invaluable sourcebook for poets and readers

A Critical Introduction proposes a new didactic and dynamic way of reading the great twentieth-century poet Fernando Pessoa (18881935). The aim is to present a holistic vision of this complex poet, promoting his literary geniality in order to better understand his orthonymic-heteronymic poetry. A guiding motif is Pessoas own Be as plural as the universe. In leading the reader through the poets published literary work Jeronimo Pizarro allows an intimate perspective, alongside an academic one, to better understand the workings of Pessoas mind and life. Discussion centres on the dilemmas an editor faces when editing posthumously. A prime question revolves around the genesis of Pessoas heteronyms and orthonyms. Understanding is revealed by a critical perspective on the unity that exists in all of Pessoas literary work. Interpretations of the poems; explanation of the profundity of The Book of Disquiet; and his isms of Paulism, Caeirism, Intersectionism and Cessationism, are discussed and analysed. The issue of Pessoas astrological predictions his birth year and the effects of this event on Portuguese national history is debated. A chapter is devoted to the effect that translating Omar Khayyams Rubaiyat had on the poet. The work contains eleven texts written by Pessoa in English (including an autobiographical note from 1935), a substantive dual language bibliography, and is highly illustrated with facsimiles of the poets own written material. A Critical Introduction is essential reading for all scholars and students of Pessoas literary output and life circumstances. The work has been written to appeal to cultural studies (arts and aesthetics) enthusiasts in general at both undergraduate and postgraduate level, but given the engagement of new critical material it also provides a structured resource for future research.

Why, in the minds of most Americans, are Latinas still thought of as maids, seductresses, and booty-shaking salsa divas?

Never has the concept of Latina identity been more relevant. Also, never has there been a new generation of Latinas so ready to say what they mean and even criticize the Latina generation that preceded them. Until now.

In "Border-Line Personalities," twenty writers share their poignant and wickedly funny stories about fighting with their mothers, struggling with speaking Spanish, and dealing with the men who've done them wrong, among a myriad of other topics. In the end, each essay encompasses a different point of view, lending credence to the theory that no one can label any one item, idea, or person more Latina than the other.

Questions posed to Latinas of all ages in "Border-Line Personalities": Why do many of us often feel more American than Latina? How important is Spanish, really? Do we all really fit under one cultural umbrella? When thinking about having children, do we really have to consider being stay-at-home moms as most of us were raised to believe was law, or can Latinas even consider the possibility of raising children while working? What do we do when we fall in love with someone (male or female) outside our culture?

What secrets lie at the heart of America?

Discover the hidden reality behind Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol . . . and America itself. Just as there is only one Dan Brown, there is also only one secrets team that has achieved worldwide bestselling success by exposing the truth beneath Brown's bestselling novels. Dan Burstein and Arne de Keijzer have gathered together world-class authorities--from scientist Richard Dawkins, noetics expert Lynne McTaggart, and religious scholar Karen Armstrong to journalist Jeff Sharlet (author of The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at theHeart of American Power), mathematician and science historian Amir Aczel, FBI consultant Michael Barkun, 33 Freemason Arturo de Hoyos, and a host of renowned philosophers, symbologists, code breakers, art historians, writers, thinkers, and experts on the occult--to give readers the essential tools to understand the conspiracies, codes, cutting-edge science, cultural controversies, and suppressed history at the center of The Lost Symbol . . . and the very founding of the United States of America.

Which Founding Fathers were members of secret societies?

What is the true background of the Ancient Mysteries?

Does The Lost Symbol have a hidden religious agenda?

What is the actual role of Freemasons in American history?

What do the hidden codes embedded in the novel tell us?

The police don't show up on Easy Rawlins's doorstep until the third girl dies. It's Los Angeles, 1956, and it takes more than one murdered black girl before the cops get interested. Now they need Easy. As he says: "I was worth a precinct full of detectives when the cops needed the word in the ghetto." But Easy turns them down. He's married now, a father -- and his detective days are over. Then a white college coed dies the same brutal death, and the cops put the heat on Easy: If he doesn't help, his best friend is headed for jail. So Easy's back, walking the midnight streets of Watts and the darker, twisted avenues of a cunning killer's mind....

Oscar Wilde had one of literary history's most explosive love affairs with Lord Alfred "Bosie" Douglas. In 1895, Bosie's father, the Marquess of Queensberry, delivered a note to the Albemarle Club addressed to "Oscar Wilde posing as sodomite." With Bosie's encouragement, Wilde sued the Marquess for libel. He not only lost but he was tried twice for "gross indecency" and sent to prison with two years' hard labor. With this publication of the uncensored trial transcripts, readers can for the first time in more than a century hear Wilde at his most articulate and brilliant. The Real Trial of Oscar Wilde documents an alarmingly swift fall from grace; it is also a supremely moving testament to the right to live, work, and love as one's heart dictates.

Tang poetry is one of the most valuable cultural inheritances of Chinese history. Its distinctive aesthetics, delicate language and diverse styles constitute great literature in itself, as well as a rich topic for literary study. This two-volume set is the masterpiece of Professor Lin Geng, one of China's most respected literary historians, and reflects decades of active research into Tang poetry, covering the "Golden Age" of Chinese poetry (618-907 CE). In the first volume, the author provides a general understanding of poetry in the "High Tang" era from a range of perspectives. Starting with an indepth discussion of the Romantic tradition and historical context, the author focuses on poetic language patterns, Youth Spirit, maturity symbols, and prototypes of poetry. The author demonstrates that the most valuable part of Tang poetry is how it can provide people with a new perspective on every aspect of life. The second volume focuses on the prominent Tang poets and poems. Beginning with an introduction to the "four greatest poets"-Li Bai, Du Fu, Wang Wei, and Bai Juyi-the author discusses their subjects, language, influence, and key works. The volume also includes essays on a dozen masterpieces of Tang poetry, categorized by topics such as love and friendship, aspirationsand seclusion, as well as travelling and nostalgia. As the author stresses, Tang poetry is worth rereading because it makes us invigorate our mental wellbeing, leaving it powerful and full of vitality. This book will appeal to researchers and students of Chinese literature, especially of classical Chinese poetry. People interested in Chinese culture will also benefit from the book.

Robin Jenkins's greatest novel is a powerful examination of good and evil, set against the backdrop of a Scottish estate during World War II. With its themes of class-conflict, war, evil and envy, this is a towering work of fiction that remains as relevant today as when it was first published. Suspenseful, dark and unforgettable, it is one of the masterpieces of modern Scottish literature. Iain Crichton Smith's SCOTNOTE study guide is a skilful and intelligent guide to the themes and characters of the novel, and explores the religious, philosophical and moral questions that it poses. Suitable for senior school pupils and students of all ages.

The noted British literary scholar turns her attention to the rarely examined topic of narrative in the plays and offers some new insight into the playwright's craft. Shakespeare makes narrative theatrical and it is as prominent in his craft and language as characterization and imagery. Hardy analyzes key structures, including reflexive narrative and the narrative compoundings used to begin and end plays. She also examines narrative subtleties in the works of Plutarch, Holinshed, Brooke, and Sidney that Shakespeare read. Finally, she explores common narrative techniques -- memory, forecast, and gendered story -- and extensively analyzes these issues in three plays: Hamlet, King Lear, and Macbeth.

From a Pulitzer-Prize winning biographer, the most revealing, fascinating, and important biography of one of our greatest literary figures.

Oh, how the French love love! For hundreds of years, they have championed themselves as guides to the art de l'amour through their literature, paintings, songs, and cinema. A French man or woman without amorous desire is considered defective, like someone missing the sense of smell or taste. Now revered scholar Marilyn Yalom intimately examines the tenets of this culture's enduring gospel of romance.

Basing her delightfully erudite findings on her extensive readings of French literature, as well as memories of her personal experiences in la belle France, Yalom explores the many nuances of love as it has evolved over the centuries, from the Middle Ages to the present. Following along, step-by-step, on her romance-tinged literary detective hunt, the reader discovers how the French invented love, how they have kept it vibrant for more than nine centuries, what is unique in the French love experience, and what is universal.

Gene Wolfe is one of the most important American writers to emerge in the latter half of the twentieth century. The fact that he publishes in the field of fantastic literature (which includes horror, science, and speculative fiction) has meant that his significance has been largely unacknowledged beyond and, at times, even within the genre. Nevertheless, he remains the author of some of the most stylistically distinct, structurally complex, and intellectually invigorating imaginative fiction of recent years. This collection of interviews and essays places under one cover an amazing selection of difficult-to-find resources for the avid Gene Wolfe reader and scholar. Essays concern the nature of writing, including character, structure and the profession of the writer. Also included are a series of interviews with Wolfe and the holy grail of New Sun aficionados: Books in the "Book of the New Sun", previously only available in a rare small-press volume. This collection will inspire fans and scholars alike to commit themselves to debating new interpretations of Wolfe's fiction.

ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults * New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age A riveting, scorching--and hilarious--autobiography by the award-winning author of Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes and Deadline. From trying to impress a member of the girls' softball team (with disastrous dental results) to enduring the humiliation of his high school athletic club initiation (olives and oysters play unforgettable roles), Chris Crutcher's memoir of the tricky road to adulthood is candid, disarming, laugh-out-loud funny, relevant, and never less than riveting. He vividly describes a temper that was always waiting to trip him up even as it sustained him through some of the most memorable mishaps any child has survived. And how did this guy (he lifted his brother's homework through the entire tenth grade) ever become a writer, not to mention the author of fourteen critically acclaimed books for young people? The frontier may be mild, but the book is not. Fans of Tara Westover's Educated, Jack Gantos's Hole in My Life, and Walter Dean Myers's Bad Boy will laugh, will cry, and will remember. "Funny, bittersweet and brutally honest. Readers will clasp this hard-to-put-down book to their hearts even as they laugh sympathetically."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Remember that book you read at that time in your life when everything seemed to be going crazy--the one book that brought the world into focus and helped soothe your raging teenage angst?