Bertens Hans. Literary Theory: The Basics

London: Routledge, 2001. — 256 p. — ISBN: 0-415-25061-7.
2nd ed. (First published 2001 by Routledge).This accessible guide provides the ideal first step in understanding literary theory. Hans Bertens:
leads you through the major approaches to literature which are signalled 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 approach.
shows not only that theory can make sense but also 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.Acknowledgements.
Reading for meaning - practical criticism and new criticism.
Reading for form I - formalism and early structuralism, 1914-1960.
Reading for form II - French structuralism, 1950-1975.
Political reading - the 1970s and 1980s.
The poststucturalist revolution - Derrida, deconstruction, and postmodernism.
Poststructuralism continued - Foucault, Lacan, and French feminism.
Literature and culture - the new historicism and cultural materialism.
Postcolonial criticism and theory.
Sexuality, literature, and culture.