The Edinburgh Introduction to Studying English Literature The Edinburgh Edited by Dermot Cavanagh, Alan Gillis, Michelle Keown, James Loxley and Randall Stevenson Introduction to Studying DT What does university study of English Literature involve today? How should eh students read literary texts? Answers to these questions have substantially rme changed and developed over recent decades,particularly in response to advances o t E in literary theory. Cd English Literature a vain In the light of this and other recent developments, the Edinburgh Introduction nb a provides a new,updated guide for students beginning their study of literature today. gu hr Recent developments in theory are explained throughout,but they are not the only , g Ah fporcaucsti coef sa,ttaenndt ioonf .Ilnitsetreaardy, thfoer mems,phstaysliess i s aonnd ctleeacrh,npirqaugems.atTich eesxep laenxaptliaonna toiof ncsr itiacrael lan In G t carefully illustrated through examples taken from readily-available works – usually illisro ones included in the Norton or other major anthologies.Each chapter is written by , d M an experienced academic and teacher from Edinburgh University’s Department of u English Literature,recently reaffirmed as one of the best in the United Kingdom. ichc et lleio The result is an unbeatable resource for new students: a well-stocked toolbox, Kn e offering foundational introductions to ways literary texts can be approached,and to owto the critical,formal and historical understanding this requires.New students will find n ,S essential insights on every page,guiding their understanding for years to come and Jt au thoroughly opening up for them all the imaginative promise of literary study. m d e sy Key Features: Lin og • An up-to-the minute foundational guide for new students x le • Comprehensive range of literary forms,styles and critical strategies introduced yE • Careful exemplification,demonstrating ways reading strategies illuminate anng d selected texts Rlis • Based on successful introductory courses in one of the UK’s leading university ah n literature departments d aL • The texts discussed in the book generally appear in the Norton Anthology of ll it Se English Literature ter va et All editors and contributors are members of the Department of English Literature nu s in the University of Edinburgh. ore n Edited by Cover image: World of booksby Viorika Prikhodko Photography © iStockphoto Cover design: Dermot Cavanagh, Alan Gillis, Michelle Keown, www.hayesdesign.co.uk ISBN: 978-0-7486-4025-6 James Loxley and Randall Stevenson Edinburgh University Press E d 22 George Square,Edinburgh,EH8 9LF in b www.euppublishing.com u 9 780748 640256 rg ISBN 978 0 7486 4025 6 h THE EDINBURGH INTRODUCTION TO STUDYING ENGLISH LITERATURE CCAAVVAANNAAGGHH PPRREELLIIMMSS ((MM22220044))..iinndddd ii 1166//33//1100 1177::2211::1122 CCAAVVAANNAAGGHH PPRREELLIIMMSS ((MM22220044))..iinndddd iiii 1166//33//1100 1177::2211::1122 THE EDINBURGH INTRODUCTION TO STUDYING ENGLISH LITERATURE Edited by Dermot Cavanagh, Alan Gillis, Michelle Keown, James Loxley and Randall Stevenson EDINBURGH UNIVERSITY PRESS CCAAVVAANNAAGGHH PPRREELLIIMMSS ((MM22220044))..iinndddd iiiiii 1166//33//1100 1177::2211::1122 © in this edition Edinburgh University Press, 2010 © in the individual contributions is retained by the authors Edinburgh University Press Ltd 22 George Square, Edinburgh www.euppublishing.com Typeset in 11/13 pt Monotype Bembo by Servis Filmsetting Ltd, Stockport, Cheshire, and printed and bound in Great Britain by CPI Antony Rowe, Chippenham and Eastbourne A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 978 0 7486 4026 3 (hardback) ISBN 978 0 7486 4025 6 (paperback) The right of Dermot Cavanagh, Alan Gillis, Michelle Keown, James Loxley and Randall Stevenson to be identifi ed as editors of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. CCAAVVAANNAAGGHH PPRREELLIIMMSS ((MM22220044))..iinndddd iivv 1166//33//1100 1177::2211::1122 Contents Preface vii Section I – Introductory 1 1 What is Literature? 3 Alex Thomson 2 English Literary Studies: Origins and Nature 16 Robert Irvine 3 Kinds of Literature 25 David Salter Section II – Poetry 35 4 Poetry: An Introduction 37 Alan Gillis 5 Metre and Rhythm 47 Lee Spinks 6 Verse Forms 57 Penny Fielding 7 Poetic Imagery 67 Sarah M. Dunnigan 8 Poetry and History 78 Greg Walker 9 Vernacular Poetry 88 Colin Nicholson CCAAVVAANNAAGGHH PPRREELLIIMMSS ((MM22220044))..iinndddd vv 1166//33//1100 1177::2211::1122 vi Contents Section III – Narrative 99 10 Genre and Form: The Short Story 101 Kenneth Millard 11 Narrative Language 110 Keith Hughes 12 Narrative Structure and Technique 120 Randall Stevenson 13 Constructing Character 129 Rajorshi Chakraborti 14 Narrative, Society and History 139 Aaron Kelly 15 Life Writing 148 Laura Marcus Section IV – Drama 159 16 Introducing Drama 161 Roger Savage 17 Text and Performance 171 Olga Taxidou 18 Tragedy 180 Simon Malpas 19 Comedy 189 Jonathan Wild 20 History and Politics 199 Dermot Cavanagh 21 Sex, Gender and Performance 208 Suzanne Trill Works Cited 220 Notes on Contributors 229 Index 234 CCAAVVAANNAAGGHH PPRREELLIIMMSS ((MM22220044))..iinndddd vvii 1166//33//1100 1177::2211::1122 Preface Reading literature off ers us diverse and abiding pleasures and can be reward- ing in a great variety of ways. Such pleasures, though, can be enhanced, sustained and deepened by the critical study of literature, and such study can be an absorbing, challenging and enriching experience in itself. This book aims to open the door to such experience and to give a glimpse of its rewards. Expert, thorough, up to date and easy to follow, the chapters which follow provide a straightforward and eff ective pathway towards increasing your enjoyment and broadening your understanding of literature. Anyone wishing to become a more insightful and informed reader will fi nd practical and lasting guidance throughout these pages. If you are studying literature formally as part of a course or for a degree, this book will also impart the skills and knowledge required to begin a more advanced programme of study. One reason literature matters is its longevity as a practice and an art form. In this book, we have drawn on a wide variety of examples from diff erent periods. This is because the serious study of literature demands historical awareness: lit- erature has changed over the centuries, and will probably change again; unsur- prisingly, what is understood or defi ned as literature has changed as well. All of the literary examples are drawn from easily accessible sources, either standard and familiar editions or widely-available anthologies such as those published by Norton and Longman. You will fi nd a list of all the primary literary works to which our contributors refer in the ‘Works Cited’ section at the end of the book, along with all the secondary literary and critical material each chapter uses. We have not assumed that you have read these works previously, and the contributors take care to explain the kind of texts they are discussing and their key concerns. The same applies to the secondary material they mention. CCAAVVAANNAAGGHH PPRREELLIIMMSS ((MM22220044))..iinndddd vviiii 1166//33//1100 1177::2211::1122 viii Preface The chapters of this book do not need to be read in sequence, and you may fi nd it more useful to read particular chapters or sections in an order that suits your own needs. The book aims to provide you with a comprehensive understanding of the forms and techniques literature uses and the variety of ways in which it can be interpreted. This means that the essays do use specifi c and specialist terminology to defi ne particular critical approaches and literary techniques. These are explained by each contributor as they arise in discus- sion; later chapters may refer back to these defi nitions and indicate where each term fi rst occurs. However, if you fi nd a particular term or idea puzzling, the Index will point you towards the page or pages where it is fi rst explained and to any subsequent uses or elucidation. At the end of each chapter you will fi nd a list of ‘Next Steps’, indicating critical works that our contributors judge to be good places to continue your own reading and research in a particular area. All of the contributors to this collection teach or have taught in the University of Edinburgh’s English Literature department – an outstanding and long-e stablished department that celebrates its 250th anniversary in 2012. They share extensive experience of introducing students to the joys and demands of studying literature, and this has been crucial both to the way in which the individual chapters have been written and to the overall design of the volume. In this respect, the editors and contributors would especially like to thank successive cohorts of fi rst- and second-y ear students of English and Scottish literature at Edinburgh whose acute questioning has required us to refl ect on the fundamentals of our discipline and to think carefully about how to explain them to an intelligent and enquiring audience. The idea for the col- lection was fi rst broached by Jackie Jones at Edinburgh University Press, and we are grateful to her for this fruitful suggestion and to her and all at the Press for their subsequent support. CCAAVVAANNAAGGHH PPRREELLIIMMSS ((MM22220044))..iinndddd vviiiiii 1166//33//1100 1177::2211::1122 Section I – Introductory CCAAVVAANNAAGGHH TTEEXXTT ((MM22220044))..iinndddd 11 1166//33//1100 1177::2211::3377