While the introductions to the theorists and philosophers are concise and clear enough, the book becomes more and more anglo, and americo, centric as it approaches the end of the 20th century, in a truly disgusting way. I loved the diversity in their choice of authors (still way to go but it is an important step towards more inclusivity). A foremost historian of contemporary literary criticism and theory, he is the author of the standard history, American Literary Criticism from the 1930s to the 1980s as well as Deconstructive Criticism and Cultural Criticism, Literary Theory, Poststructuralism (all three books published by Columbia UP), Postmodernism: Local Effects, Global Flows (SUNY Press), Theory Matters (Routledge), Living with Theory (Blackwell), and American Literary Criticism since the 1930s, 2nd edition (Routledge).

This anthology goes through the history of literary theory beginning with the ancient greeks and ending in the 1990s. This is a highly useful book for any students of literature, critical theory, philosophy, anthropology, cultural studies, media or history. This book is a good tool, and it will increase your sense of self every time you look at the thing on your shelf.I was challenged by Hegel, Heideigger, Barthes and Derrida in ways I've never even considered thinking before - and love their minds (even though I think Hegel is kind of kooky in his teleology. I personally enjoyed the opportunity to experience some new (and in some cases improved) translations of familiar works, particularly a selection of wonderfully eloquent excerpt from Nietzsche's 'Birth of Tragedy' translated by Ronald Spiers which was a refreshing change from my Kauffmann and Hollingdale editions. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. From Plato to Samuel Jonhson to Marx to Habermas to Derrida to Edward Said, if it pertains to the theory or criticism of literature, the arts, or culture, it is probably covered here in a somewhat contemporary presentation. Those problems aside, I like the book's introductions and appreciated that for a tome of nearly 3,000 pages it carries surprisingly well in a backpack.

I got this for only 20 bucks and over the course of a year and a half I got much more than my money's worth out of it. As an anthology it does a good job and is helpful for those who don't necessarily want to read it all. So if you want to dabble into literary criticism out of free will or because you have to, I highly recommend this big friendly giant. This anthology of critical writing ranges from Gorgias and Plato to Sigmund Freud and Mikhail Bakhtin.One thing I found very helpful in this book were the author biographies before each of the critical works. Minor personal quibble would be a lack of work from Jung (which was included in the previous edition, but sadly not this) or Goethe/Schopenhauer, yet selection is of course a personal taste. The Norton isn't inventing this trend, which has been around for awhile; but it isn't resisting it either. However, as a particularly mobile student, I've lugged mine all over the place and as yet it has not been rendered damaged.