Global Literary Theory: An Anthology comprises a selection of classic, must-read essays alongside contemporary and global extracts, providing an engaging and timely overview of literary theory. The volume is thoroughly introduced in the General Introduction and Part Introductions and each piece is contextualized within the wider sphere of global theory. Each part also includes annotated suggestions for further reading to help the reader navigate the extensive literature on each topic.The volume engages with the "internationalizing" of the curriculum as well as the globalization of literature and theory.
Alongside these key themes, the volume also extends its coverage to include:
- The core topics and theorists from formalism and structuralism to postmodernism and deconstruction
- Digital humanities and humanities computing and their relevance to globalization and literary theory
- The religious turn in literary theory and philosophy
- New textualities such as auto/biography, travel writing and ecocriticism
- Oppositional texts which "write back" against the canon
In addition, the book's Companion Website features an interactive world map incorporating biographies of every theorist in the book, as well as biographies of additional influential theorists.
Crucially, this anthology shows that ethnic, postcolonial studies and globalization are not simply niche areas of literary study but are of concern across the contemporary humanities and that new voices are always emerging, and being discovered, from around the globe. As such, this volume offers a refocusing of essential literary theory, extending the canon in line with ongoing debates concerning contemporary cultural and geographic borders.
