An accessible and thorough introduction to literary theory and contemporary critical practice, this book is an essential resource for beginning students of literary criticism.

• Covers traditional approaches such as formalism and structuralism, as well as more recent developments in criticism such as evolutionary theory, cognitive studies, ethical criticism, and ecocriticism
• Offers explanations of key works and major ideas in literary criticism and suggests key elements to look for in a literary text
• Also applies critical approaches to various examples from film studies
• Helps students to build a critical framework and write analytically