Key Concepts in Literary Theory presents the student of literary and critical studies with a broad range of accessible, precise and authoritative definitions of the most significant terms and concepts currently used in psychoanalytic, poststructuralist, Marxist, feminist, and postcolonial literary studies. The volume also provides clear and useful discussions of the main areas of literary, critical and cultural theory, supported by bibliographies and an expanded chronology of major thinkers. Accompanying the chronology are short biographies of major works by each critic or theorist. The new edition of this reliable reference work is both revised and expanded, including: * More than 70 additional terms and concepts defined, from Absurdism and Aga Saga to Writerly texts and Zeugma. * Newly defined terms include keywords from the social sciences, cultural studies and psychoanalysis and the addition of a broader selection of classical rhetorical terms. * An expanded chronology, with additional entries and a broader historical and cultural range, from Immanuel Kant and G.W.F. Hegel, to Camille Paglia and bell hooks. * Expanded bibliographies including key texts by major critics.