A Companion to Romance: From Classical to Contemporary (Blackwell Companions to Literature and Culture): 61 - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0631232710 ISBN 13: 9780631232711

Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell, 2004

Synopsis

Romance is a varied and fluid literary genre, notoriously difficult to define. This groundbreaking companion surveys the many permutations of romance throughout the ages. It considers the literary and historical development of the romance genre from its classical origins to the present day. It incorporates discussion of the changing readership of romance and of romance's special relation to women readers. It comprises 30 essays written by leading authorities on different periods and sub-genres. It challenges the idea that the appeal of romance is exclusively escapist. It draws on a wide range of specific and influential literary examples.

About this title

Review:

"Acknowledging the difficulty of defining "romance," Saunders and the contributors collectively produce a volume that offers a more comprehensive survey of the literature--including its historical, national, and generic varieties--than have previous standard works on the subject...Some of the essays--e.g., Helen Cooper's "Malory and the Early Prose Romances" and Richard Cronin's "Victorian Romance: Medievalism"--are exemplary in the quality of their writing, scholarship, and critical perception...Highly recommended."
Choice

"... It would be worth acquiring for an academic humanities collection and, from my own experience, would be particulary useful for English literature students at undergraduate and postgraduate level."
Reference Review

From the Back Cover:

Romance is a varied and fluid literary genre, notoriously difficult to define. This groundbreaking Companion surveys the many permutations of romance throughout the ages. Comprising 30 essays written by leading authorities in the field, it considers the historical and literary development of the genre from its classical origins to the present day. The focus is on English literature, although this is placed within the larger context of perceptions of romance. The book incorporates discussion of the changing readership of romance, particularly romance's special relation to women readers. It challenges the idea that the appeal of romance is exclusively escapist, drawing on a wide range of specific and influential literary examples.

The Companion is suitable for general readers and for those beginning their study of literature, as well as for readers seeking more specialized information on the issue of romance or on the individual types of writing, writers, and works considered.

Contributors to this volume:
Elizabeth Archibald, W. R. J. Barron, Derek Brewer, Helen Cooper, Richard Cronin, David Fairer, Robert Fraser, David Fuller, Jerrold E. Hogle, Kathryn Hume, Susan Jones, Andrew King, Edward Larrissy, Richard Mathews, Ulrika Maude, Clare Morgan, Lori Humphrey Newcomb, Francis O'Gorman, Michael O'Neill, Leonée Ormond, Lynne Pearce, Fiona Price, Clive Probyn, Fiona Robertson, Andrew Sanders, Corinne Saunders, John Simons, Raymond H. Thompson, Lisa Vargo, Judith Weiss

About this edition

• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0631232710
• ISBN 13: 9780631232711
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 584
• Editor: Saunders Corinne