A History of English Literature, by Michael Alexander

A History of English Literature provides a comprehensive survey of one of the richest and oldest literatures in the world. Presented as a narrative, and usable as a work of reference, this text offers an account of literature from the beginnings of English until the present day. The author begins by examining the scope of such a history in terms of time, place, and the meaning of "English". The classical status of any particular work is open to challenge, and the notion of classical status itself is explored. The text is unrivalled in its use of pedagogical features and exhibits, offering invaluable insights into particular works, authors' biographies, and literary periods.

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The Oxford Book of American Poetry, chosen and edited by David Lehman

Here is the eagerly awaited new edition of The Oxford Book of American Poetry brought completely up to date and dramatically expanded by poet David Lehman. It is a rich, capacious volume, featuring the work of more than 200 poets-almost three times as many as the 1976 edition. With a succinct and often witty head note introducing each author, it is certain to become the definitive anthology of American poetry for our time.
Lehman has gathered together all the works one would expect to find in a landmark collection of American poetry, from Whitman's Crossing Brooklyn Ferry to Stevens's The Idea of Order at Key West, and from Eliot's The Waste Land to Ashbery's Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror. But equally important, the editor has significantly expanded the range of the anthology. The book includes not only writers born since the previous edition, but also many fine poets overlooked in earlier editions or little known in the past but highly deserving of attention. The anthology confers legitimacy on the Objectivist poets; the so-called Proletariat poets of the 1930s; famous poets who fell into neglect or were the victims of critical backlash (Edna St. Vincent Millay); poets whose true worth has only become clear with the passing of time (Weldon Kees). Among poets missing from Richard Ellmann's 1976 volume but published here are W. H. Auden, Charles Bukowski, Donald Justice, Carolyn Kizer, Kenneth Koch, Stanley Kunitz, Emma Lazarus, Mina Loy, Howard Moss, Lorine Niedecker, George Oppen, James Schuyler, Elinor Wylie, and Louis Zukosky. Many more women are represented: outstanding poets such as Josephine Jacobsen, Josephine Miles, May Swenson. Numerous African-American poets receive their due, and unexpected figures such as the musicians Bob Dylan, Patti Smith and Robert Johnson have a place in this important work.

This stunning collection redefines the great canon of American poetry from its origins in the 17th century right up to the present. It is a must-have anthology for anyone interested in American literature and a book that is sure to be consulted, debated, and treasured for years to come.

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American Literature from 1600 Through the 1850s (The Britannica Guide to World Literature)

Weaving together imagination and social commentary, the literature of a nation is often the most effective way to understand the ethos of its people at any given time. The written word offers a sharpened lens through which readers can perceive the world they inhabit, so as to better comprehend personal or universal truths. This captivating series presents major authors, poets, and texts from the world over, immersing students in the life stories of authors that are often as engaging as the narratives these writers have crafted. Discussions on significant literary movements place the works in social context and reveal the Zeitgeist of each era.

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Outline of American Literature

The Outline of American literature, newly revised, traces the paths of American narrative, fiction, poetry and drama as they move from pre-colonial times into the present, through such literary movements as romanticism, realism and experimentation.

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Understanding Literary Periods of British & American Literature

Periods of British Literature:

450-1066: Old English (or Anglo-Saxon) Period

1066-1500: Middle English Period

1500-1660: The Renaissance

1558-1603: Elizabethan Age

1603-1625: Jacobean Age

1625-1649: Caroline Age

1649-1660: Commonwealth Period (or Puritan Interregnum)

1660-1785: The Neoclassical Period

1660-1700: The Restoration

1700-1745: The Augustan Age (or Age of Pope)

1745-1785: The Age of Sensibility (or Age of Johnson)

1785-1830: The Romantic Period

1832-1901: The Victorian Period

1848-1860: The Pre-Raphaelites

1880-1901: Aestheticism and Decadence

1901-1914: The Edwardian Period

1910-1936: The Georgian Period

1914-1945: The Modern Period

1945-present: Postmodern Period

Periods of American Literature:

1607-1776: Colonial Period

1765-1790: The Revolutionary Age

1775-1828: The Early National Period

1828-1865: The Romantic Period (Also known as: The American Renaissance or The Age of Transcendentalism)

1865-1900: The Realistic Period

1900-1914: The Naturalistic Period

1914-1939: American Modernist Period

1920s: Jazz Age, Harlem Renaissance

1920s, 1930s: The "Lost Generation"

1939-present: The Contemporary Period

1950s: Beat Writers

1960s, 1970s: Counterculture

In addition, American Literature recognizes works of:

African-American Writers

Native American Writers

Asian-American Writers

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