A complete and authoritative guide to literary terms.

From crime fiction to structuralism, from Imagism to queer theory, and from the basics of rhyme to the wilder shores of literary theory, the Collins Dictionary of Literary Terms covers all the bases of modern literary theory. Though designed primarily for students of literary theory, the book will also be of immense use to students in other disciplines, from film theory to philosophy, as well as for the general reader.

In a clear, succinct, nontechnical language, this new dictionary of more than 1000 literary terms and themes takes an expanded view of the term `literary'. It is the first book of its kind to give students and general readers not only a traditional literary vocabulary but also the knowledge of related theoretical, historical, and cultural terms they need in the interdisciplinary world of contemporary literary studies. Entries reflect literature as it is taught and experienced today, with increasingly flexible boundaries between high and popular culture, canonical and non-canonical literature, literary and nonliterary vocabulary.

Features include:
* Concise definitions of literary terms

* Major contemporary theoretical terms, with clear definitions and examples

* Terms related to Third World and feminist literature

* Essays on major themes in literature.

* Terms from film, television, psychology, history, and other fields that touch peripherally on literature

* References for further reading

* Extensive cross-references