This De Gruyter handbook series has been designed to offer students and
researchers a compact means of orientation in their study of Anglophone literary
texts. Each volume – involving a particular historical or theoretical focus –
introduces readers to current concepts and methodologies, as well as academic
debates by combining theory with text analysis and contextual anchoring. It is this
bridging between abstract survey and concrete analysis which is the central aim and
defining feature of this series, bringing together general literary history and
concrete interpretation, theory and text. At a time when students of English and
American literary studies have to deal with an overwhelming amount of highly
specialized research literature, as well as cope with the demands of the new BA and
MA programs, such a handbook series is indispensable. Nevertheless, this series is
not exclusively targeted to the needs of BA and MA students, but also caters to the
requirements of scholars who wish to keep up with the current state of various
fields within their discipline.