Literature as History

Simon Barker is Professor of English Literature in the Department of Humanities at the University of Gloucestershire, UK. Jo Gill is Lecturer in Twentieth-Century Literature at the University of Exeter, UK.

"Peter Widdowson was one of the architects of the revolution in English Studies, and this comprehensive tribute celebrates and commemorates all that is best in the rich legacy of his work. These essays and moving personal reflections, by leading scholars and colleagues, stand as an impressive testimony to the comprehensive range, critical engagement, indefatigable political commitment and innovative interdisciplinarity, that have been the hallmarks of Widdowson's lasting contribution as editor, cultural critic, literary historian and theorist. Collectively they appraise and reinforce his sustained influence across a wide range of topics within the sphere of the dynamic interaction between Literature, History and Politics, that has exerted a major influence on the intellectual trajectory of the Humanities in recent years. Each of these fine essays stands alone as a real contribution to knowledge, but all recognise and reprise Widdowson's invaluable and carefully poised contributions to the advancement and the transformation of English Studies over four decades." - Professsor John Drakakis, Department of English Studies, University of Stirling, UK

• Introduction, by Simon Barker and Jo Gill; List of Contributors; 1. The Poverty of (New) Historicism, Catherine Belsey (University of Wales, Swansea, UK); 2. Re-reading English, Re-reading Modernism, Helen Carr (Goldsmiths College, University of London, UK); 3. 'I would have her whipped': David Copperfield in its historical moment, Simon Dentith (University of Reading, UK); 4. Hardy's Realism and Hardy-country Tourism, Tim Dolin (Curtis University of Technology, Australia); 5. Tragedy and Revolution, Terry Eagleton (National University of Ireland, Ireland; University of Notre Dame; USA; University of Lancaster, UK); 6. 'The Weight of History': Poets and Artists in WWII, John Lucas (Nottingham Trent University, UK; Shoestring Press); 7. The Plains of War: Byron, Turner and the Bodies of Waterloo, Philip W. Martin (De Montfort University, UK); 8. "Giving Them Back Their History": Peter Widdowson and Literature, Martin Randall (University of Gloucestershire, UK); 9. The 'Servant Problem', Social Class and Literary Representation in Eighteenth-Century England, R.C.Richardson (University of Winchester, UK); 10. 'Sway Between a Dance and a Fight': Black Religions in Toni Morrison's Paradise, Shelley Saguaro (University of Gloucestershire, UK); 11. Women, War and the University: Rosamond Lehmann's Dusty Answer, Judy Simons (De Montfort University, UK); 12. Mythological Presents: Modernity, Edward Thomas and the Poetice of Experience, Stan Smith (Nottingham Trent University, UK); 13. Personalia: sketches of Peter Widdowson, Neville Shrimpton; Mary Shakeshaft; Paul Stigant; Mike Walkers; Mary De Jong Obuchowski; Peter Obuchowski; Peter Brooker; Stuart Laing; Victoria Bazin; U.A. Fanthorpe and Rosie Bailey; James Green; Manzu Islam; Emily Wroe; Neil A. Wynn; Charlotte Beyer; Sandra Courtman; Peter Childs; Hilary Hinds; Debby Thacker; John Hughes.; Index.