RICHARD GILL teaches English at Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth I College, Leicester, UK, and teaches adults at the University of Leicester. He is the author of Mastering Shakespeare and Mastering the Novels of Jane Austen (with Susan Gregory).

'I think students could do with reading a book like this which covers the main ground quickly and simply. It would also do as a 'refresher' book...many books of this kind can be returned to afterwards for a 'remind read.' - Martin Coyle, Chair of English Literature, Cardiff University, UK

• IntroductionPART 1: THE NOVELStoriesCharactersNarrationPlotSettingsThe Scope of the NovelPART 2: DRAMAFamiliar DramaThe Language of the StagePlots and ActionsCharactersAudienceWatching and StudyingPART 3: POETRYValuing, Performing, HearingWhat Poets MakeWhat Poets ThinkWhat Poets Do: Words and MeaningsPoetic Shapes and SoundsThe Work of PoetsPART 4: GENREClassificationTragedyComedyEpicLyricSatireRomanceGothicPastoralPART 5: CONTEXTThe PastReligion and the BibleClassical CivilisationBooks and IdeasThe ArtsSocietyPART 6: INTERPRETATIONDiscovering MeaningsInternal Interpretation: Narratology, Grammar and GenreInternal Interpretation: FormalismTheorists and Literary FeaturesDebating InterpretationsExternal Interpretation: SocialExternal Interpretation: FeminismExternal Interpretation: PsychologicalExternal Interpretation: IdeasIssues in InterpretationPART 7: THEMESThe Scope of LiteratureThe Living WorldThe Four SeasonsThe EarthAspects of NatureIdeas about NatureBuildingsMortalityThe Human Mind and SocietyLoveWarGlossaryBibliographyIndex.