William E. Cain – författare

As an essayist, philosopher, ex-pencil manufacturer, notorious hermit, tax protester, and all-around original thinker, Thoreau led so singular a life that he is in some ways a perfect candidate for the historical and biographical treatments made possible by the Historical Guides to American Authors series format. William E. Cain, the volume editor, includes contributions on his relationship with 19th century authority and concepts of the land, which should help the volume's reach beyond those who read Thoreau for illumination to those general readers who love him for embodying the spirit of American rebellion.

As an essayist, philosopher, ex-pencil manufacturer, notorious hermit, tax protester, and all-around original thinker, Thoreau led so singular a life that he is in some ways a perfect candidate for the historical and biographical treatments made possible by the Historical Guides to American Authors series format. William E. Cain, the volume editor, includes contributions on his relationship with 19th century authority and concepts of the land, which should help the volume's reach beyond those who read Thoreau for illumination to those general readers who love him for embodying the spirit of American rebellion.

F.O. Matthiessen remains one of America's leading twentieth-century critics in part because the problems he and his contemporaries struggled with remain ours today. William E. Cain studies Matthiessen's career with careful attention to biographical, institutional, literary, and political contexts. He considers Matthiessen's many reviews and essays on literature and deals sympathetically, but critically, with Matthiessen's attitudes toward the Cold War as revealed in his memoir, From the Heart of Europe.     Cain draws connections between Matthiessen's criticism and the influence of significant political movements like the Popular Front of the 1930s, the Progressive Party, and Henry Wallace's campaign for the presidency in 1948. Analyzing specific texts by Thoreau, James, Dreiser, and Melville, he confronts the difficult and highly contested relationships between literary criticism and politics, scholarship and the public sphere, pedagogy and social activism. He suggests that critics need to acknowledge the primacy of their political commitments and should proceed to teach and write accordingly. This argument, certain to prove a controversial one, will spark extensive debate and discussion about the theory and practice of intellectual work.     All students and scholars of English and American literature, American studies, black studies, and American history will welcome this original and stimulating study, the first to treat Matthiessen in fully detailed social, historical, and political contexts.

The gold standard anthology for anyone who wants to understand the development and current state of literary theory. Offering 191 pieces by 157 authors, The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism, Third Edition, is more comprehensive and more varied in its selection than any other anthology. Forty-eight NEW selections—concentrated mostly on the twentieth and twenty-first centuries—make the book not only the best overview of the history of theory, but also a remarkably up-to-date portrait of the state of theory today.

Three extensively revised essays by Mailloux, an influential proponent of cultural studies, describe his approach in depth. Following are ten essays, nine of them written specifically for this volume, by scholars who offer various perspectives on Mailloux's ideas. Each essayist weighs the strengths and limitations of the cultural studies movement in general and Mailloux's approach in particular.

C.L.R. James (1901-1989) made important contributions in a range of fields - literature, criticism, cultural studies, political theory, history and philosophy, serving as a mentor to two generations of international intellectuals. These essays offer a fresh perspective on his life and writings.