This series is dedicated to one clear belief: that we can all enjoy, understand and analyse literature for ourselves, provided we know how to do so. How can we build on close understanding of a short passage and develop our insight into the whole work? What features do we expect to find in a text? Why do we study style in so much detail? In demystifying the study of literature, these are only some of the questions the Analysing Texts series addresses and answers.
The books in this series will not do all the work for you, but will provide you with the tools, and show you how to use them. Here, you will find samples of close, detailed analysis, with an explanation of the analytical techniques utilised. At the end of each chapter there are useful suggestions for further work you can do to practise, develop and hone the skills demonstrated and build confidence in your own analytical ability.
An author’s individuality shows in the way they write: every work they produce bears the hallmark of that writer’s personal ‘style’. In the main part of each book we concentrate therefore on analysing the particular flavour and concerns of one author’s work, and explain the features of their writing in connection with major themes. In Part II there are chapters about the author’s life and work, assessing their contribution to developments in literature, and a selection of critics’ views are summarised and discussed in comparison with each other. Some suggestions for further reading provide a bridge towards further critical research.
Analysing Texts is designed to stimulate and encourage your critical and analytical faculty, to develop your personal insight into the author’s work and individual style, and to provide you with the skills and techniques to enjoy at first hand the excitement of discovering the richness of the text.
NICHOLAS MARSH