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Beginning Theory: An Introduction to Literary and Cultural Theory (Beginnings)

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This is not some dry academic tome, but is an approachable work with a fresh style. Although I read this outside of the classroom, and both enjoyed and benefited from it, as an experienced instructor, Peter Barry is actually providing a textbook . Each theory includes a 'Stop and Think' section that contains questions which zero in on its essential aspects or weaknesses. Major theorists are discussed and they are placed into a historical and cultural context. Each theory has a concise list of bullet points on what critics of that school actually do, or how they interpret literary works. The chapters conclude with lists of recommended readings, including annotations on their significance and how best to read or approach them.

He does a marvelous job of placing literary theory into a context as the most recent series of attempts to answer questions that have been ongoing at least since Victorian times. The introduction is perhaps the most important part of the book. While someone highly familiar with a particular theory may wish to skip the corresponding chapter, I recommend reading the first chapter. It has helpful advice on critical reading skills, and especially useful suggestions on how to effectively approach a new theory. The second chapter, "Liberal Humanism," is basically a discussion of what critics do who do not partake of a particular theory, which is the historical background against which the theorists are reacting. This chapter is also essential reading, as it concludes with a discussion of recurrent ideas that are common across most literary theories. He sums them up as 1) politics is pervasive, 2) language is constitutive, 3) truth is provisional, 4) meaning is contingent, and 5) human nature is a myth. He suggests that any reader having difficulty grasping a particular theory review this list, as most theory concepts turn out to be some variation of one of these ideas.

My feelings about literary theory are complex and ambivalent. It certainly seems like a tailor-made job security program for uninspired academics (especially Deconstruction). Choosing a career with constant pressure to publish or perish, the appeal of a discipline that accepts completely fanciful interpretations of other's works as legitimate research is undeniable. Even worse, theory is often used to promulgate social and political agenda under the guise of scholarship. In spite of these negative tendencies, several literary theories actually make a certain sense to me, and each of them offers useful insights when carefully applied and not treated as a religious or moral imperative. I encourage the skeptic to read this book also-one doesn't need to accept the validity of each theory in order to benefit from their recognition

The subtitle of "Beginning Theory" includes the words "literary and cultural theory." While Barry concentrates on the literary aspects, the theories he presents are certainly widely applied in much contemporary writing. A level of cultural literacy necessary to fully appreciate the Book Review supplement of major newspapers requires at least nodding familiarity with their concepts and major proponents. The popular understanding of many of the 'isms' of our day, such as 'racism', 'sexism', 'colonialism', certainly have philosophical roots in Marxist criticism. Post-modern critical ideas are widely applied in cultural situations, and like a dead fish, Freudian interpretation always seems to be floating on top of the water. The philosophical and social ideas influenced by these theories are widespread, and are certainly not limited to obscure academic journals on literary criticism-I've concluded that whether I agree with the ideas or not, they are part of an essential cultural vocabulary. (Undoubtedly, the proponents of any particular theory are much harsher on competing theories than any of the readers of this book will be.)

Given my morbid fascination with literary theory, perhaps it isn't surprising that I found this an exciting book. Barry has written what is effectively the Guide Michelin for literary theory. This is an excellent starting point for a difficult topic, and the author's lucid discussion of complex ideas is brilliant. Although his personal opinions occasionally appear in the form of his wry wit, his playful approach to competing theories is relatively open-minded, helping the reader discover both their advantages and internal inconsistencies.

This book is well-written, informative, and an excellent resource. I highly recommend it.

Most books that style themselves as "introductions" to literary theory fall short of their promise, often resorting to the same jargon the novice is trying to decipher or operating on the assumption that the reader already has a background in the field (which would preclude the need for an "introduction"). This is the main flaw with Terry Eagleton's much used "Literary Theory: An Introduction," which is as obscurantist as it is lucid. Peter Barry's "Beginning Theory," on the other hand, is the ideal primer for theoretical studies and is, bar none, the least polemical and most straightforward introduction to critical theory yet written.

Barry takes the reader step-by-step through most of the significant areas of literary theory (passing over reception theory and substituting an analysis of liberal humanism for the New Criticism), explaining their basic theoretical foundations carefully and clearly, with an emphasis on understanding through example rather than unfocused summary. He provides basic examples of what critics try to do when they apply certain methodologies and then demonstrates the methods himself with short analyses. If you have absolutely no background in critical theory, this book is the place to begin. Barry is painstaking without insulting the reader's intelligence.

In short, if you're looking for a readable, thorough examination of the main trends of critical theory, "Beginning Theory" is the best starting point available.

As a literature professor, I have a professional responsibility to know about literary theory. And let's face it: it's a pretty scary and complex subject, feared by many and mastered by few. In fifteen years in the business, I have read many books about lit crit and literary theory, and Peter Barry's book is BY FAR the best. It is, indeed, "only" an introduction to the subject, rather than an advanced study, but it is brilliantly clear, and blessedly jargon-free.

Barry writes as though his readers are new to the subject, but bright and curious. And he delivers the goods! This is the book I refer to when in doubt, and the book I encourage my graduate students to purchase. I would recommend anyone who is pursuing graduate study in the humanities to own and carefully read this book. If you read this one carefully, you won't need any of the other intro-to-lit-crit books on the market, which simply don't measure up.

This is the first introductory book I'd read on literary or cultural theory, and at the time I had very little idea of what "theory" could mean, although I had a brief exposure to some cultural theory from anthropological readings. The great reviews of this work (and its availability at the library) made it my first choice.

Barry does a good job of concisely explaining the principles, key figures, and key concepts of some popular theoretical perspectives. He also does an excellent job of working examples of applying their insights to literature. Each chapter has a list of 'what critics do,' a handy step-by-step that would doubtlessly be very useful for anyone needing to apply such theory to a reading with a less than stellar command.

The title, however, is misleading: in my opinion, there is very little about culture, directly, in this book. I would've liked at least some tie to culture, if only in terms of what particular theorists' work means for those concerned with culture, or the concept of culture in general. There was no solid discussion or example of theory in a cultural context.

The second beef I have with the book is its lack of depth in some important areas. First, the reader is left to imagine a purpose or historical context for any given theoretical perspctive. Although we're given a set of rules for application, and a quick introduction to precepts, Barry completely avoids the questions of 'What does this mean?,' whether politically, culturally, or simply in terms of practical use. I frequently found myself wondering why anyone bothered with some of these viewpoints at all. Perhaps, in retrospect, this is a symptom of such theorizing in general, rather than a problem with Barry's book, but I would have liked an introduction that tackled these issues.

Secondly, and I suppose necessarily in an introduction, I found many of the chapters lacking in detail. In the chapter on psychoanalytical criticism, for instance, Barry's discussion of Lacan and Lacanian criticism left me wondering why Lacan did and thought as he did: clearly he wasn't just a literary critic, and clearly he must have had some point and objective outside of simply allowing critics to adopt a particular perspective. There is no inkling of his motivations or historical situation, just a trite guide to applying a few handy precepts to your reading of literature. Obviously a full discussion or understanding of such issues would be a lifetime's work, but even in an introduction I felt more was required.

In summary: this feels like a completely practical (as in: get the paper written, now) guide to theory, which seems to me paradoxical. If you're looking for an introduction focusing on literary criticism, particularly on its step-by-step application to readings, this will prepare you quickly and accurately. If you're interested in anything more than a step-by-step distillation, or anything at all related to culture: so was I. My plan is to keep looking.

This is the fourth or fifth "introduction" on literary theory that I have read, and I wish I had read it first! Barry does an excellent job of making clear a subject frequently riddled by difficult neologisms. The best entry point to the entire topic of literary and cultural theory, and one which covers all the major variations, including stylistics.

Barry gives a concise overview of contemporary literary and cultural theory, taking a look at structuralism, postmodernism, postcolonial theory, etc. Eminently readable, the volume explains these theories without oversimplifying them. Those mystified by the jargon of contemporary theory will find here a useful guide.

This book addresses all of us that are new to literary theory but want to bring light to the matter. It covers main stream ideas such as liberal humanism, structuralism, psychoanalytic criticism, cultural materialism and even a hint of what stylistics is all about. Its goal is ambitious and in many respects it delivers too broad of an overview. However, Beginning Theory is a surprinsingly easy reading and a good intro to the above mentioned concepts. Each chapter offers a summary of key elements and terms as well as questions and useful pinpointers for further reading thus making reading a dynamic and stimulating experience.

Wow. I bought this book when I was in college, but I never got around to reading it until this past week. I am absolutely amazed by how good it is, and I wish I had read it earlier.

If I had read this before going to college, I swear I would have aced all my English courses. Why am I so confident that this book would help me? Well, basically, this book gives you something like twenty different approaches to reading literature. After finishing the book, you will be more attuned to what you are reading. You should be able to say to yourself, "well, a stylistic critic would approach this book X way, while a postcolonial critic would approach this book Y way." Imagine your professor's astonishment when you hand in your first essay and the title of it is: "A Lacanian Approach to Jane Eyre." Provided you are able to follow Barry's model for what Lacanian critics do, and you make some decent Lacan-influenced points, you are almost guaranteed to receive an "A."

Of course, many potential readers of this book are out-of-college and, like me, will never get those college literature courses back. This book has utility for us also. It is great because it can give us new angles from which to explore books we have read before. I'm tempted to re-read Hamlet now that I understand the Freudian interpretaton of the play. I want to go back and decide for myself whether the Freudian interpretation is tenable.

Some posters have criticized this book for not probing deep enough. What rubbish! The title of the book is "Beginning Theory." Its intended audience is either people who are new to literary theory, or people who have not been able to make sense of the bombastic critical essays they have been assigned for class. The book serves its purpose extraordinarily well. It is clear, it is to the point, it provides excellent summaries of the major critical theories, and it even provides lists of suggested reading for people who want to read more about the various theories. In short, it is everything you need to get started learning about literary theory. It is a tremendous work, easily one of the best books I have ever read by an English professor. Thank you for writing such a cogent and lucid introductory work to this difficult subject, Professor Barry!

Not too keen on studying theory? Find yourself feeling a little sick at having to take on the likes of Foucault and Derrida? Wishing there was an easier to way to grasp theory? Read this book. It is wonderfully readable and accessible, and refuses to be condescending to those of us who must study theory but would prefer not to. This is not only informative, but useful.

This book was a supplemental text for my Graduate level Critical Theory class, and I thank my prof for that every time I open it up. Barry's writing is incredibly accessible -- even inviting, and,at times, humorous. He breaks down most of the major theorists' important and influential works into their key points (which are often buried under obtuse and circular language in the works themselves) and (briefly) applies them to well-known pieces of literature to show how theory is "done". Even for those of us who are "into" theory, writers like Derrida, Spivak, and Lacan can be intimidating; Barry helps the reader get beyond that and deep into the core of critical theory. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to broaden their understanding of literary theory, and I definitely recommend it new students who find themselves overwhelmed or intimidated by theory.