1
of
1
Reading After Theory
Series: Wiley-Blackwell Manifestos
Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.
Check link for latest rating. ( 30 ratings, 5 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still
learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Summary
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$8399
Unit price
/
Unavailable
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER
Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 3-4 weeks
Found a better price? Request a price match
Reading After Theory
$8399
Unit price
/
Unavailable
Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?
This book is ideal for students, scholars, and readers interested in literary criticism, theory, and cultural studies, especially those eager to reconsider the role of theory in modern literary interpretation.
Latest News
Why you need to start a family boardgame night
Board games aren't just for adults, they're perfect to do as a family. Here's why...
From Page to Panel: The Rise of Graphic Novel Adaptations
Discover why graphic novel adaptations are booming, from ‘Dune’ and ‘Sapiens’ to ‘Call Me by...
Why You Should Read Folk Horror!
If you're looking for a new read and haven't yet tried Folk Horror as a...
Movie Review on The End of Oak Street
Lizzy and Roopa are sharing their reviews of The End of Oak Street, a movie...
We Expanded Our Board Game Range…400+ New Games in Stock Now!
Board game week has arrived at Book Hero! 🎲 We’ve expanded our range, with 400...
See more* Asks what literary criticism should do in the post--theory era. * Articulates the case for a theoretically aware but textually centred literary studies. * Controversial in its privileging of texts over readings and in its insistence on the rehumanisation of literary studies.
Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
still learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Description
Valentine Cunningham's controversial manifesto asks what will and should happen to reading in the post-theory era. His account examines the spread of literary theory from the 1960s, when it was considered highly contentious, to the present time, when theoretical approaches are taken for granted across a range of disciplines.
Whilst acknowledging the necessity of theory for reading and recognising the good it has done, he strongly criticises it for encouraging bad reading and for diminishing the richness, scope, and human connection of texts. Cunningham argues that theory has made texts secondary to questions of ideology, oppressions, and resistance (important though they are) and proposes that what is needed in order to rescue literary studies is a return to close and "tactful" reading.
His manifesto insists on the primacy of texts over all theorising about them, and on the restoration of the human to literary studies.
Throughout Reading After Theory, Cunningham invites readers to reconsider the ways in which literary studies engage with texts, challenging the prevailing dominance of theoretical frameworks.
Series: Wiley-Blackwell Manifestos
View all-
The Idea of English Ethnicity
In recent years, particularly since devolution in the UK, there have been many attempts to identify exactly what constitutes Englishness. In this major contribution to debates about English identity, leading theorist Robert Young argues that the recent uncertainty about the nature of the English arises from more than just the challenges of devolution. It is rather the long-term result of...Paperback$7899Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 3-4 weeks -
The Threat of Race
Written by a renowned scholar of critical race theory, The Threat of Race explores how the concept of race has been historically produced and how it continues to be articulated, if often denied, in today's world. The Threat of Race is a major new study of race and racism by a renowned scholar of critical race theory. It explores how...Paperback$7599Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 3-4 weeks -
Reading After Theory
Valentine Cunningham's controversial manifesto asks what will and should happen to reading in the post-theory era. His account examines the spread of literary theory from the 1960s, when it was considered highly contentious, to the present time, when theoretical approaches are taken for granted across a range of disciplines. Whilst acknowledging the necessity of theory for reading and recognising the...Paperback$8399Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 3-4 weeks -
The Idea of Latin America
The term "Latin" America supposes that there is an America that is Latin, which can be defined in opposition to one that is not. This geo-political manifesto revisits the idea of Latinity, charting the history of the concept from its emergence in Europe under France's leadership, through its appropriation by the Creole elite of South America and the Spanish Caribbean...Paperback$6899Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 3-4 weeks -
Uses of Literature
Uses of Literature bridges the gap between literary theory and common-sense beliefs about why we read literature. Explores the diverse motives and mysteries of why we read: Offers four different ways of thinking about why we read literature - for recognition, enchantment, knowledge, and shock. Argues for a new "phenomenology" in literary studies that incorporates the historical and social dimensions...Paperback$6699Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 3-4 weeks
Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?
Library Journal praises the book as a fun, engaging manifesto suited to both general readers and specialists. The Times Literary Supplement calls it a "sharp, amusing critical polemic," while Choice commends Cunningham's deep knowledge of literary theory as he refocuses critical attention on texts and their meanings.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9780631221685
Publisher: John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 21 December 2001
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Wiley-Blackwell
Audience: Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 17.0mm
Width: 152.0mm
Height: 229.0mm
Weight: 299g
Pages: 208
About the Author
Valentine Cunningham is Professor of English Language and Literature at Oxford University and Fellow and Tutor in English Literature at Corpus Christi College, Oxford. He is also Permanent Visiting Professor at the University of Konstanz in Germany. His previous publications include British Writers of the Thirties (1988), Everywhere Spoken Against: Dissent in the Victorian Novel (1975) and In the Reading Gaol: Postmodernity, Texts and History (Blackwell, 1993). He is the editor of The Victorians: An Anthology of Poetry and Poetics (Blackwell, 2000).
More from Arts & Culture
View all-
Dylan's PickBold Types
A tribute to 32 truly independent bookshops throughout Aotearoa New Zealand, from north of Auckland down to Dunedin, and coast to coast. Jane Ussher's photographs show every bookstore in its unique nature - including behind the counter, smoko rooms, the mess which tells the hardworking story behind the joy of matching books with customers. Jemma Moreira's careful editing has crafted...Hardback$5999Elsewhere:$7000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
New ReleaseHome Again
Join rock-legend, former Shihad frontman and lead singer of The Adults, Jon Toogood in this unflinching and no-holds-barred memoir Home Again.This is more than a rock story. Toogood looks back on a 37-year career that helped define New Zealand rock music, and the personal cost that came with it. From a music-obsessed childhood in Wellington to the deafening roar of international stages, this...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
Buy to Win
Did I Ever Tell You This?
In this unexpected memoir, written in a creative burst of just a few months in 2022, Sam Neill tells the story of how he became one of the world’s most celebrated actors, who has worked with everyone from Meryl Streep to Isabel Adjani, from Jeff Goldblum to Sean Connery, from Steven Spielberg to Jane Campion. By his own account, his...Paperback$3799Elsewhere:$4500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
New ReleaseDisney Moana: The Official Cookbook
Embark on a culinary adventure with Moana of Motunui with Pacific recipes inspired by Moana and Moana 2! After a long day of sailing to see how far you’ll go or keeping the demigod Maui out of trouble with Te Fiti, catch a break with the delicious dishes in Moana: The Official Cookbook! Featuring more than 50 recipes spanning the...Hardback$4499Elsewhere:$5299Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
This Angry Pen of Mine
This Angry Pen of Mine by Layne Staley invites you to dive into the untold creative world of Layne Staley, the legendary voice behind Alice in Chains. This extraordinary collection showcases his handwritten lyrics, deeply personal poetry, stunning original artwork, rare photos, fan tributes, and so much more. Step into the world of Layne Staley like never before. For the...Hardback$7299Elsewhere:$8999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
They Bloom Because of You
Bestselling author and Instagram sensation Jessica Urlichs returns with a new collection of beautifully observed poems about the ever-evolving journey of motherhood - the hard, the magic and the fleeting. ‘A raw and honest read that makes you feel seen and understood in a way that will bring you to tears.’ - Hilary Swank ‘A book to keep close and...Paperback$3000Elsewhere:$3600Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
Devotions
New York Times Bestseller, chosen as Oprah's 'Books That Help Me Through' for Oprah's Book Club Chosen by Poetry Book Society as their special commendation 'No matter where one starts reading, Devotions offers much to love, from Oliver's exuberant dog poems to selections from the Pulitzer Prize-winning American Primitive, and Dream Work, one of her exceptional collections. Perhaps more important,...Paperback$3200Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
Buy to WinThe Odyssey
The The Odyssey by Homer is a timeless epic that chronicles the adventures of the legendary Greek hero, Odysseus, as he endeavours to return home to Ithaca following the conclusion of the Trojan War. This monumental journey spans ten arduous years, during which Odysseus encounters a myriad of natural and supernatural challenges. From shipwrecks and ferocious battles to formidable monsters...Hardback$3600Elsewhere:$4000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
Buy to Win14% offLeaves of Grass
A collectible new Penguin Classics series offers beautiful, slim, clothbound editions of ten favourite poets. In 1855, Walt Whitman published his first collection of poetry, Leaves of Grass. The volume received great praise from leading Transcendentalist poet Ralph Waldo Emerson. This encouragement led to what would become a lifelong project, as Whitman expanded and rewrote the volume until his death...Hardback$1900Elsewhere:$2400Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
I Still Believe in Miracles
I Still Believe in Miracles is a collection of poetry exploring themes of masculinity, love, grief, and connection. This is the trade debut from Instagram phenomenon Lucas Jones, perfect for fans of yung pueblo, Hussain Manawer, and Whitney Hanson. A collection of powerful contemporary poetry, I Still Believe in Miracles delves deeply into themes of masculinity, love, grief, and connection....Hardback$3500Elsewhere:$4500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
Beautiful Chaos
The Instant Sunday Times Bestseller Selected poems from bestselling author and Instagram poet, Jessica Urlichs. 'These words awaken the magic of life by celebrating the ordinary.' - Giovanna Fletcher Motherhood is messy and beautiful, and hard and humbling. We adore our children and sometimes we miss ourselves. Beautiful Chaos is a collection of raw, honest poems about motherhood, capturing everything...Paperback$2900Elsewhere:$3500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
New ReleaseRoadscapes
For four decades, photographer Derek Smith has explored the way New Zealanders travel, work, and express themselves through the vehicles they drive. Roadscapes is his compelling photographic journey through the heartland of New Zealand, capturing our unique car cultures and the social landscapes they inhabit across Aotearoa.Hardback$3699Elsewhere:$4500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow
Why buy from us?
Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!
Service & Delivery
Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.
Auckland Bookstore
We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.
Our Gifting Service
Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.
