Starting at the dawn of the 20th century, writers began experimenting with literary styles as never before. As perhaps the most far-reaching movement, Modernism swept across both the United States and Europe and has been embodied in the works of such writers as Marcel Proust, Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, and T.S. Eliot. The existentialism of Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus, Samuel Beckett’s absurdist writings, and the range of literary output from around the world also reflect the spirit of the period. The lives and works of these and other authors from across the globe are surveyed in this absorbing volume.

Shakespeare's gift for writing tragedies was powerful indeed. His ability to create epic tragic characters-think Hamlet, Lear, and the star-crossed Romeo and Juliet-and scenarios is virtually unrivalled. Readers examine the Bard's major tragedies and their significance, and touch upon the state of theatre and dramatic performance in Shakespeare's England for good measure.

In Shakespeare's time, the term "comedy" did not necessarily denote something funny or amusing. Rather, through such plays such as A Midsummer Night's Dream and The Merchant of Venice, the playwright examines other defining characteristics of comedic drama—the social interactions of common folks and a focus on the contradictions inherent in everyday life. Readers explore the major themes of Shakespearean comedies, which have enchanted readers and theater-goers alike for centuries.

Narratives come in many forms, fall into many genres, and tell the stories of an endless assortment of characters. Despite recurring themes and conceits in works from around the world, each story-from biography to science fiction-is singular and designed to elicit a distinct emotional response from its readers. The rhetorical tools and literary styles that have helped reinvent the art and study of storytelling over time are surveyed in this captivating volume.

A Tale of Two Cities (Bloom's Modern Critical Interpretations)

Written for serial publication in 1859, Charles Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities" is a historical novel that takes place in England and France in the years leading up to the French Revolution. It is one of Dickens' most famous and widely taught novels. Its first line, which begins, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times," is one of the most recognizable openers in all of literature. 

REUPLOAD NEEDED