The Bedford introduction to literature: reading, thinking, and writing

Reading fiction

Plot

Character

Setting

Point of view

Symbolism

Theme

Style, tone, and irony

Writing about fiction

Study of three authors: Nathaniel Hawthorne, James Joyce, and Flannery O'Connor

Critical case study: William Faulkner's "Barn Burning"

Collection of stories Perspectives on fiction

Reading poetry

Images

Figures of speech

Symbol, allegory, and irony

Sounds

Patterns of rhythm

Poetic forms

Open form

Writing about poetry

Study of three poets: Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, and Langston Hughes

Critical case study: T. S. Eliot's "the love song of J. Alfred Prufrock"

Reading drama

Writing about drama

Study of Sophocles

Study of William Shakespeare

Neoclassical drama

Modern drama

Critical case study: Henrik Ibsen's a Doll House

Experimental trends in drama

Collection of plays

Perspectives on drama

Critical strategies for reading

Reading and writing

Literary research paper

Taking essay examinations.