This book provides an introduction to Dante that is at once accessible and challenging. Fifteen essays provide background information and up-to-date critical perspectives on Dante's life and work, focusing on areas of central importance. Three essays introduce the three canticles of the Divine Comedy, and others explore the literary, intellectual and historical background to Dante's writings, his other works and his reception in the commentary tradition...

An essential introduction and handbook for students and other readers of T.S. Eliot.

The Cambridge Companion to Henry David Thoreau is an accessible guide to reading and understanding the works of Thoreau. Presenting essays by a distinguished array of contributors, the Companion is a valuable resource for historical and contextual material, whether on early writings such as A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, on the monumental Walden, or on his Journal and later writings. It also serves as a biographical guide, offering insights...

A collection of critical essays on the great 19th century American poet redefines the life and art of Whitman in contemporary terms, exploring such issues as modernism, feminism, and the poet's changing style in later years. Includes a chronology of Whitman's life and suggestions for further reading.

This volume of essays contains studies of Eugene O'Neill's life, his intellectual & creative forebears, & his relation to the theatrical world of his creative period, 1916-42. It also has descriptions of the O'Neill canon & its production history.

"The Cambridge Companion to Herman Melville is intended to provide a critical introduction to Melville's work. The essays have been specially commissioned for this volume and provide a comprehensive overview of Melville's career. All of Melville's novels are discussed, as well as most of his poetry and short fiction."--Jacket.