Oscar Wilde

Joseph Bristow

The Picture of Dorian Gray

The practice of poetry in the Victorian period was characterised by an extreme diversity of styles, preoccupations and subject-matter. This anthology attempts to draw out some of the main focuses of interest in the Victorian poet. No Victorian poet produced an overall theory of poetry, yet all accepted it as a natural vehicle of expression, and for some subjects, in particular sexuality, the only literary mode. Indeed, the sexual question was made even more acute by the sudden phenomenon of the ‘poetess’, and the relation of poetry to gender raised interesting new critical questions. At the same time, the cultural role of the poet came under increasing debate: Victorian poetry was the first contemporary poetry to be studied. This selection of central texts illustrates these pressures on the Victorian practice of poetry, and the introductory remarks suggest ways in which theory can be related to the understanding key poems themselves.

Poetics and Persona

The Victorian Poet (Routledge Revivals)

Angelia R. Wilson

Professor of English Joseph Bristow

Activating Theory is the first comprehensive volume to represent the diversity of lesbian, gay and bisexual identities and subcultures that have flourished over the past decade. In particular, it gives prominence to the controversial emergence of queer activism, and the birth of a bisexual politics. Is there any common ground between bisexuals and homosexuals? How has ACTUP affected demands for lesbian and gay rights? What's stopping health educators teaching school children about HIV/AIDS? Combining work by academics and activists belonging to a variety of fields - including psychoanalysis, political theory, sex education and AIDS research - this is a wide-ranging and provocative collection that will appeal to many different audiences.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Politics

Activating Theory

Trev Lynn Broughton

Drawing on many aspects of contemporary feminist theory, this lively collection of essays assesses Angela Carter''s polemical fictions of desire. Carter, renowned for her irreverent wit, was one of the most gifted, subversive, and stylish British writers to emerge in the 1960s.

Fiction, Femininity, Feminism

The Infernal Desires of Angela Carter

The most authoritative account of a pivotal event in legal and cultural history: the trials of Oscar Wilde on charges of "gross indecency" Among the most infamous prosecutions of a literary figure in history, the two trials of Oscar Wilde for committing acts of "gross indecency" occurred at the height of his fame. After being found guilty, Wilde spent two years in prison, emerged bankrupt, and died in a cheap hotel room in Paris a few years after his release. The trials prompted a new intolerance toward homosexuality: habits of male bonding that were previously seen as innocent were now viewed as a threat, and an association grew in the public mind between gay men and the arts. Oscar Wilde on Trial assembles accounts from a variety of sources, including official and private letters, newspaper accounts, and previously published (but very incomplete) transcripts, to provide the most accurate and authoritative account to date of events that were pivotal in both legal and cultural history.

The Criminal Proceedings, from Arrest to Imprisonment

Oscar Wilde on Trial

Originally published in 1991. Focusing on ‘boys' own’ literature, this book examines the reasons why such a distinct type of combative masculinity developed during the heyday of the British Empire. This book reveals the motives that produced this obsessive focus on boyhood. In Victorian Britain many kinds of writing, from the popular juvenile weeklies to parliamentary reports, celebrated boys of all classes as the heroes of their day. Fighting fit, morally upright, and proudly patriotic - these adventurous young men were set forth on imperial missions, civilizing a savage world. Such noble heroes included the strapping lads who brought an end to cannibalism on Ballantyne's "Coral Island" who came into their own in the highly respectable "Boys' Own Paper", and who eventually grew up into the men of Haggard's romances, advancing into the Dark Continent. The author here demonstrates why these young heroes have enjoyed a lasting appeal to readers of children's classics by Stevenson, Kipling and Henty, among many others. He shows why the political intent of many of these stories has been obscured by traditional literary criticism, a form of criticism itself moulded by ideals of empire and ‘Englishness’. Throughout, imperial boyhood is related to wide-ranging debates about culture, literacy, realism and romance. This is a book of interest to students of literature, social history and education.

Empire Boys: Adventures in a Man's World

In this illuminating study Joseph Bristow introduces readers to the fundamental critical debates surrounding theories of sexuality and desire. Fully updated for this second edition, the volume presents new and extended discussion of queer and transgender theory, race, ethnicity and desire, a new preface summarising changes in the field since the first edition, a new glossary, annotated further reading section and bibliography. Considering all of the major movements in the field, this new edition is the ideal guide for students of literary and cultural studies.

Sexuality Ed 2

Theories of sexuality and desire are commonly used in literary and cultural studies. In this illuminating study Joseph Bristow introduces readers to the fundamental critical debates surrounding the topic. This fully updated second edition includes: a historical account of sexuality from the Victorians to the present discussions of the most influential theorists including Freud, Lacan, Bataille, Baudrillard, Cixous, Deleuze, Irigaray and Kristeva a new and extended discussion of queer and transgender theory, race, ethnicity and desire a new preface summarising changes in the field since the first edition a new glossary, annotated further reading section and bibliography. Considering all of the major movements in the field, this new edition is the ideal guide for students of literary and cultural studies.

Joseph Bristow

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