Critical Theory Today is the essential introduction to contemporary criticial theory. It provides clear, simple explanations and concrete examples of complex concepts, making a wide variety of commonly used critical theories accessible to novices without sacrificing any theoretical rigor or thoroughness. This new edition provides in-depth coverage of the most common approaches to literary analysis today: feminism, psychoanalysis, Marxism, reader-response theory, new criticism, structuralism and semiotics, deconstruction, new historicism, cultural criticism, lesbian/gay/queer theory, African American criticism, and postcolonial criticism. The chapters provide an extended explanation of each theory, using examples from everyday life, popular culture, and literary texts; a list of specific questions critics who use that theory ask about literary texts; an interpretation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby through the lens of each theory; a list of questions for further practice to guide readers in applying each theory to different literary works; and a bibliography of primary and secondary works for further reading.

As a result of his visits to classrooms across the nation, Brown has compiled an engaging, thought-provoking collection of classroom vignettes which show the ways in which national, state, and local school politics translate into changed classroom practices. "Captures the breadth, depth, and urgency of education reform".--Bill Clinton.

Concise and focused, the Wonders Reading/Writing Workshop is a powerful instructional tool that provides students with systematic support for the close reading of complex text. Introduce the week’s concept with video, photograph, interactive graphic organizers, and more Teach through mini lessons that reinforce comprehension strategies and skills, genre, and vocabulary Model elements of close reading with shared, short-text reads of high interest and grade-level rigor

Intersectionality: A Foundations and Frontiers Reader is an accessible, primary-source driven exploration of intersectionality in sociology and related fields. The book maps the origins of the concept, particularly in Black feminist thought and sociology, opens the discourse to challenges and applications across disciplines and outside academia, and explores the leading edges of scholarship to reveal important new directions for inquiry and activism. Charting the development of intersectionality as an intellectual and political movement, Patrick R. Grzanka brings together in one text both foundational readings and emerging classics. Original material includes: Grzanka's nuanced introduction which provides broad context and poses guiding questions; thematic unit introductions; author biographies and suggestions for further reading to ground each excerpt; and a conclusion by Bonnie Thornton Dill reflecting on the past, present, and future of intersectionality. With its balanced mix of analytical, applied, and original content, Intersectionality is an essential component of any course on race, class, and gender, feminist theory, or social inequalities.

Documents the life stories of death-row prisoners and the author's experiences as a pro bono attorney on Texas death penalty cases to present arguments for the abolishment of state-sanctioned executions.

"In this wonderfully bold and speculative anthology of writings, artists and critics offer a highly persuasive set of argument and pleas for imaginative, socially responsible, and socially responsive public art.... "--Amazon.