In this volume, Mario Klarer provides the essential beginner's guide to English literary studies. Offering a concise, easy-to-understand discussion of central issues in the study of literary texts, looking at: definitions of key terms such as 'literature' and 'text' major genres, such as fiction, poetry, drama and film periods and classifications of literature theoretical approaches to texts the use of secondary resources guidelines for writing research essays. Klarer has fully updated the highly successful first edition to provide greater guidance for online research and to reflect recent changes to MLA guidelines for referencing and quoting sources. He concludes with suggestions for further reading and an extensive glossary of important literary and cinematic terms.