“This collection provides an ideal introduction to the issues that draw analytic philosophers to literature. It brings together an extraordinary array of the most vital, influential, and sophisticated essays published by philosophers of literature in the past three decades.”
Stephen Davies, University of Auckland

“These essays, taken together, constitute a serious and probing exploration of several of the most fundamental philosophical puzzles about literature. They are also accessible, engaging, and frequently a lot of fun. A superb collection!”
Kendall Walton, University of Michigan

Forty-five essential readings in the philosophy of literature are brought together for the first time in this anthology to provide a balanced and coherent overview of developments in the field during the past thirty years. They include substantial and carefully chosen essays and extracts which highlight influential work on fiction, emotion, interpretation, metaphor, literary value, and the definition and ontology of literature. An additional historical section features generous selections of the writings of early pioneers such as Plato, Aristotle, Nietzsche, and Hume.

This authoritative volume offers a handy compilation of contributions to the field by its leading figures. It is an indispensable resource for anyone interested in the philosophy of literature or the philosophy of art.

Eileen John is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Louisville, specializing in aesthetics and philosophy of literature. Her essays have appeared in the Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, Philosophy and Literature, and The Henry James Review.

Dominic McIver Lopes is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of British Columbia. He is the author of Understanding Pictures (1996) and co-editor of the Routledge Companion to Aesthetics (2000) and Imagination, Philosophy, and the Arts (2003). He is also co-editor, with Berys Gaut, of the Blackwell series New Directions in Aesthetics.