Following the first and second editions, which created a new paradigm for anthologies,this new third edition continues to respond to major shifts in literary studies over the past thirty years. This anthology was the first to pay sustained attention to the contexts within which literature is produced. Within its pages, canonical authors mingle with newly visible writers and major works are illuminated by clusters of shorter texts that bring literary, social, and historical issues vividly to life.This third edition continues to benefit from an editorial team whose members are all actively engaged in teaching and in current scholarship, and an abundance of new illustrations which show both artistic and cultural developments from the medieval period to the present.