Literary Research and British Postmodernism: Strategies and Sources

Literary Research and British Postmodernism is a guide for scholars that aims to connect the complex relationships between print and multimedia, technological advancements, and the influence of critical theory that converge in postwar British literature. This era is unique in that strict boundaries between fiction, nonfiction, multimedia and print are not useful. Postmodern literature is defined by the breaking down of boundaries as a reaction to modernism and requires an innovative, multifaceted approach to research. In this guide the authors explore these complex relationships and offer strategies for researching this new period of literature.

This book takes a holistic approach to postmodern literature that recognizes the way in which digital media, film, critical theory, popular music and more traditional print sources are inextricably linked. Through this approach, the authors present a broad view of “postmodernism” that includes a wide variety of British authors writing in the last half of the twentieth century. The book’s definition of “postmodern” includes any British literature following World War II that engages issues central to postmodern theory, including the social construction of gender, sexuality, and power; the subjectivity of truth; technology as a social force; intertextuality; metafiction; post-colonial narrative; and fantasy. This guide aims to aid researchers of postwar British literature by defining best practices for scholars conducting research in a period so broadly varied in the way it defines literature.

Arianne A. Hartsell-Gundy is the Head, Humanities Section and Librarian for Literature and Theater Studies at Duke University. She has a Master of Arts degree in Comparative Literature and a Master of Library Science from Indiana University. Her research interests include information literacy, graduate student pedagogy, collection analysis, and digital humanities.

Bridgit McCafferty is the Director of the University Library at Texas A&M University-Central Texas, where she formerly acted as the liaison for the English and Film Studies programs. She has a Master of Library Science degree from Indiana University, in addition to a Master of Arts in literature. Research interests include library administration and digital libraries.