Michael J. Benton 
Literary Biography 
An Introduction

Literary Biography: An Introduction illustrates and accounts
for the literary genre that merges historical facts with the
conventions of narrative while revealing how the biographical
context can enrich the study of canonical authors.

* Provides up-to-date and comprehensive coverage of issues and
controversies in life writing, a rapidly growing field of
study

* Offers a valuable biographical and historical context for the
study of major classic and contemporary authors

* Features an interview with Wilfred Owen’s biographer, Dominic
Hibberd; a gallery of literary portraits with commentaries; close
readings that illustrate the differences between fiction and
biography; speculation about likely future developments; and
detailed suggestions for further reading

Über den Autor

Michael Benton is Emeritus Professor of Education at
the University of Southampton. His publications include the highly
influential Teaching Literature 9-14 (with Geoff Fox,
1985) and several widely used anthologies of poetry, most notably
the Touchstones series (with Peter Benton,
various editions 1968-2008). His most recent book was
Studies in the Spectator Role: Literature, Painting and
Pedagogy (2000).