A collection of essays on the key texts that have shaped the Eco, the novelist and critic. After the opening essay on the general significance of literature, this book examines a number of major authors from the Western canon, such as French writer Nerval's masterpiece, "Sylvie", as well a...

A collection of essays on the key texts that have shaped the Eco, the novelist and critic. After the opening essay on the general significance of literature, this book examines a number of major authors from the Western canon, such as French writer Nerval's masterpiece, "Sylvie", as well as the works of Cervantes, Swift, and Piero Camporesi.