The Necessary Unity of Opposites

Northrop Frye's thinking is characterized by its broad range of interests, including the poetry of William Blake, literary theory, the function of the university, Cold War politics, and Scripture. In The Necessary Unity of Opposites, Brian Russell Graham contends that it was the method of Frye's thinking - his dialectic ability to see opposing concepts as a unity rather than a dichotomy - that allowed him to transcend binary constructs and formulate new conclusions and questions about literature, politics, and society.

To discover the unity in oppositional concepts as seen by Frye, Graham deals with the main areas of Frye's work, including Blake's poetry, secular literature, education and work, politics, and Scripture. In each area, Graham expertly clarifies Frye's distinctive mode of thought, while drawing attention to its origins in the works of Blake. In its entirety, the study provides a fascinating conceptual framework for Frye's thinking which emphasizes its towering critical importance.