The volume gathers Benjamin's most important essays on literature: The Technique of the Critic in Thirteen Theses, The Poet of the Treasure Chest, Johann Peter Hebel, Gottfried Keller, Reflections on the Work of Nikolai Leskov, The Flâneur, Maidservant Novels of the Last Century, On the Image of Proust, Karl Kraus, Franz Kafka, Surrealism, The Last Snapshot of European Intelligence, What is Epic Theatre?, The Author as Producer, Literary History and Literary Studies. A line-by-line commentary and an afterword provide important aids to understanding.