In this definitive work, Margaret Rose presents an analysis and history of theories of parody from ancient to contemporary times. Her earlier Parody/Meta-fiction (1979) was influential in broadening awareness of parody as a "double-coded" device that could be used for more than mere ridicule. In the present study she both expands and revises the introductory section of her 1979 text and adds substantial new sections on modern and postmodern theories and uses of parody and pastiche that analyze the work of theorists and writers including Bakhtin and Eco.