Eighteenth-century letters and British culture

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

This important new book explores epistolary forms and practices in relation to important areas of British culture. Familiar ideas about epistolary fiction and personal correspondence, and public and private, are re-examined in the light of alternative paradigms, showing how the letter is a genre at the centre of Eighteenth-century life.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Acknowledgements
• A Letter of Introduction
• Learning to Write
• Writing as a Parent
• Writing as a Lover
• Writing as a Criminal
• Writing as a Citizen
• Writing as a Traveller
• Writing as a Historian
• Writing as a Christian
• Postscript
• Notes
• Short Bibliography
• Index

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

The product of laborious and intelligent reading, this book surveys an important and prolific 18th-century literary genre, the personal letter. Departing from the practice of earlier works--e.g., Bruce Redford's The Converse of the Pen (CH, Jun'87), which examined such canonical authors as Montagu, Gray, and Walpole--Brant (King's College, UK) organizes her book thematically. This approach has the advantage of allowing the author to "call[] into question the status of canonical authors as canonical letter-writers" and also draws attention to "the immense quality and diversity of eighteenth-century letters." After an opening meditation on the concept of letter writing in the 18th century and a discussion of the book's approach, Brant examines numerous individual letters under such organizational rubrics as "writing as a lover," "writing as a criminal," "writing as a Christian," etc. Eclectic in its criticism, lucid in structure, and lively (even trenchant) in style, this study summarizes and extends the recent critical conversation on 18th-century letter writing. This will not be the last word on the topic but, given the book's remarkable range and inclusiveness, it will surely stand as an indispensable resource and touchstone for the next generation of scholars. ^BSumming Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty. A. W. Lee Kentucky Wesleyan College