The 18th Century Scandal and Sociability (ENGL3623)
In eighteenth-century Britain authors were brought into new relation with readers. Commercial publication now central to literary production and dissemination meant texts reached an anonymous and potentially limitless readership. How did awareness of this new public dimension shape literary texts? Students will evaluate the constitutive role of scandal and sociability in the period's most important texts. We will focus on the development of the novel as a sociable form and assess recent theories addressing public engagement in eighteenth-century literature.
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