The Cambridge Edition of the Correspondence of Daniel Defoe

The complete and authoritative scholarly edition of Defoe's letters, including full biographical, literary, and historical information.

Daniel Defoe (Author), Nicholas Seager (Edited by), Marc Mierowsky (Associate editor), Andreas K. E. Mueller (Associate editor)

9781107133099, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 29 September 2022

1014 pages
23.5 x 15.8 x 5.3 cm, 1.71 kg

'Nicholas Seager has produced a stunningly impressive edition of Defoe's correspondence from 1703 to 1730 … The letters are lively, pugnacious, detailed, typographically (scribally) dramatic, and intrinsically compelling; in Nicholas Seager they have an eminently worthy editor' Cynthia Wall, Bunyan Studies

This comprehensive and authoritative edition of the correspondence of Daniel Defoe situates each letter in its biographical, literary, and historical contexts. A unique source for a turbulent period of British history, Defoe's correspondence spans topics including the first age of party marked by Tory and Whig rivalry, religious tensions between the Church and Dissenters, the uncertainty of the monarchical succession, the birth of Great Britain and its establishment as a global empire, and the use of the press to mould public opinion. As well as an introduction discussing Defoe's epistolary habits and the distinctive features of his letters, headnotes and annotations explain each document's occasion, beginning in 1703 with Defoe hunted by the government for sedition, and ending in 1730 with him again in hiding, fleeing creditors months before his death. The volume is illustrated with examples of Defoe's letters, offering a fresh window onto Defoe's manuscript habits.

List of Figures
Acknowledgements
Editorial Principles and Practice
Chronology
Conventions and Abbreviations
Calendar of Letters
Introduction
The Letters I
Select Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Modern history to 20th century: c 1700 to c 1900 [HBLL], Literary studies: c 1500 to c 1800 [DSBD]