This thorough introduction to English literature of the eighteenth century maps the emergence of the novel onto rich and exciting changes in poetry, drama and popular print. The book opens with an introduction to the principal texts followed by an explanation of key terms in their political, economic and social contexts. Each of the main chapters on poetry, prose fiction, theatre and 'culture of print' tells a story of literary evolution, interrogating extracts from key canonical texts whilst allowing space for a discussion of lesser-known contextual texts and intellectual currents. The book ends with a conclusion that highlights current critical debates in the field, and deals with the tricky bridge between writing of the eighteenth century and Romanticism.