Synopses & Reviews
In cities from Boston to Charleston, elite men and women of eighteenth-century British America came together in private venues to script a polite culture. By examining their various 'texts'conversations, letters, newspapers, and privately circulated manuscriptsDavid Shields reconstructs the discourse of civility that flourished in and further shaped elite society in British America.
Review
A major contribution to our understanding of [the] process of cultural transplantation.
Jack P. Greene, Times Literary Supplement
Review
[O]f value to historians of eighteenth-century British polite society, as well as to American historians.
English Historical Review
Review
Fresh and illuminating.
American Historical Review
Review
[R]ecreates an exuberant social exchange that provides a significant contribution for scholars, students, and general readers of British-American history.
Women•s Studies
Review
[An] intelligent, deeply researched and beautifully written book.
American Studies