Orthodoxy and Heresy in Eighteenth-Century Society: Essays from the Debartolo Conference

A dozen essays record the 11th annual DeBartolo Conference on Eighteen-Century Studies, held in Tampa, Florida. Contributors primarily from literary studies, but also history explore heresy as the quest for the forbidden in the arts and sciences and the conduct of private and public life, as well as in religion. By focusing on the condemnatory language of theology that social scientists tend to shy away from, they show how people upholding norms in any area of experience treat the order they defend as sacred. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)