Books in the Impressions series

Argues that colonial-era author portraits, such as Benjamin Franklin's and Phillis Wheatley's frontispieces; political portraits that circulated during the debates over the Constitution; and portraits of beloved fictional characters in the 1790s, such as those of Samuel Richardson's heroine Pamela, shaped readers' conceptions of American literature.

Examines the role that language played at the turn of the nineteenth century as a marker of one's identity. Focusing on six eccentric characters of the time, Tim Cassedy shows how each put language at the centre of their identities and lived out the possibilities of their era's linguistic ideas.