Discusses William Beatty Warner's "Reading Clarissa: The Struggles of Interpretation," a study of Samuel Richardson's role as eighteenth-century critic and interpreter of his own novels. Examines the treatment of character by both Richardson and Warner, focusing on Richardson's humanist interpretation and Warner's anti-humanist…

Addresses the basic conflict between the Enlightenment's humanitarian credo and slavery, the opposing beliefs of the pro-slavery movement and the abolitionists, and the resulting changes in the perceptions of blacks brought about by the emancipation literature of the French philosophers and writers of the eighteenth century. (BJV)

Examines the literature and explores the portrayal of African Americansin creative writings of revolutionary America. The literature of the period reveals the paradox of African-American life in America, where prosperity for some was based on exploitation of others. Works of Benjamin Banneker, Thomas Jefferson, and Phyllis Wheatley are cited. (SLD)