Luxury in the Eighteenth Century

'This volume significantly advances our knowledge of the topic and makes clear, once and for all, that a decisive change occurred in the long eighteenth century. It also...points the way forward to an approach that combines an account of values and beliefs with the detailed analysis of specific material goods.' - John Brewer, John and Marion Sullivan University Professor, University of Chicago, USA 'In this volume late twentieth-century scholars fasten with enthusiasm on both the practicalities that created evermore consumer goods and exalted luxury, and on the philosophical controversies and imaginative literature that it endangered. They marry literature and history in a most stimulating collection...This is a thought-provoking book...The text establishes an impressive network of connections not only between literature and history, but with moral philosophy and aesthetics as well. It will surely spark more investigations of consumerism and luxury.' - Joan Thirsk, Literature and History '[In] Maxine Berg and Elizabeth Eger's excellent new collection of essays, Luxury in the Eighteenth Century...we find a subtle historical argument that describes how the concept of luxury emerged from inherited moral and religious discourses, to become an integral part of our understanding of modernity' - David Mazella, Eighteenth Century Studies 'Luxury in the Eighteenth Century provides both a synopsis of existing literature on the subject and a major step forward in tis analysis. It is an important academic landmark. It is refreshing that Asian and American viewpoints are embraced, adding depth and an important corrective to our understanding of the English 'long eighteenth century'.' - Helen Clifford, Journal of Design History