It is widely agreed that the period from about 1625 to 1700 witnessed radical shifts in English life and thought. For historians of politics, science, religion and philosophy, it is a time when the intellectual bases of modern thought and modern institutions were in the process of formation. Although the year 1660 to some extent marks a turning-point, this comprehensive volume demonstrates an underlying "continuity" within the period of Stuart rule. It presents thinkers and writers before and after 1660 responding to similar dilemmas, albeit with different attitudes, methods and conclusions. Central to the book are the related concepts of authority and reason: by looking at changing attitudes to these two concepts in all spheres of life it examines the crucial developments of the period, and their bearing on the literature. Within this framework the authors consider social and political history, religious belief and scientific knowledge; the influence of the classical world; and the relationship to other arts - painting, sculpture, architecture, gardening - to the literature of the time. It aims to be an absorbing and wide-ranging read for anyone interested in this period. This book should be of interest to students and teachers of English literature and social history.