The eight essays in this general issue of Mosaic cover a wide range of topics, many of which approach unique questions about history and/or genre. Topics include Shakespeare’s political theatre, the literary cultures of nineteenth-century Paris and London, Mark Twain’s science fiction, and Ezra Pound’s interest in Vorticism. Other essays touch on The Scarlet Letter and the work of John Berger, Jean Rhys, and Ford Madox Ford.