The rise of the novel in the mid-18th century was also the rise of sentimentalism. This study explores the attitudes which led novelists to associate virtuous feeling with disabling suffering. It also examines the role of women in fiction and in society during that period.

'Mullan's prose is stylish ... and his argument compelling ... this is a remarkable study of sentimentalism.'Times Literary Supplement 'Mullan has provided a stimulating study which is not afraid to explore complex themes and be provocative in its judgements' Times Higher Education Supplement 'admirable study' Notes and Queries 'responsible, informed and thoughtful book' Yvonne Noble, British Journal of 18th Century Studies, 13:2 `Mullan's study is a valuable, sustained, and richly suggestive meditation on the essential ambiguity of the language of feeling. He deserves much credit for his refusal to talk reductively about a subject so complex ... I can highly recommend this book.' Eighteenth-Century Fiction 'absorbing study' English Studes `Mullan's book is an original and important contribution to the history of ideas. It offers brilliant and convincing reinterpretations kof Clarissa adn Tristam Shandy.' The Eighteenth Century