Cosmography of Man

Aimed at entertainment and instruction, Joseph Addison and Richard Steele's essay periodicals The Tatler (1709-1711) and The Spectator (1711-1712/1714) expose the morals and manners of early eighteenth-century London society. Focusing on the character sketches embedded in the essays, this study traces the methods that the authors used to communicate and order socio-moral knowledge by adapting the rhetorical practices of contemporary naturalists.