Addressing the concepts of originality and intellectual property from perspectives bridging law, literature, visual arts, philosophy and history, this book offers new interpretations of central issues in recent scholarship, examining how "originality"-a fundamental idea whose origins and evolution have been imperfectly understood-came to have different values and meanings.

Reginald McGinnis is Associate Professor of French at the University of Arizona. His publications include a book on Baudelaire, La Prostitution sacrée (Paris: Belin, 1994), as well as articles in Studies in Eighteenth-Century Culture, l'Atelier du roman, PO&SIE, Cahiers de l'Herne and the Romanic Review.

Introduction Reginald McGinnis 1. Plagiarism and Paternity in Dryden's Adaptations Robert W. McHenry, Jr. 2. Kidnapped and Counterfeit Characters: Eighteenth-Century Fan Fiction, Copyright Law, and the Custody of Fictional Characters Elizabeth F. Judge 3. Copyright, Originality, and the Public Domain in Eighteenth-Century England Simon Stern 4. On Plagiarism, Originality, Textual Ownership and Textual Responsibility: The Case of Jacques le fataliste Anne Sechin 5. "Odd scratches and marks": Thomas Gainsborough and the Idiosyncrasy of the Brush Cristina S. Martinez 6. Byron and the Scandal of Paternity: Anonymity, Plagiarism, and the Natural Rights of Authors Tilar J. Mazzeo 7. Originality in the Enlightenment and Beyond John Vignaux Smyth