Reading the Radical American Periodical

Abstract

This special issue probes our definitions and understandings of both the ‘radical’ and the ‘American’ in North American print and periodical culture. As many of the subsequent papers demonstrate, notions of radicalism as expressed in American periodicals often necessitate(d) looking beyond the nation state. Similarly, this issue highlights the fluidity of ‘radicalism’ as a temporal and technological concept; relatable not only to literary content, but also to graphic design, editorial control, foreign language use, subscription policies, and other aspects of production, dissemination and reception. Thematically and conceptually diverse, the articles collated here provide a judicious intervention into the developing field of periodical studies.