Recent years have witnessed renewed critical interest in the works of Samuel Richardson. This volume brings together a group of well-respected scholars to examine how and why the works of Richardson continue to intrigue us. As a whole, the essays reveal Richardson to be a writer constantly contradicting himself, striving not to be misunderstood. His attraction and appeal to deconstructionists, reader-response critics, Marxists, and feminists are analyzed and made comprehensible. Grappling with issues which continue to trouble us, Richardson appears as an artist writing to our historical moment, engaging us in a conversation now joined by the essays in this collection. Offering a variety of critical perspectives, New Essays on Samuel Richardson sheds light on the importance of this writer and reveals his relevance to the modern day.