An anthology is an odd species of learned text. It is neither the flesh of a unified argument produced by a single mind, nor the fowl (no pun intended!) of a wide-ranging, multifaceted journal, retooling each month or quarter. Instead, the scholarly anthology offers a set of scholarly essays, heavily footnoted, deep and narrow in focus, and often ambiguously linked. In the case of The Representation of Business in English Literature more than enough intellectual heft is offered, with contributors from some of the United Kingdoms leading research institutions (Edinburgh, Hull, Leedsthough Oxford and Cambridge are noticeably missing). Notwithstanding, questions of consistency and breadth of focus linger over the volume from start to finish, and at times the evaluation of the literary mind seems to balance on purely mercantile terms, an unfortunate oversimplification that almost swamps the volumealmost. Nonetheless, the essays eventually rally and offer a measure of helpful insight into the world of social critique and exchange of ideas across sometimes-hostile boundaries.
Michael R. Stevens, "Review Essay: The Representation of Business in English Literature," Journal of Markets & Morality 13, no. 1 (Spring 2010): 205-210