The years of the British Civil War and Interregnum constituted a turning point not only in the political, social, and religious history of seventeenth-century England but also in the use and meaning of English language and literature. Smith examines literary output from the age from Milton's Paradise Lost to epics and romances, to psalms and hymns. This highly original book explores the effect of politics on the practice of writing and the impact of literature on patterns of historical change. "Whether dealing with gallant love-lyrics by Herrick or Lovelace or with a major work of the order...

The floodplain forest of the Amazon is the last major agricultural frontier of the Americas. This unique habitat, inundated in some places to a depth of 30 feet a year, contains a marvellous variety of plant and animal resources that inhabitants have long reaped - fruit, nuts, building materials, fuelwood and medicinal plants. While the floodplain has great potential for food production, its natural resource base is becoming increasingly threatened by ranching and agricultural expansion and impaired by inappropriate land-use practices. This work, based both on field observations carried out...