This study provides a detailed introduction to Franz Daniel Pastorius in the context of his early life in Germany, delineating his bicultural perceptions and convictions as a jurist, classicist and radical social critic. It is based on his Pennsylvania correspondence, autobiographical writing, scholarship and poetry as well as documentary evidence and historical evaluation from innumerable German sources. Epigraphs from Pastorius' writing and scholarship provide reflective commentary and highlight many of his intriguing epigrams and poems. A prologue describes Pastorius' father Melchior...