How the classical and medieval conceptions of Fortune shifted to the modern notion of chanceIs chance nothing more than a projection of human desire on to the world In this fascinating new study John Lyons argues that the idea of chance assumed new vigour in the late Renaissance when converging philosophical and literary currents demystified the powerful concept of Fortune sensitizing writers to the relationship between human desire and the world s apparent randomness Up to now the story of chance has been written by historians of mathematical thought and has focused on calculation probability and gambling Lyons by contrast highlights the ethical aesthetic and even erotic aspects of chance He offers detailed readings of the works of major French authors Montaigne Corneille Lafayette Scudery Pascal Racine Bossuet and La Bruyere Key FeaturesRenews our understanding of romance tragedy comedy religious polemic in the light of the changed conceptions of the fortuitousShows how the emergence of suspense and subjective interest are linked to the shift from Fortune to randomnessProposes a new view on how religious writers faced with the sceptical challenge of late Renaissance thought integrated chance into the post Reformation mainstream of Catholic teachings