Introduction

This chapter accounts for the recent rise in scholarly interest in early modern uncertainty. It contextualizes the emergence of early modern doubt by placing the notion of "doubt" in dialogue with similar categories within the broader spectrum of early modern uncertainty. Furthermore, it addresses the question of whether doubt was gendered. While histories of Western skepticism center around a canon of male- authored works, the role of women in shaping the early modern "culture of doubt" remains largely elusive. The chapter provides a survey of instances in which women's dissenting voices cast doubt on official narratives, thus providing a rationale for this collection of essays. In the final section, the chapter offers an overview of the essays included in this volume.