For centuries, along with the bible, conduct books were some of the most widely read and infuential books available. In turn, they reflected the moral, religious, political and economic debate of their times. They give a clear view of the changing role of women as conflicting religious ideologies and the rise of capitalism were reflected in differing attitudes to the family unit and a woman's duties within it. Despite increased interest, few of these texts have been republished yet. Many of the early texts are only known through a handful of copies. Conduct literature aims at defining and prescribing the relative roles and duties of men and women in different ranks of life. Covering manners and morals, questions of household management and advice on what to read, offering advice on children's education and on the treatment of servants, dealing with fashion and leisure as well as with religious meditation and sexual conduct, conduct books are of prime interest to anyone reconstructing and exploring the cultural formation of national, class and gender identities. While the great research potential of conduct literature for history as well as for literary and gender studies is increasingly recognized, surviving copies are not only to be found in a few specialist libraries.

In most cases the texts are reproduced in full. The series thus lays the textual groundwork for future research into the impact on the development of fictional literature, and enables scholars to assess the historical interrelations of gender ideologies with other kinds of discourses, whether political or religious, literary or scientific.