A study of theories of racial difference in early modern England. The book uses the forms of the narrative, lyric, masque, and romance as evidence for understanding race-making processes. In resisting a teleological approach towards racism or racialization, this book explores discursive understandings of skin color and race through cultural ties, kinship, science, and religion. This text participates in discussions of premodern critical race studies, Blackness studies, and whiteness studies.