This book would not have been possible without the support, over the
years, of a number of good people. Therefore, the lines that follow are,
for me, the most important lines in the book. The usual disclaimer
applies, to wit: I am of course responsible for whatever mistakes and omissions
are there in the book.
Most of the arguments developed here originated as a part of my PhD project
at the University of Edinburgh under the supervision of Claudio Michelon and
Neil Walker. Their support, both during the work on the Ph.D. and thereafter,
has lent to me an unwavering source of resilience in the face of the usual
rejections and setbacks that, I reckon, take place in most academic careers.
I also want to thank my examiners, Timothy Endicott and Euan MacDonald,
for their generous engagement with my PhD thesis, which prompted me to
reconsider and improve many of the underlying assumptions of the work in the
years following the viva.