Rhetorical invention in the regency crisis pamphlets

Abstract

Rhetorical invention represents a significant problem for the propagandist assigned to produce public discourse during a protracted political controversy. What postures should he assume and how should he time his material? The British Regency Crisis of 1788–89, in which Pittites and Foxites fought for office when George III went insane, saw political propagandists write eighty pamphlets for public consumption, pamphlets which illustrate inventional strategies. Reportorial and argumentative stances were taken often in the early months, while judgmental (personal) and quasi‐poetic stances dominated the later portions of the dispute. Language intensity increased as the Crisis progressed.