Introduction: Literary criticism and the political text -- Part one: The languages of politics -- The legal idiom -- The politics of taste -- The triumph of economy -- Patronage, deference and the language of dissent -- Part two: Parliamentary discourse -- The conditions of performance -- Preparation and delivery -- Performance and text -- Part three: The anatomy of a crisis: Burke, Wilkes and the debate on the Middlesex election -- The political identity of Wilkes -- Legal argument and the Middlesex election -- Philosophy in action -- Conclusion.
Introduction: Literary criticism and the political text -- Part one: The languages of politics -- The legal idiom -- The politics of taste -- The triumph of economy -- Patronage, deference and the language of dissent -- Part two: Parliamentary discourse -- The conditions of performance -- Preparation and delivery -- Performance and text -- Part three: The anatomy of a crisis: Burke, Wilkes and the debate on the Middlesex election -- The political identity of Wilkes -- Legal argument and the Middlesex election -- Philosophy in action -- Conclusion.
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CHOICE Review
This book is an important contribution to the literature on Burke and to the study of political writing in general. Rather than simply providing another interpretation of Burke's political thought and practice, what Reid (lecturer in English, University of London) proposes is the application of the principles of literary analysis or criticism to Burke's political writings to determine how literary form affects content. Arguing that the ``literary conventions'' of Burke's political writing are as ``historical,'' and hence as important, as the riots, revolutions, wars, etc. that occupy his attention, Reid concludes that the full force and significance of his work can be grasped only through a close scrutiny of its language and forms. On the whole his effort is a successful and illuminating one. The book should be of particular value not only to those interested in Burke's political thinking and place in the history of political thought, but to those interested in the relationship between politics and literature as well. It should also prove to be valuable to those interested, more generally, in 18th-century studies. Excellent index; extensive bibliography. A significant addition to any library, but in particular to those serving advanced undergraduate and graduate students and faculty.-G.L. Jones, University of Nevada, Las Vegas