Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-94fs2 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-01T09:56:04.198Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 19 - Politics

from Part IV - The Monarchy and Parliament

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 April 2023

Albert J. Rivero
Affiliation:
Marquette University, Wisconsin
George Justice
Affiliation:
University of Tulsa
Get access

Summary

Defoe came to professional writing amidst the first ’Age of Party’, when Tories and Whigs debated fundamental questions about the nature of government, the religious settlement, and international relations. Poets, pamphleteers, and periodical journalists scrutinized and speculated upon affairs of state in an expanding print culture, seeking to shape public debate, often on behalf of politicians. Defoe was among the most prolific and percipient commentators of his day but also one of the most vilified, being employed alternately by Whig and Tory ministries and hence denounced as a hack and a hireling. This chapter attests to Defoe’s underlying political principles: the 1688 Revolution’s establishment of contractarian government, the Protestant succession and toleration of Nonconformity, and a balance of power in Europe. But it also shows his varying degrees of success in remaining consistent at a time when circumstances forced him to expediencies and compromises which have shaped his legacy.

Type
Chapter
Information
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×