4 Mysteries and ambiguities
-
Rob Breton
Abstract
Chapter 4 focuses on G. W. M. Reynolds, a hugely important figure in the development of both the popular press and Chartism. Refusing to accept the commonplace reading of Reynolds as a commercial entrepreneur using a half-baked radicalism to sell copy, the chapter argues that Reynolds was a dedicated radical attempting to maximise the size of his audience by folding into The Mysteries of London (1844–45) the non-radical, the reformist, and liberal. Reynolds’s radicalism continues to be widely questioned simply because the popular is not deemed to be compatible with a genuine radicalism. But Reynolds’s radicalism, his engagement with Chartist positions before he formally took the banner and declared himself a Chartist, becomes clear when measured against a Chartism that itself was filled with ambiguities, incongruities, and differences. The chapter offers a new reading of The Mysteries of London focused on its theme of vengeance by comparing it not to middle-class literature but to Chartist literature.
Abstract
Chapter 4 focuses on G. W. M. Reynolds, a hugely important figure in the development of both the popular press and Chartism. Refusing to accept the commonplace reading of Reynolds as a commercial entrepreneur using a half-baked radicalism to sell copy, the chapter argues that Reynolds was a dedicated radical attempting to maximise the size of his audience by folding into The Mysteries of London (1844–45) the non-radical, the reformist, and liberal. Reynolds’s radicalism continues to be widely questioned simply because the popular is not deemed to be compatible with a genuine radicalism. But Reynolds’s radicalism, his engagement with Chartist positions before he formally took the banner and declared himself a Chartist, becomes clear when measured against a Chartism that itself was filled with ambiguities, incongruities, and differences. The chapter offers a new reading of The Mysteries of London focused on its theme of vengeance by comparing it not to middle-class literature but to Chartist literature.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- Acknowledgements viii
- Introduction 1
- 1 The old, new, borrowed, and blue Newgate calendar 19
- 2 Jack Sheppard, the Newgate novel 47
- 3 Penny radicalism? 86
- 4 Mysteries and ambiguities 134
- 5 Distant friends of the people 175
- Select bibliography 222
- Index 230
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front matter i
- Dedication v
- Contents vii
- Acknowledgements viii
- Introduction 1
- 1 The old, new, borrowed, and blue Newgate calendar 19
- 2 Jack Sheppard, the Newgate novel 47
- 3 Penny radicalism? 86
- 4 Mysteries and ambiguities 134
- 5 Distant friends of the people 175
- Select bibliography 222
- Index 230
