A pamphleteer is a historical term used to describe someone who creates or distributes pamphlets, unbound (therefore inexpensive) booklets intended for wide circulation.
Context
editPamphlets were used to broadcast the writer's opinions: to articulate a political ideology, for example, or to encourage people to vote for a particular politician. Early modern news pamphlets also made extensive use of stock imagery to describe, highlight, or criticize various social and cultural events and issues.[1] During times of political unrest, such as the French Revolution, pamphleteers were highly active in attempting to shape public opinion. Before the advent of telecommunications, those with access to a printing press and a supply of paper often used pamphlets to widely disseminate their ideas.
Famous pamphleteers
editThomas Paine's pamphlets were influential in the history of the American Revolutionary War.[2] 17th-century Dutch naval officer Witte de With wrote papers mocking and praising his fellow officers.[citation needed] Poet and polemicist John Milton published pamphlets as well. Jonathan Edwards and John Calvin changed the course of Christianity with their pamphlets.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Early Modern Memes: The Reuse and Recycling of Woodcuts in 17th-Century English Popular Print".
- ^ James A. Henretta et al. (2011). America's History, Volume 1: To 1877. Macmillan. p. 165. ISBN 9780312387914.
External links
edit- "From Slavery to Freedom: The African-American Pamphlet Collection, 1822-1909".
- "The Foster pamphlet collection".
- James A. Oliver. "The Pamphleteers" by James A. Oliver. ISBN 978-0-9551834-4-7 (PBK) and ISBN 978-0-9551834-5-4 (HBK).
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