Reading (and Not Reading) Anonymity: Daniel Defoe, An Essay on the Regulation of the Press and A Vindication of the Press
In this essay I take up the anonymous An Essay on the Regulation of the Press (1704) and A Vindication of the Press (1718), both regularly attributed to Daniel Defoe. While the pamphlets themselves consider anonymity essential to a work being read and interpreted, paradoxically, twentieth- and twent...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Ghent University
2015-06-01
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| Series: | Authorship |
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| Online Access: | http://www.authorship.ugent.be/article/id/63940/ |
| _version_ | 1818312822837215232 |
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| author | Jasper Schelstraete |
| author_facet | Jasper Schelstraete |
| author_sort | Jasper Schelstraete |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In this essay I take up the anonymous An Essay on the Regulation of the Press (1704) and A Vindication of the Press (1718), both regularly attributed to Daniel Defoe. While the pamphlets themselves consider anonymity essential to a work being read and interpreted, paradoxically, twentieth- and twenty-first century critics insist on correct attribution as the starting point for interpretation. The consequences and benefits of authorial attribution to these, and other, minor works are not insignificant. The attribution of authorship to a known author ensures that a work will survive; it may even ensure that a work is subject to study and analysis. However, authorial attribution may also foreclose study and analysis because the attributed work, if it is to be by the named author, must be made to cohere within a larger body of work. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T08:23:58Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-82ae394d622e492e9ecb341ca5b472ec |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2034-4643 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T08:23:58Z |
| publishDate | 2015-06-01 |
| publisher | Ghent University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Authorship |
| spelling | doaj.art-82ae394d622e492e9ecb341ca5b472ec2022-12-21T23:53:56ZengGhent UniversityAuthorship2034-46432015-06-014110.21825/aj.v4i1.1106Reading (and Not Reading) Anonymity: Daniel Defoe, An Essay on the Regulation of the Press and A Vindication of the PressJasper SchelstraeteIn this essay I take up the anonymous An Essay on the Regulation of the Press (1704) and A Vindication of the Press (1718), both regularly attributed to Daniel Defoe. While the pamphlets themselves consider anonymity essential to a work being read and interpreted, paradoxically, twentieth- and twenty-first century critics insist on correct attribution as the starting point for interpretation. The consequences and benefits of authorial attribution to these, and other, minor works are not insignificant. The attribution of authorship to a known author ensures that a work will survive; it may even ensure that a work is subject to study and analysis. However, authorial attribution may also foreclose study and analysis because the attributed work, if it is to be by the named author, must be made to cohere within a larger body of work.http://www.authorship.ugent.be/article/id/63940/Daniel Defoeattributionpamphlet writinginterpretation |
| spellingShingle | Jasper Schelstraete Reading (and Not Reading) Anonymity: Daniel Defoe, An Essay on the Regulation of the Press and A Vindication of the Press Authorship Daniel Defoe attribution pamphlet writing interpretation |
| title | Reading (and Not Reading) Anonymity: Daniel Defoe, An Essay on the Regulation of the Press and A Vindication of the Press |
| title_full | Reading (and Not Reading) Anonymity: Daniel Defoe, An Essay on the Regulation of the Press and A Vindication of the Press |
| title_fullStr | Reading (and Not Reading) Anonymity: Daniel Defoe, An Essay on the Regulation of the Press and A Vindication of the Press |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reading (and Not Reading) Anonymity: Daniel Defoe, An Essay on the Regulation of the Press and A Vindication of the Press |
| title_short | Reading (and Not Reading) Anonymity: Daniel Defoe, An Essay on the Regulation of the Press and A Vindication of the Press |
| title_sort | reading and not reading anonymity daniel defoe an essay on the regulation of the press and a vindication of the press |
| topic | Daniel Defoe attribution pamphlet writing interpretation |
| url | http://www.authorship.ugent.be/article/id/63940/ |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT jasperschelstraete readingandnotreadinganonymitydanieldefoeanessayontheregulationofthepressandavindicationofthepress |