Royal Voices: Language and Power in Tudor England

By: Mel Evans

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Synopsis: The Tudors are one of the best known royal families in English history. Over three generations, they constructed and maintained their status and authority during a period of social, political and religious unrest. This book examines the textual basis of Tudor royal power. Through analyses of correspondence alongside genres including proclamations and historical chronicles, the book explores the visual and verbal practices that came to symbolise monarchic authority in the Tudor era. Mel Evans combines concepts from sociolinguistics and pragmatics with corpus linguistic methods to explore the characteristics of authentic English language Tudor texts, alongside materials reporting and appropriating royal language. The book reveals a pervasive sixteenth-century royal voice - one which is central to the articulation and perpetuation of Tudor monarchic power.