"All which I offer with my own experience": An approach to persuasive advertising strategies in the prefatory matter of 17th-century English midwifery treatises.

Abstract

In 17th-century England, a growing popular interest in medical literature brought with it a significant editorial boom in the field. This meant that the number of midwifery treatises published gradually increased, resulting in strong competition for a place in the sales market. Authors, editors and other agents deployed different advertising strategies in the front matter of the books, which served as publicity blurbs specifically designed to convince the potential reader to buy the work. Such strategies were supported by a series of arguments and assertions both to attract the readers’ attention and to help increase sales of the product. In this paper we identify and analyse the persuasive marketing strategies used to construct the prefatory discourse in a selection of 17th-century English midwifery treatises. Taking into account some studies on current advertising strategies, Genette’s (1997) theory on paratext and Aristotle’s classical rhetorical model, we have classified marketing strategies into those which are (1) focused on who produces the text, that is, how the authors establish authority and use their professional experience and moral integrity to convince the potential user to buy their book over another (ethos); (2) intended to highlight the relevant role of midwives in taking care of women and newborns and securing their welfare (pathos); and (3) related to the quality and utility of the work (logos).