"The Reward of Flunkeyism": Diagnosing Class Treachery in Reynolds's Newspaper

Abstract:In 1874, the popular Sunday weekly Reynolds's Newspaper accused the first two working-class MPs of class betrayal. The newspaper attributed this alleged treachery to a form of cultural corruption known as flunkeyism. Through an examination of the controversy, this article will explore the term's evolution from anti-aristocratic insult to an influential conceptualisation of class betrayal. In demonstrating flunkeyism's political impact in both the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the article calls for a reevaluation of popular radical language formerly dismissed as anachronistic to late nineteenth-century politics.