Andrew McRae examines the relationship between literature and politics at a pivotal moment in English history. McRae argues that the most influential and incisive political satire in this period may be found in manuscript libels, scurrilous pamphlets, and a range of other material written and circulated under the threat of censorship. Satire provided crucial resources through which early Stuart writers could define new models of political identity and construct new discourses of dissent.