How to write a history of graphomania

The article is an attempt at framing the phenomenon of graphomania within literary studies. Beginning with the survey of existing modes of framing the problem, the author points to contradictions and ambiguities of the use and understanding of the term "graphomania" originating in the mistaken location of its essence. The solution lies in shifting the accent towards external factors both in relation to the text and to the author. Thus aiming towards the rhetorical character of graphomania and its linking to the figure of irony the author offers a method of historical description of the phenomenon based on the linguistic analysis of the contexts of the word's usage.