The object of this investigation is to determine the effect of finite inflation on the subsequent response of a circular cylindrical cantilever to bending loads. The bending stiffness of the beam is used to measure the response to loading after inflation. Classical elasticity theory is incapable of detecting the changes in material properties and can only treat variation in geometry by approximation techniques for rather small strains. Here, the theory of small deformations superimposed on large ones allows both factors to be considered in a unified and clear manner, and small inflation is merely a special case. Using the Mooney-Rivlin constitutive assumption, explicit analytic results are obtained. Stiffness coefficients vary significantly with inflation, and this variation is seen to be appreciable even in the early stages of inflation. The stiffness is seen to be a nonmonotonic function of inflation for some materials. Also, the stiffness is a multivalued function of the inflating pressure. Finally, experimental observations are related to the theoretical development.