ipl-logo

Jonathan Swift's Satirical Work

866 Words4 Pages

In the 1700s, satirical work was a popular form of writing for those to express their opinions (Pullen). Jonathan Swift, poet, politician, and writer, wrote numerous books and novels. Born in Dublin Ireland and often visiting England, Swift wrote a collection of works that showed his disapproval of english politics (“Jonathan Swift” Biography). Many applauded Swift for his courage displayed in his writings, but English politicians were not in approval of his satirical works (Rogers). After growing up in a poor family and working in a political position, Jonathan Swift created many satirical works based upon english politics and his experiences in life (“Jonathan Swift” Biography) Jonathan Swift was born on October 30, 1667, in Dublin Ireland …show more content…

He was also recognized for “attacking the clergy, literary critics, philosophers, and people in power. He loved the individual but despised all nations, professions, and communities” (Gilbertson). Swift’s works also had accounts of attacks on religion, education, journalism, and politics, his writings were mostly described as satire and had several allegories (Pullen). Swift’s first political works were Discourse on the Contests and Rome (“Jonathan Swift” Biography). A Tale of a Tub was another of Swift’s early works, published in 1704, it was written while he was in England (Gilbertson). One of Jonathan Swift’s most recognized writings was Gulliver’s Travels, originally given the title Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World, in Four Parts, by Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships (Pullen). He began writing Gulliver’s Travels in 1720, and finished the book in 1725 (Gilbertson). Swift also wrote a collection called The Drapier’s Letters from 1724 until 1735, expressing resistance to English politics, naming Swift as a hero to Irishmen (Pullen). One of Jonathan Swift’s later works included A Modest Pamphlet which he wrote in 1729 (“Jonathan Swift” EBSCO). Throughout Swift’s writing career, many readers believed that something was wrong with Swift mentally, as his writing was very graphic and often included sexual content

Show More
Related

  • Human Dignity In Jonathan Swift's Modest Proposal

    251 Words  | 2 Pages

    Another disturbing fact about Jonathan Swift is that he is a dean of the Catholic Church, and the fact that these grotesque views are written by a

    Read More

  • Jonathan Swift Research Paper

    672 Words  | 3 Pages

    Swift had a sense of Irish patriotism, and it is revealed in his literary works that were mostly satirical writings criticizing the politics in England and Ireland. He published many works anonymously, including Gulliver’s Travels, but he still became famous among many Irish readers for writing such

    Read More

  • Analysis Of A Midnight Modern Conversation By William Hogarth

    1051 Words  | 5 Pages

    William Hogarth, an english painter, used satire in most of his works, including Beer Street, The Distrest Poet, and A Midnight Modern Conversation. Satire is the use of humor, exaggeration, and ridicule, which is used to effect social or political change, or to prevent social or political change. In Beer Street, The Distrest Poet, and A Midnight Modern Conversation, William Hogarth uses satire to convey a message to the person viewing his work of art. In the painting Beer Street, the streets are thriving with people who have just finished their hard days work of labor, sipping on England 's national brew.

    Read More

  • Voltaire's Satire In The Adventures Of Candied

    1349 Words  | 6 Pages

    Voltaire (1694), a French writer who escape to England in (1726) for his political satirical works which criticized the French empire at that time. In England, he was introduced to many members of ‘the literary and scientific elite’ (Fraser, 172). He was well acquainted with Swift’s Gulliver’s Travel. Then he was influenced by Swift’s satiric method of writing and particularly the dystopian. Voltaire’s practical influence by Swift was embodied in his novel.

    Read More

  • Jonathan Swift Ethos Pathos Logos Analysis

    879 Words  | 4 Pages

    Swift makes extensive use of Ethos, Logos, and Pathos within the first eight paragraphs to create a strong initial argument that captures the audience’s attention and provide assurance that the information presented is viable. Swift starts with an appeal to Pathos by describing the state of Ireland: “the Streets, the Roads, and Cabin-Doors, crowded with Beggars of the female Sex, followed by three, four, or six Children, all in Rags, and importuning every Passenger for an Alms” (Swift, 1). The description of Ireland leaves a gloomy effect on the audience, as they are met with a somber tone set forth by a description on how thousands of people are affected by the poverty in Ireland. Swift continues this appeal to Pathos by describing the state of families within this poverty: “this prodigious number of Children, in the Arms, or on the Backs, or at the heels of their Mothers, and frequently of their Fathers, is in the present deplorable state of the Kingdom, a very great additional grievance” (Swift, 2). This description of the melancholy state of Ireland creates an emotional appeal because, the thought of having mass amounts of children being forced to cling to their Mothers and Fathers in a desperate struggle for survival, is a morose image.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis Essay: A Modest Proposal By Jonathan Swift

    576 Words  | 3 Pages

    For example on page 2 Swift says “so as to render them plump, and fat for a good table. A child will make two dishes at an entertainment for friends.” statements like this make Swift’s proposal even more outrageous. This is a sarcastic attempt by Swift to make the proposal look attractive, but his statement has an underlying meaning of making the idea look repulsive. Additionally on page 2 Swift states “That a young healthy child well nursed, is, at a year old, a most delicious nourishing and wholesome food.”

    Read More

  • Imagery In Jonathan Swift's A Modest Proposal

    947 Words  | 4 Pages

    Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” is a very interesting take on how the Irish government should cure the famine that the country was then facing. However, the entire proposal was completely bizarre, and the whole point of the essay was to bring attention to the idea that they needed a solution to the all the problems they were experiencing but the proposal was definitely not it. He even had a strongly developed plan as to how his proposal would work which makes the reader feel as if he is serious about selling children, eating them, and using their skins as a fashion accessory; however, ultimately this proposal was not his true goal. Jonathan Swift skillfully used different styles of writing, such as imagery and irony, to show why the

    Read More

  • A Modest Proposal And A Tale Of A Tub

    744 Words  | 3 Pages

    Jonathan Swift has written many literature classics such as, “Gulliver’s Travels,” “A Modest Proposal,” and “A Tale of a Tub.” He was coined a major figure of English literature and “a satirist, cleric and political pamphleteer” (Jonathan Swift, 2012). Along with his most classical literature, Swift has written approximately 17 essays, tracts, pamphlets, periodicals , 34 poems, five personal writings, and five sermons or prayers. Jonathan Swift was born November 30, 1667 in Dublin, Ireland.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Devices In A Modest Proposal

    1413 Words  | 6 Pages

    1729, a Papist infected Ireland was being devoured by the taxes that the British placed on them. The taxes were turning into what once was a glorious place into ruins. Jonathan Swift, an Englishman and Irish sympathizer, realized that someone had to do something to wake up the British. This lead to the creation of A Modest Proposal, a pamphlet heavy with irony and juvenalian satire, which was how Jonathan Swift planned on compelling the British to do something about the poor situation in Ireland. His use of rhetorical devices gets his point across in an effective and powerful way.

    Read More

  • Jonathan Swift The Lady Dressing Room Analysis

    831 Words  | 4 Pages

    Swift presents his writing piece by introducing Celia, a woman described as “The

    Read More

  • An Argument Against Abolishing Christianity, And A Modest Proposal

    543 Words  | 3 Pages

    Critically acclaimed satirist and fictional writer Jonathan Swift lived a life of controversy and social revelation. Swift was best known for his extraordinary tale, Gulliver’s Travels. However, he also wrote numerous other works of fiction, satire, and prose, including A Tale of a Tub, An Argument Against Abolishing Christianity, and A Modest Proposal. Swift is well known for his ability to be straight-forward, yet critical. This is due to his own experiences with life, relationships, and religion.

    Read More

  • A Modest Proposal: Juvenalian Satire

    793 Words  | 4 Pages

    The large-scale issue of poverty is dated all the way back to the 18th Century and it continues today. To raise awareness about this issue, two very brilliant writers, Jonathan Swift and Fred Grimm used different forms of satire to get their points across. Jonathan Swift is an 18th Century writer, who used Juvenalian satire in his work “A Modest Proposal” to inform the English about the raising number of those in poverty in Ireland. Juvenalian satire is often a bitter, or angry form of satire that criticizes a corruption. Fred Grimm started writing for the Miami Herald in the 20th Century, he used Horatian satire in his column “State budget solution:

    Read More

  • Use Of Satire In Chaucer's Canterbury Tales

    1025 Words  | 5 Pages

    He uses Satire in his writings to get his message across to the common people during the 1300’s. Satire is defined as the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people 's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues. The main story Chaucer uses satire to criticize the community in which he lives is in his stories the Canterbury Tales. “Despite its distracting tone, there are several important issues at the center of this debate. Questions of puns in Chaucer are not always undecidable, nor need their existence be dependent solely on critical ingenuity or moral delicacy”(Dane).

    Read More

  • A Modest Proposal By Jonathan Swift

    193 Words  | 1 Pages

    Best known for writing Gulliver's Travels, he was dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin. Most of the writings of Jonathan Swift were published under pseudonyms. He remembered about this book of 1726 book Gulliver’s Travels. Excerpt From “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift A Modest Proposal for Preventing the Children of Poor People From Being a Burthen to Their Parents

    Read More

  • How Did Jonathan Swift Detest His Education

    562 Words  | 3 Pages

    Jonathan Swift was born into an English family on November 30, 1667 in Dublin. Shortly after he was born his father died leaving him, his mother and his sister reliant on his fathers family. He was raised for his first three years by a nurse while his mother was in England. Even though his mother left he was still put in the best schools Dublin could provide. However Swift detested school do to it’s rigorous education in Latin grammar and it’s use of corporal punishment.

    Read More

More about Jonathan Swift's Satirical Work

Open Document