A Classic Filled With Energy And Controversy

     Jonathan Swift is one of the best known satirists in the history of literature. When one reads his works, especially something like Gulliver’s Travels, it is easy for one to spot the misanthropic themes, which emerge within his characterization. Lamuel Gulliver is an excellent protagonist: a keen observer, and a good representative of his native England, but one who loses faith in mankind as his story progresses. He ends up in remote areas of the world all by accidents in his voyages. In each trip, he is shipwrecked and mysteriously arrives to lands never before seen by men. This forms an interesting rhythm in the novel: as Gulliver is given more and more responsibility, he tends to be less

Gulliver’s Travels was written during the 18th Century and mocks the governing spirit among the English and people of Europe of that time, and even extends to all of mankind. Swift uses metaphors to expose society of its pretensions and reveals his disapproval of their behaviour. Swift’s clever use of satire achieves this by not directly addressing the flaws of the English but by doing so in a veiled manner,

Throughout all of Jonathan Swift’s writings there are many commonalities. One in particular that stands out is the use of satire throughout both “Gulliver’s Travels”, which tells the story of a series of voyages of Lemuel Gulliver’s published in 1726, and “A Modest Proposal”, where Swift uses the idea of cannibalism to captivate his audience as well as focus on society’s problems. Throughout Swift’s life, politics and religion had a huge impact on him and more importantly, his writing. Many of the satires that Swift uses in his works have to do with politics and the changing ways of the Catholic church in the 1800’s.

“Satire is a literary technique in which people's behaviors or society's institutions are ridiculed for the purpose of bringing about social reform” (Holt). Swift’s use of satire to address controversial concerns during the time period is one of the reasons this story is still relevant and analyzed by students today. Swift keenly uses satirical elements such as incongruity and parody to deliver uncompromising commentary on English politics and humanity as a whole, and it does it so effectively that he has been called “the greatest satirist in the English Language” (Holt).

The great satirist Jonathan Swift once wrote, out of experience, “satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but their own.” As ironic as this statement may be, as he’s pointing out a flaw about satirists, which is that they offer solutions to other’s problems, it is remotely true. Satire is a unique genre of writing that opposes from that of romanticism and realism through of the different styles of writing, the different tone, along with the intended audience of the author.

During the Age of Enlightenment, people began believing in and relying upon rational thought instead of religious dogma to explain the world. This newfound emphasis on rationality promoted a breadth of freedom in speech that was previously unknown, a fact which was utilized by philosophers such as John Locke, Rousseau, and Sir Isaac Newton. In addition, the Age of Enlightenment produced famous writers who didn’t agree with the irrational politics and old traditions of their respective countries, and instead relied upon wit and satire to expose the corruption and poor human condition existing around them. These Enlightenment writers use irony in their satires to get their interpretations regarding the human condition across.

In the novel Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift, the influence that society has on Gulliver is very detectable in this book. Throughout the novel, Gulliver repeatedly, finds himself in predicaments because societal norms and the role of government in our society. Swift shows how the idea of who people are due to their position in society. Gulliver is an outsider to the society of Lilliput, he tries to fit into their world but fails, not only because of his size but because of their governmental treason. I believe, Swift wrote the story of Liliput to try and illustrate to us the idea that society and government corrupts individuals. This is shown by the relationships between Gulliver and self-oriented individuals and society-oriented individuals.

Gulliver’s Travel became Swift’s most known works. Gulliver’s Travels works setting, characters, and plot is split up into four separate journeys, which are all made by a sea loving physician named Gulliver(“Gulliver’s Travels” 76) . As said in the article “Gulliver’s Travels.” In the first and most famous journey, Gulliver signed up to be a ship doctor. But the ship gets swept into a whirlpool. When Gulliver wakes up he is on a foreign shore surrounded and tied up by tiny people (76). In Gulliver's second trip a terrible storm sends Gulliver and his crew onto an unfamiliar shore where they find out giants live there. Gulliver asks the king of the land, questions about the giants politics and the religion of the land, but the king eventually gets annoyed and kicks Gulliver off the land and into the ocean (76). On the third journey Gulliver’s ship is captured by pirates which then leave him on an abandoned island where Gulliver looks up and sees a floating island. Gulliver then learns that the inhabitants on the island live only the laws of science and math. When Gulliver learns a lot about these people he sets sail for home to tell about his findings (77). In Gulliver’s last voyage he lands on an island with two types of “people,” talking horses who have established society based on reason rather than emotion. Also hairy humanoids that are slaves to the horses. Gulliver lives with the horses until the horses can’t tell Gulliver apart from the hairy humanoids. So Gulliver is then exiled for lying (77). This was the plot of Swift's best and most criticised

Satire is a method used by multitudes of authors and other artists for a plethora of different reasons. The ways that this method of literature is used is varied, and it is always interesting and somewhat difficult to find out exactly why these texts are written. A specific author who is known for utilizing satire in his works of literature is Jonathan Swift, whose hard-hitting essay “A Modest Proposal For Preventing the Children of Poor People in Ireland, from Being a Burden on Their Parents or Country, and for Making Them Beneficial to the Publick” is one of the most popular and analyzed texts within the world of satire, and truly makes one think about the art. One article that explores Swift’s use of satire within “A Modest Proposal” is Paddy Bullord’s “The Scriblerian Mock-Arts” This essay delves deeply into Swift’s works, and the art of satire in itself and is a great way to explore Swift’s work. The main question about Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” that will be explained and explored through this paper is this; what prompts Swift to write about his points using irony and satire, even though satire is a method that metaphorically goes over the head of its readers?

According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, “Satire is a way of using humor to show that someone or something is foolish, weak, or bad. It shows the weaknesses or bad qualities of a person, government, society, etc.” Satire is a part of everyday life and authors have utilized it for many years while penning narrative stories. One of these authors is Jonathan Swift. Satire is used in many different ways to prove a political point, and Swift’s approach confirms that there is not just one way of satirizing a subject. Satirists may use the descriptions of their characters or the plot sequences to prove their points. Some of these points may be valid while some other points may be highly invalid. Satirical points work just like everyday statements and propositions. They are either valid or invalid and either true or false. The satire of an author portrays his or her view towards life and politics. Jonathan Swift’s view was opposing most of his contemporaries and he championed a classical way of thinking. Classicism is not a bad idea but can be taken to the extreme like everything else. Learning and discovering

Any such claim which judges both Gulliver’s and Swift’s opinions on human nature as the same is perhaps missing the nuances of the text. True, Gulliver is a misanthrope, which is quite evident from the fourth book. Subsequently, Swift’s reflections on humankind evolve out of Gulliver’s misanthropic antics, which hold a cautious optimism regarding their future. His satirical handling of Gulliver’s misanthropy is quite curious to decipher, since it destabilizes the earlier suggestion solution of Houyhnhnms as the ideal model. However, it has to be hypothesised as to whether Swift is anti-humanist, descrying the excess of incurable optimism, the maniacal zeal to discover and the misuse of Reason. For such excess has brought a deluge of problems upon man, due to incessant wars, dangerous inventions and the degraded human nature, as Gulliver proudly narrates to the king of Brobdingnag. Swift’s discourse, neatly enmeshed along with Gulliver’s misanthropic tirades isn’t merely any rational diatribe on the degenerated position of man; it envisages the scope of humankind to regain its honour and glory. Moreover, to trace out Swift’s outlook on human nature, it would be necessary to carefully analyse the gradual structuring of Gulliver’s misanthropy and figure out the ambiguities within. Any such analysis has to begin with the letter from Gulliver to his

To understand Swift’s satire, we must first understand how “Gulliver’s Travels” and “Robinson Crusoe” are similar, yet inherently different. The opening chapters of “Robinson Crusoe” place the novel within the context of a providential moderation and a desire to refuse the natural constraints of duty and familial obligation. This is made clear in the opening speech given to the narrator by Crusoe’s father, in

The prominence of Jonathon Swift and his work is undeniable in the Eighteenth Century. Swift’s emergence into the literary world was spurned on by writing about politics and religion with his strong opinions and wit. Other famous works by Swift include A Tale of a Tub and The Battle of the Books based on the corruptions in religion and learning at the time. Swift’s works in literature were often written to further a cause or reaction. The idea of the antagonising satirist is reiterated in a conversation between Pope and Swift, with Swift stating “The chief end I propose in all my labours is to vex the world rather than divert it’. Swift aims to educate readers on what is actually going on at the forefront of culture at the time through his works, with the embodiment of human downfall and vice being satirised through the characters of Gulliver’s Travels.

Born on November 30, 1667, Irish author, clergyman and satirist Jonathan Swift grew up fatherless. Under the care of his uncle, he received a bachelor's degree from Trinity College and then worked as a statesman's assistant. Eventually, he became dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin. Most of his writings were published under pseudonyms. He best remembered for his 1726 book Gulliver's Travels.

Authors write in many different forms and use many different elements in their works. One of these elements that writers use is called “satire.” This element is used to make fun of something that the author disapproves of in a comical but hidden way. Widely considered as one of the greatest satirists to ever live, Jonathan Swift used satire in his works to express his disgust in society and the British Monarchy during the 18th century. One of the greatest satires ever written by Swift was Gulliver’s Travels. In Gulliver’s Travels, satire is evident through Gulliver’s voyage to Lilliput, his dialogue with Lilliput’s emperor, and his time spent within the kingdom of Brobdingnag.