(Jonathan Swift's eligious Beliefs)
Nowhere did Jonathan Swift show his capacity for satire than in his work, 'A Modest Proposal', for preventing the Children of Poor People in Ireland from Being a Burden to their Parents or Country, and for making them Beneficial to the Public. Jonathan mentions within this work, "the streets, the roads, the cabin doors, crowded with beggars of the female sex, followed by there, four, or sic children," and these children, he stated, would all be dressed in rags, and, being hungry and starving, beg for food to fill their stomachs. Their mothers, too, would be forced to stroll through the streets, in search of alms, so that they may feed their infants and children. These poor deprived children would, inevitably, become thieves as they became older, for want of any other work. Otherwise, Jonathan says, they would leave their dear native country, and then have…...

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References

Modest Proposal. Retrieved at   Accessed on 17 July, 2005http://art-bin.com/art/omodest.html .

Biography of Jonathan Swift. Retrieved at Accessed on 17 July, 2005http://www.bookrags.com/biography-jonathan-swift/.

Have you Eaten Yet? The Reader in a modest proposal. Retrieved at   on 17 July, 2005http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5000411050Accessed 

Jonathan Isaac Bickerstaff Swift: (1667-1745). Retrieved at   Accessed on 17 July, 2005http://www.incompetech.com/authors/swift/ .

Swift's Gulliver's Travels
'My Reconcilement to the Yahoo-kind in general might not be so difficult, if they would be content with those Vices and Follies only which Nature hath entitled them," (Chapter 12). The narrator's words illustrate a universal aspect of human nature: the creation of an "us vs. them" mentality that at its worst leads to racism. In fact, Gulliver's voyage to the land of the Houyhnhnms contains elements of racial tension and ethnic identity. The Houyhnhnms are the dominant race; although they do exhibit positive qualities to aspire to, such as altruism, intelligence, and rationality, they nevertheless persecute the Yahoos and even suggest castrating them to kill of their race. While the Houyhnhnms are admirable in many respects, Gulliver fails to notice their faults and failings. For instance, the Houyhnhnms are excessively rational and in some ways symbolize an exaggeration of human reason. Nevertheless, Gulliver wishes to remain with…...

The primary reason for this is the fact that people like Swift's projector and various politicians like him are far too successful in manipulating language to their own advantage. hile Orwell did not live in our day, he was truly a visionary and he is not far off the mark when it comes to politics and the power of persuasion. Swift reinforces this notion with his proposal, which is anything but modest. Swift's projector proves Orwell's theory that we can manipulate language and, as a result, language becomes a major factor in human thought. Thought, in turn, influences language, and together, these manipulations can mean nothing but trouble. If we allow such atrocities to occur, we will surely live with nothing but a world of deceivers in a few decades. ords mean things and it is important to keep language free from negative influence of humanity whenever we can.…...

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Works Cited

Orwell, George. "Politics and the English Language." The Norton Reader. New York W.W. Norton and Company. 2008.

Swift, Jonathon. "A Modest Proposal." The Norton Reader. New York W.W. Norton and Company. 2008.

The Examiner No. 14." Gulliver's Travels and Other Writings. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. 1960.

Swift
'The Lady's Dressing Room" is an offhanded ode to women by Jonathan Swift and narrated by the Queen of Love. The poem basically describes the dressing room of Celia, seen through the spying eyes of her lover Strephon. Strephon has so idealized his beloved -- and all other women -- that when he realizes that she is a mere human being, he wretches. Finally he realizes, "Oh! Celia, Celia, Celia shits!" Swift's poem is not, as a casual reading would suggest, disparaging toward women. Rather, Swift points out that while Celia may be vain and self-conscious, obsessed with her appearance, she is nevertheless a human being. Strephon has failed to acknowledge Celia's humanity and so when he sees stains on her stockings and smells her bodily discharges, he is turned off to all women. The Queen of Love laments Strephon's attitude in the final stanza of the poem: "I pity…...

Product Liability
Jonathan Swift's use of satire in his story "Gulliver's Travels" is not only a useful employment of its best purposes but perhaps also the only way to craft this type of critical argument. Critical thought towards society and its class structure has always been art's most powerful trait. Swift's literature is used in this manner in his famous story. The purpose of this essay is to examine Swift's use of satire in his attempts to socially comment on his environment. This essay will give several examples of this approach in the story and relate these instances into the larger theme of the author's style and approach.

Example 1: Gulliver's First Discovery

Swift's 1726 story, Gulliver's Travels was written from the standpoint of a naval shipping surgeon or doctor named Lemuel Gulliver. Gulliver is an eager and open minded middle class English gentlemen married without any children. The story begins as Gulliver…...

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Works Cited

Swift, Jonathon. "Gulliver's Travels Into Several Nations of The World." Project Gutenberg, 15 Jun 2009. Web. 12 Mar 2013. .

Thus, in 1714, Swift returned to Ireland, "to die like a poisoned rat in a hole," as he reported (Hunting 22).
Yet Swift slowly reconciled himself to his life in Ireland and the 1720's proved to be an incredibly creative time for him, including his famous "Gulliver's Travels" in 1726 (Hunting 23). In his seventieth year he wrote that walking though the streets of Dublin, he received "a thousand hats and blessings" (Hunting 24).

Swift was a great Irish patriot and became a popular hero and legend in his own lifetime and achieved all the fame he had so passionately desired when young (Rowse 215). After his death he became a figure of folklore, and all around Ireland, there are spots associated with him such as Laracor, ood Park Kilroot and Gosford (Rowse 215). In the Deanery at St. Patrick's his skull ornamented the sideboard in the dining-room, a secular relic…...

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Works Cited

Ireland: Culture & Heritage" Irish America. 7/31/2004; Pp.

The Bearing of the Green: Some Thoughts on Being Irish-American."

Irish America. 11/30/2000; Pp.

O'Brien, Edna. James Joyce. Viking Penguin. 1999; pp. 2, 9, 10, 11,15.

ollstonecraft calls for equality among men, rather than inequality based on money, privilege and being wellborn. Again the duality of power and oppression is spoken of with zeal as ollstonecraft goes on to pick apart all of the institutions that so many hold dear by virtue of false assumptions and tradition.
There is really no conflict that has been more detailed and railed against than the duality of power and oppression and yet this duality reinvents itself over and over in the culture of man, with the powerful claiming superior knowledge and the oppressed being taught the rhetoric that supports it. In Swift's comical economic writing about the need to find an economic solution for a human problem as well as in ollstonecraft's assassination of faulty and self-aggrandizing power mongering there is clear demonstration of this duality as it appears in their context and by their observations. Each of these…...

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Works Cited

Swift, Jonathan, Craig, Hardin, ed. Jonathan Swift: Selections. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1924.

Wollstonecraft, Mary. A Vindication of the Rights of Men; a Vindication of the Rights of Woman; an Historical and Moral View of the French Revolution. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1994.

Jonathan Swift wrote “A Modest Proposal” in 1729 as piece of political satire, or as Cody (2000) puts it, a “disgusted parody” and a “savage indictment,” (p. 1). As it falls within the genre of satire, there is a healthy dose of humor embedded in the text but also rich political commentary as well. As both the course text and Cody (2000) point out, Swift was concerned about issues like class conflict and discrimination against the Irish. Swift recognized that the English were systematically exploiting the Irish. “A Modest Proposal” makes an outlandish case for eating children as the solution to poverty.
Swift writes “A Modest Proposal” in first person, effectively making it seem that he truly believes in what he is saying. The approach can be considered ironic, in that what Swift states on the surface is not precisely what he means. The entire substantive content, and not just the…...

Jonathan Swift's "A Modest Proposal" is quite an unusual work of literature, and one which certainly has a surprise ending. The only allusions to the wild solution that the author will offer to the very real problem plaguing the streets of Ireland -- that of the unfortunate beggar children and their mothers of Irish distinction -- is the fact that it is quite obvious that this essay is a satire. All satires create humor around human folly; that which is made laughable time and again throughout this narrative is the lack of concern on the part of the English for the plight of the Irish. It is due to this lack of concern that Swift quite facetiously, and more than a little bit sarcastically, advocates eating the misfortunate children, which is the surprise ending of this essay -- as well as the fact that the author, after advocating this…...

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References

Swift, J. (1729). "A modest proposal." www.victorianweb.org. Retrieved from  http://www.victorianweb.org/previctorian/swift/modest.html

" For example, of the materialism and penchant for "conspicuous consumption" among Romans of the time, Juvenal observes:
in Rome we must toe the line of fashion, spending beyond our means, and often non-borrowed credit.

It's a universal failing: here we all live in pretentious poverty. To cut a long story short, there's a price-tag on everything in Rome. hat does it cost to greet Cossus, or extract one tight-lipped nod from Veiento the honors-broker? (180-5).

Criticizing the inflated costs of everything in Rome, Juvenal also states:

inflation swells the rent of your miserable flat, inflation hits the keep of your hungry slaves, your own humble dinner. (166-7)

Moreover, within the declining Roman society described by Juvenal's Third Satire, wealth is so revered for its own sake that, when, for instance, a rich man's house burns to the ground, his house and all his belongings will soon be replaced by better than what he had…...

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Works Cited

Damrosch. David et al., Eds. The Longman Anthology World Literature. Vol.

A. New York: Pearson, 2004. 1309; 1353.

Dryden, John. "Discourse concerning the Original and Progress of Satire (Abridged)."

Dryden's "Discourse on Satire" (Abridged). Ed. Jack Lynch.

Pope and Swift: Satirists of Their Day
In Swift's Verses on the Death of Dr. Swift and Pope's An Epistle to Arbuthnot, the authors seem to vindicate their use of satire, while satirizing others. Alexander Pope, in his preface to An Epistle to Arbuthnot, identifies the motivation of the poem as a response to attacks on his "Person, Morals, and Family" and to give "truer information" of himself (Pope 1733). Pope warns readers that many would recognize allusions to them in it, "but I have, for the most part spar'd their Names, and they may escape being laugh'd at" (Pope 1733). In 1731, shortly before Pope wrote his Epistle, Pope's friend Jonathan Swift completed Verses on the Death of Dr. Swift and published it almost a decade later in 1739. After his friend Esther Johnson died, the theme of death "became a frequent feature in Swift's life" (Wikipedia, 2012). Swift then…...

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Bibliography

Deutsch, Helen. (1993). The "truest copies" and the "mean original:" pope, deformity, and the poetics of self-exposure. Eighteenth-Century Studies, Vol. 27, No. 1. 1-26.

Fischer, J. Irwin. (1970) How to Die: Verses on the Death of Dr. Swift. The Review of English Studies, New Series, Vol. 21, No. 84. 422-441.

Jonathan Swift. (2012, May 4). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 21:34, May 10, 2012, from  http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jonathan_Swift&oldid=490658106 

Pope, Alexander. (1733). An Epistle to Arbuthnot. Ed. Jack Lynch. Retrieved May 10, 2012, from Jack Lynch's website: http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch/Texts/arbuthnot.html

(2179)
Here we have another example of how Swift uses his setting as a perfect weapon for his argument. Not all people are respected and soome are treated badly. These statements are morbid but they are true and that is why this essay succeeds.

Swift's satire has a greter impact because he opens his argument up for debate. Any argument is allowable as long as it is "equally innocent, cheap, easy, and effectual" (2180). Furthermore, he writes to anyone that believes they have a better solution to the problems to:

ask the parents of these mortals, whether they would not at this day think it a great happiness to have been sold for food at a year old, in the manner I prescribe, and thereby have avoided such a perpetual scene of misfortunes, as they have since gone through, by the oppression of landlords, the impossibility of paying rent without money or…...

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Works Cited

Swift, Jonathan. "Modest Proposal." The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Vol. II. Abrams, H. H, etal, eds. New York W.W. Norton and Company. 1986.

Reason in the faith and satire of Dryden and Swift
The neoclassical age in which both John Dryden and Jonathan Swift penned their most noteworthy prose is often also called 'The Age of Reason.' However, although this valorization of reason and rationality may be a fair characterization of much of the Age of human Enlightenment, Dryden and Swift do not deploy nor valorize reason in the same fashion. For Dryden, reason is the key to humanity's connection with the divine and political freedom. In Swift's social and religious satires, however, human confidence in its rationality is just as absurd as overconfidence in human religious political and social institutions to create just and fair societies.

Dryden's religious poem "Religio Laici" begins with a definition of reason as the most perfect mode of the ultimate human understanding of the divine. Dryden writes, "as the borrow'd beams of moon and stars./To lonely, weary, wand'ring…...

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Works Cited

Dryden, John. Absalom and Achitophel" Accessed on April 25, 2004 at  http://eir.library.utoronto.ca/rpo/display/poem736.html 

Dryden, John. "Religio Laci." Accessed on April 25, 2004 at Plagarist.com

Swift, Jonathan. "The Battle of the Books." From A Tale of a Tub. Originally published 1704.

Swift, Jonathan. A Tale of a Tub. Originally published 1704.

Jonathan Swift (1667-1745)
Satire and Irony in Dublin

LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT

Jonathan Swift is widely regarded as the greatest writer of satire in English literature. Yet it is crucial for understanding Swift's satire to know that he was not really English. Swift was born in Dublin in 1667, to a family that originally had emigrated from England -- for this reason, he is generally described as "Anglo-Irish." Swift did his university studies in Dublin at Trinity College, graduating in 1686. From here he became the personal secretary to a politician and writer, Sir William Temple, and moved to England. Political machinations, however, hampered Swift's advancement in a political career -- instead he would end up taking a position in the Protestant Church of Ireland, ultimately rising to the position of Dean at Saint Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin.

Swift's career encompassed both literature and politics. As a wit and satirist, he was close friends…...

Modern capitalist philosophy has been advanced in a way that has little to do with what Smith really thought and taught. Smith believed that the invisible hand operated in a societal context. The reason Smith had such a positive philosophy of freedom was that he believed that human beings, would behave best if not compelled to merely serve the personal interests of a sovereign. Humans had a right to self-determination and to serve their own interests. However, when competition was threatened -- for example, when individuals by fair means or foul gained too much market power and created monopolies -- then it was appropriate for the government to step in. Smith believed that self-interest could prove to be beneficial to others but he did not believe that selfishness was an end in and of itself.
Justice and democracy are necessary for capitalism to function, but the rampant selfishness and lack…...

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References

Bodenheimer, Thomas & Robert Gould. The Reagan Doctrine: Third World Rollback.

From Rollback. South End Press, 1989.

Overbye, Daniel. (2009, March 9).They tried to outsmart Wall Street. The New York Times.

Retrieved April 25, 2010 at  http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/10/science/10quant.html

That sounds like an interesting essay, because Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” is so-often held up as the prime example of satire.  Would be a fascinating read, especially if you are arguing that “Huck Finn” offers a more effective use of satire. Here are a few ideas for essay titles.

1. Eat the Poor: The Satirical Approach to Class in “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” and “A Modest Proposal”
2. Less than Human: Race, Class, and Satire
3. Hypocrisy and Piosity: How Swift and Twain Use Satire to Explore Religion
4. The Impact of Realism on Satire
5. Is Subtle Satire or Overt Satire More Effective?  An Examination....

Yes, there are many essay topics in literature that can be debated from opposing viewpoints. Some examples include:

1. The role of fate vs. free will in Shakespeare's plays
2. The moral ambiguity of the protagonist in F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby"
3. The portrayal of gender and sexuality in Virginia Woolf's works
4. The effectiveness of satire in Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver's Travels"
5. The value of studying classic literature vs. contemporary literature

These topics can lead to interesting and thought-provoking debates, as they allow for different interpretations and perspectives on the themes and messages presented in literary works.
6. The impact of historical context on....

1. The Influence of Shakespeare on Modern Literature

2. The Role of Women in Shakespearean Drama

3. The Use of Symbolism in J.D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye"

4. The Theme of Isolation in Emily Bronte's "Wuthering Heights"

5. The Depiction of the American Dream in F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby"

6. The Evolution of the English Language from Old English to Modern English

7. The Impact of Colonialism on English Literature

8. The Representation of Mental Illness in Sylvia Plath's Poetry

9. The Relationship Between Science and Literature in Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein"

10. The Use of Satire in Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver's Travels"

11. The Role of Race....

Selecting Essay Topics Covering English: A Comprehensive Guide

Introduction
Essay writing is an integral part of English studies, allowing students to showcase their analytical, critical thinking, and writing abilities. Choosing the right topic is crucial for producing an effective essay. This guide provides comprehensive guidance on selecting essay topics that effectively cover various aspects of English.

Types of English Essays
Before selecting a topic, it is essential to understand the different types of English essays:

Argumentative: Presents a persuasive argument supported by evidence and analysis.
Analytical: Examines a text or idea, breaking it down into its components and discussing its significance.
Comparative: Compares and....