Historically famous critics
Jonathan Swift
1667-1745 · Anglo-Irish · Enlightenment
Anglo-Irish satirist who savaged English misrule, corruption, and human folly
Swift is the foremost prose satirist in the English language, a clergyman who used irony as a scalpel on the vanities of power. In Gulliver’s Travels he shrank and magnified humanity until its cruelty and pride became grotesque, and in A Modest Proposal he coolly suggested the Irish poor sell their babies as food to shame England’s exploitation of Ireland. His fury at injustice, dressed in perfect deadpan, set the standard for political satire ever since.
Essays to read on AltWoke
6 essays, full text, free. Grouped by the collection they appeared in.
The Battle of the Books and Other Short Pieces (5)
A Modest Proposal (1)
Wrote against
- English rule of Ireland
- political corruption
- religious hypocrisy
- human pride and folly
- exploitation of the poor
- party and court politics
- false learning
Books
Complete bibliography. Public-domain titles link to the full text; others link out to read, borrow, or buy.
- A Tale of a TubProject Gutenberg · free, public domain1704
- The Battle of the Books and Other Short PiecesProject Gutenberg · free, public domain1704
- The Drapier's LettersInternet Archive · free, public domain1724
- Gulliver's TravelsProject Gutenberg · free, public domain1726
- A Modest ProposalProject Gutenberg · free, public domain1729
- Journal to Stellawritten 1710-1713Internet Archive · free, public domain1766
Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica: Jonathan Swift
- Poetry Foundation: Jonathan Swift