House of Notes

Is swift a misanthrope? Swift is not a misanthrope rather he is a philanthrope. It is the misconception of those who think Swift as a misanthrope. Swift only wants to reform mankind out of their follies and stupidities. He says that the chief end of all his labour is: “to vex the world rather than divert it”. Secondly, he declares that: “I have ever hated all nations, professions, and communities and all his love is towards individuals.” Thirdly, though Swift does not believe that: “Man is a rational animal”. Yet he believes that: “Man is capable of becoming rational if he makes the necessary efforts.” But we see that Swift is notorious for being misanthrope. He was subjected to this allegation during his lifetime because the critics, identifying Gulliver with Swift, attributed Gulliver’s blunders to Swift. That Gulliver, in the last voyage, becomes a misanthrope is undeniable and indisputable. Prima facie, it appears that ...

Mock Utopia: An ideal world Jonathan Swift is a great satirist, moralist and above all an unforgettable literary figure. Hisage was full of corruption, follies and social evils. As a sensitive satirist Swift considered it his own responsibility to awake the society and make them aware about their follies and absurdities. He wanted to make his society pure from these evils. For this purpose he adopted the form of a travelogue because in those days travel books were very popular. It was his brilliant idea so that his message could reach the maximum number of people. The poets and writers of his age were also busy in reforming people by their writings. They presented the ideal world “Utopia” before their readers and inspired them to follow all the good rules and regulations so that the world could become an ideal world. They only described the good habits which they wanted in their countrymen and totally neglected the vices which were prevailing in the society. But, Swift as a ...

  Purpose of writing Gulliver’s Travels                                      Or      Idea behind the “Gulliver’s Travels Undoubtedly, “Gulliver’s Travels” is the most favourite work of Jonathon Swift. In it he has mixed the ideas of adventure, fantasy, wonder and shock to capture the reader’s attention. But like all the mature works the aspect of entertainment is not neglected. Hence, the “Gulliver’sTravels” is not ‘entertainment for the sake of entertainment’. Reading the book but ignoring the purpose behind it, would be a great injustice to this great satirical work of its age. In order to comprehend the idea behind “Gulliver’s Travels” one needs to look into the background be hind this adventurous tale. “The Martinis is Sariblerus Club” made of such notable...

Swift prose style            Or                Swift: a prose writer           In prose, style is a special way of presenting ideas i.e. how a writer says something. The analysis and assessment of style involves examination of a writer’s choice of words, his figures of speech, the shape of his sentences, the shape of his paragraphs, in short every aspect of his language and the way he uses it. As far as, Swift as a literary artist is concerned, he is vastly regarded as an original, authentic and intellectual writer, who always remained blind of the charm of fame.           Swift’s writings never limited to the cheap purpose of gaining popularity. In fact, a theological and intellectual current always flows through his pages. His purpose was not to get imaginative insig...

Satire in Gulliver’s Travel Or   Gulliver’s Travels as a Satiric Masterpiece                Or Swift as a Satirist Gulliver’s Travels” is one of the best knows works of “Jonathan Swift”. This book is vastly seen as a ‘Child book’, a ‘Travelogue’, a ‘Novel’ and a ‘Fantasy’ depicting voyage. But, the real value of the book is in the satire that we find in this book. In order to feel the intensity of satire found in “Gulliver’s Travel”, let us first have a true understanding of the term ‘satire’. Dryden claimed that “The true end of the satire is the amendment of the vices.” Defoe thinks it is “reformation”. The satirist is a man who takes responsibility to ensure and ridicule the follies and vices of the society. Thus satire is a kind of protest against the corruption of the society. Swift wrote “Gulliver’s Travels” ‘to vex the world rather than divert it.’ To achieve his satirical intentions, Swif...